[Source: Reuters]

Third seed Carlos Alcaraz overcame a nervy start to beat Briton Jack Draper 6-4 6-4 on Wednesday and reach the Italian Open semi-finals for the first time.

Four-times Grand Slam champion Alcaraz, who is gearing up to defend the French Open title later this month, fired off 24 winners in a strong performance to seal victory.

“The most important thing that I did today was not thinking about the results at all. Not thinking about if I was up, if I was down. Just trying to do the things that make me happy,” Alcaraz said.

“On court, just trying to play aggressive, hitting good shots, drop shots, go to the net… I played with such a high rhythm during the whole match.

“I didn’t let him dominate or stay long in the rallies. So I think that was a really good weapon today for me. I’m just really proud about the way that I approached the match.”

The Spaniard looked slightly edgy at the beginning and a double fault at an inopportune moment left him trailing 4-2, but he quickly levelled the first set and used his drop shot intelligently to gain the upper hand.

The second set also began in chaotic fashion with a break apiece, but Alcaraz recovered and dug deep to defend two breakpoints for a hold, before breaking to love and taking a 5-4 lead with a wonderfully disguised drop shot.

The 22-year-old will next face either defending champion Alexander Zverev or home hero Lorenzo Musetti in the semi-finals.

Earlier on Wednesday, Norwegian Casper Ruud beat Jaume Munar 6-3 6-4 to set up a quarter-final meeting with world number one Jannik Sinner.

GAUFF BEATS ANDREEVA

In the women’s singles, world number three Coco Gauff quelled the challenge of seventh seed Mirra Andreeva with a 6-4 7-6(5) victory to enter the semi-finals for a second successive year.

Gauff, who will take on either world number one Aryna Sabalenka or eighth seed Zheng Qinwen in the last four, has dropped just one set in her five matches at the tournament so far.

“At the end, my defence, it was tough. We were both tight in the tiebreaker, it was whoever could make the last ball,” said Gauff, who has reached the semi-finals in Rome three times.

“Yeah, a lot of confidence heading into the semi-finals. I think today some points weren’t played at my best, but I still managed to be successful.”

Gauff came into the clash with a 3-0 head-to-head lead over Andreeva and there were no early signs that things would be any different this time, with the American dominating proceedings in the first set.

Gauff had a tougher time in the second set as Andreeva regained her focus and broke for a 3-2 lead, but the American, a relative veteran at 21 compared to her 18-year-old opponent, used the variety in her game to keep herself alive and force a tiebreaker.

The teenager struggled to match Gauff’s level in the tiebreaker and hit a backhand long to surrender the contest.

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