French Open 2025 live updates: Day 10 quarterfinals latest as Tommy Paul trails Carlos Alcaraz at Roland Garros – The New York Times

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U.S. No.1 Tommy Paul (12) is struggling in his quarterfinal against Carlos Alcaraz (2) at Roland Garros having lost the first set 6-0.
The winner of that match will face Lorenzo Musetti (8) in the semis after he beat another American hope, Frances Tiafoe (15), in four sets, 6-2, 4-6, 7-5, 6-2.
Earlier in the day, Aryna Sabalenka (1) beat Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen (8) to set up a mouthwatering semifinal against defending champion Iga Świątek (5), who beat Elina Svitolina (13) in straight sets.
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I just took a quick glance at the stats of this match. Yeah, it's a Carlos Alcaraz clinic.
Look at these numbers after the Spaniard goes up 4-1:
Alcaraz is winning points by more than double over Tommy Paul.
Domination.
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Paul 0-6, *1-4 Alcaraz
We are just 14 minutes into the second set and things are shaping up well indeed for Carlos Alcaraz.
In the mix with some lovely shots in that game, Alcaraz cushioned a beautiful drop shot to leave Paul in no man's land.
He is a man in a hurry and Paul is at his mercy.
Tommy Paul is just letting Carlos Alcaraz dictate the points from the jump. As you saw on that game point from the previous game, the American was hitting his backhands into the service box. Not deep enough!
Balls landing short are in Alcaraz's office. The Spaniard delivered another one of his trademark forehand winners down the line.
Paul 0-6, 1-3* Alcaraz
How do you deal with Alcaraz's shotmaking?
If anyone knows the answer, please forward it to one Mr T. Paul, Court Philippe-Chatrier, Roland Garros.
Alcaraz is showing his chops as a multi-Grand Slam winner and has broken Paul for the first time in this second set.
Bagel anyone?
With Carlos Alcaraz's latest first-set win against Tommy Paul, it is the fifth time in 2025 that the Spaniard has won a set 6-0.
It is the third time he has done it in the clay-court season alone.
Tommy Paul gets on the board. The American has heavy strapping on his right thigh, having already gotten through an abdominal muscle injury to beat Hungary's Marton Fucsovics in five sets earlier in the tournament.
Even at his physical peak, he likely wouldn't have quelled Alcaraz in the opening set.
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Paul 0-6, 1-1* Alcaraz
That was met with a big cheer inside Court Philippe-Chatrier.
Paul finally gets on the board and holds his first service game. What will that do for his confidence?
He's been hanging in there at points tonight but momentum can shift quickly in matches like this.
For anyone that watched Jannik Sinner demolish Andrey Rublev in this primetime slot last night, this already feels very much like a mirror image tonight — except more dominant!
Tommy Paul is carrying an injury into this match but I don't think he would've been able to lay a glove on his opponent even if he were fully fit, to be honest.
This has been a seriously impressive start to the quarterfinal from Carlos Alcaraz who is clearly in a hurry to get off Court Philippe-Chatrier. There have been booming groundstrokes from six feet behind the baseline and there have been deft drop shots with his nose touching the net — he's got the lot this young man!
Paul 0-6, *0-1 Alcaraz
Well, Tommy Paul managed to get a score on the board at 30-0 briefly in the first game of the second set.
But predictable as you like, Alcaraz came back and prevented a break of his serve to pick up where he left off in a dominant first set.
One of the more memorable lines in the history of tennis beatdowns is “keep it social,” the plea Andy Roddick made to Andy Murray when the two-time Wimbledon champion Brit was rolling him over at Queen's in London.
Paul might want to put a request in for something similar. Alcaraz is irrepressible right now and the American looks like he's in a nightmare waiting to wake up. The Philippe-Chatrier crowd are cheering his every point, especially an ace which prevents Alcaraz securing a bagel.
But then Alcaraz retrieves a ball from in the Seine and speeds all the way up to the net to dink over the American's reply for another set point. Paul can't find a first serve this time, and the American nets.
6-0.
I admired Tommy Paul for trying something different with the serve. On that last service game of the first set, Paul was throwing in some kick serves, forcing Carlos Alcaraz to hit a high ball.
I like the concept. The result? Ugh, not so much.
Carlos Alcaraz, at the deuce before the winning set point, blasted a forehand winner cross court off the return. He made a mockery of Paul's serve in that first set.
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One of Tommy Paul's assets as a player is his forehand. In the previous four matches at Roland Garros, Paul's average forehand speed was 78 mph. Tonight, the average forehand speed is 69 mph.
A sign that Paul isn't 100 percent physically as he's not moving into position to connect on his powerful forehand.
Paul 0-6, 0-0* Alcaraz
A thought for Tommy Paul and his confidence at this point of the match. He needs to find a way to get a game on the board soon or this could be a demolition from Alcaraz.
The Spaniard came from behind to 40-40 and Paul managed to delay him taking the set as they traded advantage but Alcaraz came through in the end as he ramped up the speed on his forehand shots.
The crowd appear to be behind Paul given the adverse position he already finds himself in but it is hard to see him finding any answers to the onslaught currently.
This has been a disastrous start for Tommy Paul. Not only is he down a double break but his body language does not look good.
It appears that the American is limping on the court and not moving at 100 percent.
It is something he has been struggling with throughout the tournament and certainly one to keep an eye on.
Paul *0-5 Alcaraz
And there's another game on the board for Alcaraz.
He breezed through that one at pace, putting up a 40-0 score and then hitting an ace to seal the deal.
He looked up and around just before serving that laser accurate shot to cast an eye over a spectator who shouted, "Allez Tommy." Not a bad response from the No. 2 seed.
Paul 0-4* Alcaraz
This is Carlos Alcaraz at his best and he is making things look easy against Tommy Paul.
He put in an example of the crush and rush as he met Paul's serve in that game and once again broke the American's serve.
He is in the mood tonight.
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Carlos Alcaraz is feeling it on Court Philippe-Chatrier.
He zipped two forehand lasers inside-in to take his first service game to love. That was a warning, but when he's really grooved in, he can lace his forehand down the line even on the slide. He did that in the middle of Paul's first service game, then he spun a lob onto the back of the baseline when it looked like he was out of the point. That put a big smile on his face, which isn't something any tennis player on the other side of the net to Alcaraz wants to see.
Paul has been banging down first serves and skittering around the baseline, but for every winner he hits, he's having to retrieve a ball that he thought he'd put beyond Alcaraz. The Spaniard spins another lob over his head, this time not even close to the line. Finally, the pressure tells. Paul puts in a neutral, not-bad-at-all forehand and Alcaraz dismisses it into the corner, almost sending the American's racket flying.
Perhaps the defending champion is remembering some of his recent meetings with Paul. He lost an all-action, seesaw first set to the American in last year's Wimbledon quarterfinals, before mostly rolling through the next three. He had to use a tiebreak to get past him at the Olympics, on this very court, last summer.
Tonight, he's come out hot and Paul isn't even playing badly. He just can't live with the barrage coming his way.
Paul 0-3* Alcaraz
How about that from Carlos Alcaraz?
He surges to a three game lead inside 16 minutes — a blistering pace from the Spaniard.
He is reading the conditions perfectly and you have to fancy the cooler temperatures will suit him better this evening.
Carlos Alcaraz. We are not worthy!
That forehand blast cross court on the fourth break point was an absolute mammoth of a shot. In fact, it was 112 mph.
Just ridiculous tennis from the Spaniard.

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