Machac: ‘I was playing unbelievable from the beginning until the end’

It is a night Tomas Machac will never forget.

The 23-year-old stunned Carlos Alcaraz 7-6(5), 7-5, and snapped the Spaniard's 12-match winning streak Thursday evening at the Rolex Shanghai Masters. Playing his third tour-level quarter-final, he admitted it was not easy against “one of the best” players on Tour. The Czech is happy with the performance it took to claim the biggest win of his career against the No. 2 in the PIF ATP Rankings.

“Well, I was playing this kind of tennis even with Tommy Paul, [in the] second set and the third set, so I was playing unbelievable even there. So, I was just trying to continue in this way, and it happened from the beginning of the match, so that was the key," he shared.

"I know that against Alcaraz I have to play this level to have a chance to win, so I just tried to slow the ball [a little bit]… I managed to make it until the end, so I'm really happy with that."

Even though he failed to win against Alcaraz at the Davis Cup last month after being forced to retire during the match, Machac shook the disappointment and delivered a strong performance today. Nerves did not prove a roadblock for him.

“I was looking for the revenge, for sure,” he said.

“I tried to learn from the match against him at the Davis Cup, I was playing [at a] great level also there, but I just tried to do something different, and it happened, and I'm really happy with that. What I did? I was just trying to play this level, and take a little bit more time and try to not think about anything. And the body was playing on my behalf, so I just tried to be in the zone as long as possible."

He was also full of praise for the Shanghai atmosphere and good friend Zhang Zhizhen with whom he competed in doubles.

“I really enjoy [being] here, and I really enjoy to play doubles with Zhang Zhizhen. It was great atmosphere on the court when we play doubles, and I hear some fans [cheering] for him, even in the singles, so I'm really enjoying that, and I'm really happy that I can be partners with him. So, happy with the crowd, too, to cheer for me here.”

Yes, not Alcaraz's best, but it was another great day for Machac on the forehand 💪

The Machac Fh has been on 🔥 this week 📈

Check out his average speed and landing location 👇#TennisInsights | @atptour | @RolexSHMasters pic.twitter.com/YPnjebPhCA

— Tennis Insights (@tennis_insights) October 10, 2024

The Czech will face top seed Jannik Sinner in the semi-final, who ousted Daniil Medvedev 6-1, 6-4 in their quarter-final match. Machac will aim to level his Lexus ATP Head2Head series against the Italian.

“Well, I [will] try to play this level, and let's see what is going to happen,” Machac said. “He's playing unbelievable tennis, especially on hard courts. It's the best tennis what I saw today, for sure. With Medvedev, he was playing unbelievable. But I'm really looking forward to the challenge, so I will enjoy it.”