Rafa Jódar rallies past Van de Zandschulp to reach Shanghai Masters quarterfinals
The 20-year-old Spaniard won 6-7(4), 6-4, 6-2 after losing the opening set, his third straight comeback at the tournament. He will next face Casper Ruud on Friday, 16 October, after Felix Auger-Aliassime retired injured in the first set of their match.
The match
Rafa Jódar beat Botic van de Zandschulp 6-7(4), 6-4, 6-2 on Wednesday, 14 October, to reach the quarterfinals of the Shanghai Masters 1000 on hard courts. It is the eighth Masters 1000 event of the season, and Jódar's fourth quarterfinal at this level this year after Montreal, Rome and Madrid. The 20-year-old from Madrid is seeded 12th in Shanghai and ranked 13th in the world, according to EL MUNDO and EL PAÍS. The match lasted about two hours and 30 minutes.
Van de Zandschulp, ranked 41st and 31 years old according to EL PAÍS, came into the match on a run of wins over Dani Mérida, Alex Michelsen and Arthur Fils. He served strongly and conceded only two break points in the first set. Jódar reached the last 16 after beating Argentina's Agustín Tirante in the first round and Czech player Jiri Lehecka in the second, and this win was his third consecutive comeback at the tournament.
Three sets, two comebacks
The Dutchman took the opening set on a tie-break, 7-4, after Jódar had two break points with the score 4-3 in his favour and did not convert either. Jódar then broke at the start of the second set, but Van de Zandschulp broke back in the sixth game. According to Europa Press, Jódar broke again in the seventh game and held his serve to take the set 6-4.
In the decider Jódar broke in the first game and then again in the seventh, holding his own serve in between. He closed the set 6-2 and the match with a comfortable finish. The timeline below sets out the three sets.
- Van de Zandschulp wins 7-4 in the tie-break after Jódar misses two break points
- Jódar wins 6-4 after breaking in the seventh game
- Jódar wins 6-2 after breaking in the first and seventh games
Warning on court
At the start of the second set, after missing a break point, Jódar lashed out at a ball kid with an insult while demanding a towel. LaSexta reports that the chair umpire gave him a warning, which carries a financial penalty, and told him that this is not how players speak to ball kids. Afterwards his manner towards the ball kids became noticeably more courteous, and the outlet said he should take a lesson from the episode into future matches.
Ruud next and the race to Turin
Jódar will meet Casper Ruud in the quarterfinals on Friday, 16 October, after Felix Auger-Aliassime, ranked fifth in the world according to EL MUNDO, retired injured in the first set of their match. EL MUNDO also reports that Carlos Alcaraz, ranked No. 3, lost to Belgium's Zizou Bergs, and that Alejandro Davidovich Fokina reached the quarterfinals on Tuesday. Jódar is the tenth Spaniard to reach the Shanghai quarterfinals, and the Shanghai title is the only Masters 1000 trophy never won by a Spanish player.
Before the match, Jódar spoke about his goal for the season and his place in the Race to Turin:
If I achieve it, I will be very happy.
Jódar is still in contention for the ATP Finals. Álex de Miñaur, who beat Karen Khachanov on Tuesday, sits ninth in the Race, the last qualifying place after Jannik Sinner's injury, ahead of Novak Djokovic and Jódar.
