Top-ranked Alcaraz cruises into Swiss Indoors quarterfinals

Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz returns a ball to Botic van de Zandschulp from the Netherlands during their round of sixteen match at the Swiss Indoors tennis tournament at the St. Jakobshalle in Basel, Switzerland, Wednesday. (Georgios Kefalas/Keystone via AP)
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BASEL, Switzerland — Top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz eased into the quarterfinals at the Swiss Indoors by beating Botic van de Zandchulp 6-4, 6-2 on Wednesday.

The 19-year-old Spaniard clinched the win with his only ace in a second-round match where he had 20 winners and made just nine unforced errors.

Alcaraz’s serve was broken once and he trailed 2-0 in the second set before reeling off six straight games against the 35th-ranked Dutchman.

Third-seeded Felix Auger-Aliassime was on court before Alcaraz in a first-round match and won 6-7 (3), 6-4, 6-4 against Swiss wild-card entry Marc-Andrea Huesler.

Two seeded players lost their first-round matches, with No. 7 Alex de Minaur falling 6-2, 7-5 against 25th-ranked teenager Holger Rune.

In the previous Swiss Indoors edition, in 2019 before the tournament was canceled twice because of the COVID-19 pandemic, De Minaur lost in the final as Roger Federer won a record 10th title at his hometown event.

Eighth-seeded Lorenzo Musetti cruised through the first set before losing 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 against Albert Ramos-Vinolas, the 34-year-old Spaniard.

In a second-round match, Arthur Rinderknech beat Alex Molcan 6-2, 6-4.