Alcaraz powers into Japan Open semis, Rune crashes out
TOKYO:World number one Carlos Alcaraz stormed into the semifinals of the Japan Open on Sunday with a commanding 6-2 6-4 win over American Brandon Nakashima, while Danish third seed Holger Rune was sent packing by Jenson Brooksby. Alcaraz, who overcame an injury scare in his straight-sets win over Argentine Sebastian Baez in Thursday’s opener, showed scintillating form to dispatch Nakashima for his 65th win of the season, thumping 39 winners in the one-hour 20-minute contest. The 22-year-old Spaniard, fresh from reclaiming top spot in the world rankings after clinching his sixth Grand Slam title at the US Open earlier this month, next faces Norwegian fourth seed Casper Ruud. Earlier, Ruud blazed past Australian qualifier Aleksandar Vukic with a clinical 6-3 6-2 win. “These kind of matches help to keep my confidence really, really high. I played some great tennis,” Alcaraz said. “It’s great to go through, to play another semifinal.