Carlos Alcaraz reached the quarter-finals of the 2026 Australian Open on Sunday after ousting American Tommy Paul in straight sets at Rod Laver Arena.
The world number one, who is seeking to complete a career Grand Slam in Melbourne at the age of just 22, won 7-6 (8-6), 6-4 and 7-5 to equal his best performance in the tournament and is still to drop a set.
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Alcaraz will face home favorite and sixth seed Alex de Minaur or 10th seed Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan for a place in the semi-finals.
If the Spaniard wins the trophy, he will become the youngest person in history to complete all four major career Grand Slams.
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“He started really strong, hit big shots and it was difficult in the beginning,” Alcaraz said.
“But I knew I would have chances. Overall, it was a really high level of tennis from both sides, and I'm really happy to get it done in straight sets.”
Alcaraz suffered a difficult start, losing her serve in the opening game to 19th-seeded Paul, who surprisingly took a 3–1 lead.
The Spaniard missed two early break-point chances and eventually fought back in the eighth game to level the first set.
Alcaraz carried that momentum into the second set and secured a key break to move within one set of the win.
The six-time Grand Slam champion has been particularly impressive on his serve throughout the tournament, an aspect he admits has surprised even him.
“In general, serve has been a really important weapon for me in the four matches,” he said.
