Awesome Alcaraz reaches second week at Melbourne for first time

Carlos Alcaraz eased into the fourth round of the Australian Open for the first time on Saturday after Chinese wildcard Shang Juncheng retired hurt while trailing their uneven contest 6-1, 6-1, 1-0.

In the unusual position of playing someone younger than himself, two-time Grand Slam champion Alcaraz simply dominated 18-year-old Shang for just over an hour on Rod Laver Arena.

Shang, known as “Jerry” at his Florida training base, had taken a medical timeout for treatment on his thigh at 4-1 down in the second set and retired after being broken for the sixth time at the start of the third.