Alcaraz battles through rain in Cincinnati, SA's Harris eliminated

Carlos Alcaraz battled through a rain interruption to claim his 50th win of the season, defeating Jordan Thompson 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 on Wednesday at the Cincinnati Open.

The top-seeded Spaniard is bidding for his seventh trophy of 2023 as he prepares for a US Open title defence in less than a fortnight.

His victory took three hours, with the world number one breaking open the third set as he delivered two love games and moved through on a second match point.

"I had never played him and the start/stop was not easy," Alcaraz said. "It was not easy to wait for the rain.

"He played aggressive, I'm glad to get through. It was a long day waiting to play and then find rain in the first set.

"I had to play my best level at the end; I'm hoping for better conditions in the next round."

Alcaraz was tested by number 55 Thompson who now stands 2-16 against Top-10 opponents.

The Spaniard had 32 winners and 41 unforced errors in the marathon.

Including a 15-minute pause for rain and subsequent warmup, the first set took nearly 90 minutes, with Thompson saving 10 of a dozen break points only to lose on the first Alcaraz set point.

Alcaraz came back from a break down in the second set and ran away with the third as Thompson complained to the chair umpire about an incorrectly strung racquet which he only discovered at a late stage in the epic.

Nifty 50 ??@carlosalcaraz battles past Jordan Thompson for his 50th win of 2023, 7-5 4-6 6-3 #CincyTennis pic.twitter.com/jPf79FZR4n

SA's Harris eliminated

Elsewhere, South Africa's Lloyd Harris lost 6-4, 6-4 to Australian qualifier Max Purcell in the first round.

Harris entered the Cincinnati Open on a protected ranking. He missed the final six months of the 2022 season following wrist surgery and only recently