Alcaraz Beats Van De Zandschulp In Rotterdam Rematch

Carlos Alcaraz
Carlos Alcaraz (photo: ATP Tour video)

ROTTERDAM/WASHINGTON, February 4, 2025 (by Michael Dickens)

World No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz came into his first-round match at the ATP 500 ABN Amro Open in Rotterdam Tuesday evening against 84th-ranked Dutch favorite Botic van de Zandschulp 16-1 against players ranked outside the Top 50 since last March. His lone loss came when van de Zandschulp, then ranked 74th, stunned the Spanish star in the second round of the US Open last August.

It’s understandable if the smiling, 21-year-old Alcaraz in his Rotterdam debut had thoughts of revenge on his mind as he stood across the net from the introverted van de Zandschulp, who was looking to equal the biggest win of his career as well as to score his first victory of 2025.

By the end of the two-hour, 34-minute first-round match, Alcaraz, who was sporting a black nasal strip to aid and improve his breathing, finally found his groove – but he had to fight hard for it. A fifth-shot touch volley winner – his 29th winner of the evening, which overcame 48 unforced errors – put away the victory, 7-6 (3), 3-6, 6-1, to maintain pursuit of his first ATP Tour indoor title to go with 16 other tour-level titles overall.

As it happened, Alcaraz was pushed to the limit by the 29-year-old Dutch player with the quiet demeanor. He faced seven break points on his serve and was broken three times by van de Zandschulp. However, Alcaraz pressed van de Zandschulp on his opponent’s second-serve returns and won 57 percent of those exchanges. He broke van de Zandschulp’s serve four times in nine attempts, took andvantage of eight double faults and 40 unforced errors, and ultimately outpointed him 101-94 to move on.

“I think [there] were a lot of ups and downs in the match,” Alcaraz said during his on-court interview with ATP Media, after improving to 3-1 lifetime against van de Zandschulp. “Being set point down in the first set, I think Botic played a really solid match. Not too many ups and downs for him, really consistent throughout the match. I’m just really happy to get through. [I had to] really be focused in the tough moments, to keep pushing and trust the good tennis will come again. I’m happy to get through a difficult match and have a chance to get better in the next round.”

Next, Alcaraz will face either 317th-ranked qualifier Andreas Vavassori of Italy or No. 23 Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada, a two-time titlist in 2025, who play Wednesday.

De Minaur garners 30th ATP 500 win since start of 2023 season

World No. 8 Alex de Minaur of Australia won his 10th career match at Rotterdam following his 6-2, 6-4 victory over No. 56 David Goffin of Belgium in an hour and 36 minutes. It was his 30th ATP 500 win since the start of the 2023 season. On the heels of leading Australia into the second round of Davis Cup Qualifiers, de Minaur has won eight of his first nine matches of the 2025 season.

Against Goffin, the No. 3 seed de Minaur won 70 percent of his service points, hit 24 winners, saved all three break points he faced and broke Goffin’s serve three times in 10 tries. He outpointed Goffin 73-59 for his sixth straight career win against the 34-year-old Belgian.

“It feels slow out here,” de Minaur, 25, said during his on-court interview, commenting on the Centre Court conditions inside Rotterdam Ahoy arena. “It felt quite tough to get used to the conditions. The ball got massive, it’s a very rough surface.

“I have definitely improved the power side of things; I’ve gained maybe 5 or 10 km/h on my serve and it helped me out in big points. I managed some big serves when I needed it. It’s all about keeping the percentage quite high and using my serve to set up the next point, too.”

De Minaur added: “I’m happy with my attitude today. I did exactly what I needed to do. David is a hell of a competitor. I knew it was going to be a battle. …

“The expectations I have on myself will always surpass the outside noise. I expect a lot out of myself, I want to keep on pushing. It’s a long year, but it’s all about staying tough.”

On Thursday, de Minaur will face No. 47 Jakub Mensik of Czechia, who eased past No. 49 Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan, 6-4, 6-4, in the second round.

Around the Rotterdam Ahoy

• World No. 10 Andrey Rublev of Russia defeated No. 50 Zhang Zhizhen of China, 6-3, 6-4, in an hour and 22 minutes behind 22 winners and two breaks of his opponent’s serve. He faced only one break point from Zhang and outpointed him 71-60. It was Rublev’s fourth career win over the Chinese No. 1.

One of four former champions in the Rotterdam field, Rublev leveled his 2025 win-loss record at 3-all with his win over Zhang, which was his first Top-50 win of the season, and it was the 2021 champion’s 15th career triumph at Rotterdam.

Next, Rublev will face either No. 45 Jan-Lennard Struff of Germany or 57th-ranked Fabian Marozsan of Hungary, who play Wednesday.

• No. 24 Jiri Lehecka of Czechia became the second player to earn 10 ATP Tour-level wins this season after Felix Auger-Aliassime with his 7-5, 6-2 victory over No. 26 Alexei Popyrin of Australia in an hour and 27 minutes to start the day on Centre Court. Lehecka struck 25 winners, converted three of four break points as he pressured the Aussie on his second serve, and outpointed Popyrin 66-54. While Lehecka improved to 10-1, Popyrin dropped to 0-3 on the 2025 season.

The Czech No. 1 earned his first ATP Tour win of his career at Rotterdam as a 137th-ranked qualifier, making a run to the semifinals in 2022. His only loss this year came against World No. 7 Novak Djokovic in the fourth round at the Australian Open last month. Next, he will face No. 8 seed Hubert Hurkacz of Poland on Wednesday.

• In an all Spanish clash on Court 1, No. 44 Pedro Martinez eliminated No. 52 Roberto Bautista Agut, 6-3, 6-2, in an hour and 41 minutes. It was Martinez’s third straight tour-level win over Bautista Agut. Martinez converted five of 13 break points and outpointed Bautista Agut 68-50 to advance to the second round against World No. 14 Holger Rune of Denmark, seeded fifth, who hit 30 winners and defeated No. 34 Lorenzo Sonego of Italy, 7-6 (4), 6-4, in two hours and 11 minutes. The match ended at 12:51 a.m. Wednesday.

• British duo Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool advanced to the doubles quarterfinals with a 6-4, 6-4 win over Dutch wild cards Robin Haase and Sem Verbeek in an hour on Court 1. Next, they will face No. 2 seeds Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz of Germany. Also advancing were third seeds Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori of Italy, ranked 10th and 11th in the world respectively, who defeated Hurkacz and Mensik, 7-5, 7-6 (1), in an hour and 25 minutes on Court 1. In the quarterfinal round, the Italians will face German qualifiers Jakob Schnaitter and Mark Wallner.

Tuesday’s Rotterdam results

Wednesday’s Rotterdam order of play

By the numbers

David Goffin of Belgium is making his 12th appearance in Rotterdam (2012, 2015-25). He’s tied for second-most appearances in tournament history. He reached the 2017 final against Jo-Wilfried Tonga.

“Quotable …”

“Last year, a lot of stuff happened, I was injured for a lot of the year and I still managed to achieve some great results, but the goal this year is to stay healthy and have that same trajectory. And hopefully that’s going to take me to bigger and better things and I don’t think I’ve hit my ceiling just yet. It’s exciting, and I’m looking forward to what this year has to offer.”

– World No. 8 Alex de Minaur of Australia, a Rotterdam finalist last year, as quoted during a pre-tournament interview with the ATP Tour website.

 

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