Carlos Alcaraz follows 'King of Clay' Rafael Nadal to this elite French Open list

Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz outplayed Marozsan in an intense second round duel.

Carlos Alcaraz, the top contender for the French Open 2025 title, registered an incredible victory over World No #56 Fabian Marozsan, to advance to the third round. After clinching the opening set without much fuss, the Hungarian struck back, to claim the second set.

Just when it seemed to be going down the wire, the reigning champion took matter into his own hands, dropping just three games over the course of the next two sets to become the second quickest player to win twenty matches at Roland Garros. Alcaraz managed to accomplish this milestone in just 23 matches, second to the ‘King of Clay’, Rafael Nadal.

“It was a great, great match. I played well in the first set. I had really high confidence. In the second set, he started to play much better—really aggressively—and didn’t miss at all. It was a little bit difficult dealing with his game in the second set, but I was pleased to stay strong and refresh in the third set, and I started to play better and better. I had a really good last two sets,” said the 22-year-old following his victory.

Alcaraz looks unstoppable, having entered Paris on the back of a title triumph in Rome, defeating World No #1 Jannik Sinner in straight sets. The Spaniard boasts a sensational success rate of 84% on clay, the third best for any player in the Open Era.

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His victory over Marozsan in the second round brings up his ninth consecutive win on Parisian clay, and he now awaits the winner of Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard vs Damir Dzumhur contest. While Alcaraz continues his incredible form in Paris, Wednesday saw some shocking results including former French Open finalist Casper Ruud losing to Nuno Borges in four sets.

Other top contenders including top seed Jannik Sinner, third seed Alexander Zverev and fifth seed Jack Draper, all advanced to the second round without much trouble. Three-time Garros winner Novak Djokovic dominated his opening battle and faces local hope Corentin Moutet, against whom the Serbian holds a 2-0 lead on head-to-head.

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