Paris - 06/11
Good morning and welcome back to TIE-Breakfast: all the tennis you need with breakfast.
Ace Cream's daily newsletter during Masters 1000s and Grand Slams, every morning at 8:30.
Today is Friday, November 6, and in Paris it is 08:30 and 9 degrees. Ok, here we go.
Today at Breakfast
- 🇮🇹 Musetti stopped by Van Assche in the last 16
- 🇮🇹 Berrettini withdraws, Alcaraz into the quarters without playing
- 🇺🇸 Fritz beats Fils, Paul and Shelton meet in the quarters
- 🇵🇹 Borges first lucky loser in the Paris quarters, Hijikata comes back again
- 🏆 Quarterfinals today: Alcaraz-Fritz at 19:00, and the road to Turin runs through here
WHAT HAPPENED:
🇮🇹 Musetti stopped by Van Assche in the last 16
The day after his win over Zverev, Lorenzo Musetti lost 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 to Luca Van Assche, ranked No. 47 in the world. The first set was decided by a break in the twelfth game, and Musetti won the second without facing a break point. In the third, leading 4-3, he had two break points on the Frenchman's serve to go up 5-3 and serve. Van Assche held, broke at 4-4 and closed it out. Van Assche now leads the head-to-head 2-1, two weeks after losing to Musetti in Lyon.
Musetti came in with eight wins in his last nine matches, including the Lyon title, and a defeat like this, against an opponent he had just beaten, leaves a more bitter taste than the result itself. The two break points in the third set are the moment everyone will go back to, because that is where the match seemed to be turning his way. With Berrettini out, there are no Italians left in the singles quarterfinals.
🇮🇹 Berrettini withdraws, Alcaraz into the quarters without playing
Matteo Berrettini did not take the court against Carlos Alcaraz. He announced it on Thursday in an Instagram story: "Unfortunately the pain in my arm that I have been carrying for a few days will not allow me to take the court tonight". He will have tests in the coming days.
It would have been the evening's most anticipated match. For the Spaniard it is an extra day of rest before the quarterfinals, at a tournament where he has never reached the semifinals.
🇺🇸 Fritz beats Fils, Paul and Shelton meet in the quarters
Taylor Fritz beat Arthur Fils 6-3, 6-4. Tommy Paul ended Quentin Halys's tournament 7-6(3), 6-4. Ben Shelton beat Arthur Rinderknech in a third-set tie-break, 7-6(5).
The Race to Turin is still wide open: Fritz and Paul are still in contention, while Tiafoe and Jodar wait on the results. A defeat for either Fritz or Paul sends Tiafoe to the Finals. Rinderknech came very close against Shelton.
🇵🇹 Borges first lucky loser in the Paris quarters, Hijikata comes back again
Nuno Borges beat Ignacio Buse 6-0, 6-2 and is the first lucky loser in the history of the tournament to reach the quarterfinals. In qualifying he had lost to Alex Molcan. Rinky Hijikata, a qualifier, beat Tomas Martin Etcheverry 2-6, 6-3, 7-5: at 5-5 in the third, with Etcheverry up 30-0 on serve, he won four points in a row. He is the first qualifier in the Paris quarterfinals since Hugo Gaston in 2021. Casper Ruud beat Jan-Lennard Struff 6-3, 6-3.
Borges gave up just two games to an opponent who had knocked out Medvedev. For Hijikata, who rises to No. 59 in the live rankings and passes his career high, it is a second straight comeback after the one against Djokovic, and by now losing the first set almost seems part of how he is playing this tournament.
WHAT'S HAPPENING TODAY:
- Shelton vs Paul (14:00) - Paul needs the final for Turin, and a defeat would send Tiafoe to the Finals. Head-to-head 2-2, the last one won by Paul in Dallas in 2024.
- Hijikata vs Van Assche (to follow) - First meeting. For Hijikata it is the biggest quarterfinal of his career.
- Alcaraz vs Fritz (not before 19:00) - Alcaraz leads the head-to-head 6-1. A defeat for Fritz sends Tiafoe to the Finals.
- Ruud vs Borges (not before 20:30) - Borges won their last meeting, in Basel.
Read More
- Musetti out in the last 16 at ATP Paris 2026, Van Assche wins in three sets
- Berrettini withdraws from Paris: he will not face Alcaraz
- ATP Paris, Friday November 6 schedule: Shelton opens, Alcaraz-Fritz at 19:00
- Hijikata rallies past Etcheverry into Paris quarter-finals
Enjoy your breakfast and have a great day.
See you tomorrow at 08:30 with TIE-Breakfast.
