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There's a decidedly Spanish feel to fourth-round Rolex Shanghai Masters on Wednesday - and not purely because No.1 seed Carlos Alcaraz returns to the court.
Before the Spaniard takes to Qi Zhong Stadium to meet Grigor Dimitrov in the first night match, South Americans Nicolas Jarry and Diego Schwartzman - from Chile and Argentina respectively, and both Spanish-speaking - open the day's play.
The 22nd-seeded Jarry has made sturdy progress in Shanghai, with wins over Terence Atmane and Lorenzo Sonego achieved in straight sets. Schwarzman's performance has marked a career revival; as a world No.130 wildcard, he's stunned Luca Van Assche, Jiri Lehecka and No.7 seed Taylor Fritz to reach the fourth round.
Schwartzman has lost just once in five matches against his fellow South American, although his last win was in 2018. Should Schwartzman display the same resilience that factored in the upset of Fritz on Monday, Jarry will face a tough test.
The 31-year-old was feeling positive after victory over Fritz in a third consecutive win over a higher-ranked opponent this week. "This time tonight it was very important because it's the biggest step at the end of the year, so that's, for me, it's very important," Schwartzman said.
J.J. Wolf also carries impressive momentum into fourth round. All three of the American's match wins at the tournament - over Padro Cachin, No.15 seed Cameron Norrie and Matteo Arnaldi - have been secured in three sets. In the latter two, Wolf fought through third-set tiebreaks.
"I'm not too short-term on my results, but it does feel good getting a couple of wins and I'd love for this to be a breakthrough tournament for me," said Wolf, after battling for almost three hours against Arnaldi.
A meeting with Ugo Humbert promises a new challenge, given the No.32 seed's upset of Stefanos Tsitsipas in the previous round. Wolf and Humbert's lone previous match on tour was in Indian Wells 2019 qualifying, with Humbert a straight-sets winner.
Alcaraz is aiming to maintain an impressive head-to-head record against No.18 seed Dimitrov; in their three matches so far (including two this season), the Spaniard is yet to drop a set.
With wins over Gregoire Barrere and Daniel Evans also straight-set progressions, Alcaraz is pleased with the form he's struck in his Shanghai debut - but understands the challenge he can expect from Dimitrov.
"I think he has a great game, you know, he's a really talented player. He kind of gives you a lot of shots on the court, so it's going to be a little bit tricky for me," said the Spaniard, noting the importance of being more dominant.
"He'll feel comfortable if the match is going to his side, so I try to put pressure on him, and let's see how it's going to be," he said.
Andrey Rublev, the No.5 seed, hopes to maintain the imperious form he's struck in Shanghai. After a 6-4 7-5 win over the big-serving Quentin Halys, Rublev dropped only three games against Adrian Mannarino in the third round.
Tommy Paul, Rublev's fourth-round opponent, has strong motivation, with a top-10 debut in sight for the world No.12. He's claimed wins over Sebastian Ofner and Arthur Fils this week.
Rublev leads the head-to-head record 4-1, with Paul's lone win occurring at Indian Wells in 2021.
"We always have really tough matches. Many of them were in three sets," Rublev said. "Hopefully I will be able to show a great fight and hopefully both of us will be able to show great tennis."
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