Carlos Alcaraz is back to his dominant ways on the Parisian clay. After a minor scare against Damir Dzumhur in the third round, the Spaniard admitted he needed to pick himself up before facing Ben Shelton on Sunday. “My energy went down and it was hard to push, but I had to give everything I had inside. I’m proud to get the win in the end,” he said after the game. Well, he indeed powered through the challenge and booked his spot in a fourth Roland Garros quarterfinal. But this time, it wasn’t just his victory that grabbed the spotlight—he even earned applause from a former pro!

On June 1, the Spaniard and the American put on a show for the crowd at Court Philippe-Chatrier. The match was packed with dazzling rallies, sharp net exchanges, and one unforgettable moment of sportsmanship that truly captured the spirit of the game. Early in the second set, Shelton ripped a passing shot way out of Alcaraz’s reach at the net. In a desperate move, Alcaraz flung his racket. In a wild twist, his airborne racket actually made contact with the ball and sent it over the net!

He was initially awarded the point, but he immediately told the umpire he wasn’t holding the racket, so the point went to Shelton. The crowd erupted in applause for Alcaraz’s honesty, and Rennae Stubbs later praised him on X: “This guy! Immediately calling that foul shot on himself to give Ben break point. 👍” It was truly a sight to see.

In the end, Carlos Alcaraz emerged victorious with a 7-6(8), 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 win in three hours and 19 minutes. But it was his sportsmanship that really won over the fans. And he wasn’t the only one showing his class. At 3-all in the first set, Alcaraz had a chance to edge ahead, but when Shelton’s serve was called a “let” by the automated system, the chair umpire didn’t hear it.

Alcaraz played out the point, but the players quickly paused as they realized something was off. As Spanish ESPN’s X account highlighted, the Spaniard called out the umpire, but Shelton coolly stepped in and asked, “if he wanted to replay the point.” The score moved to 4-3 for Carlos, but it was Shelton’s easygoing attitude that really stole the moment and kept things light.

For fans it was heartwarming to see both players’ sportsmanship, even with so much at stake. Had Shelton won, he would have reached his first-ever French Open quarterfinal, becoming the second American to do it this year after Tommy Paul’s win over Alexei Popyrin. The last American in the quarters? Andre Agassi, all the way back in 2003.

But it just wasn’t in the stars for Shelton this time. Still, Carlos Alcaraz made sure to applaud the 22-year-old’s resilience on the court!

Carlos Alcaraz praises Ben Shelton’s form following R4 win

Following his victory, the Spaniard not only secured a spot in the last eight but also celebrated his 100th tour-level clay win—wrapping it all up in three hours and 19 minutes! But it wasn’t smooth sailing. In his on-court interview, Alcaraz admitted, “Today I fought against myself, against the mind. I just tried to calm myself. In some moments I was mad, I was angry with myself. Talking not really good things but I am really happy to not let those thoughts play against me. I tried to calm myself down and I tried to keep going. That is what I tried.”

Earlier in the week, Alcaraz dropped sets to Fabian Marozsan and Damir Dzumhur, but World No. 13 Ben Shelton gave him his toughest test yet. Ben Shelton hammered his groundstrokes in the lively Parisian conditions, pushing Alcaraz to dig deep. The American even had three chances to win the first set, but a costly forehand error at 8/8 in the tie-break let Alcaraz snatch the opener with a sizzling forehand down the line.

The third set saw more drama. At 4-4, Alcaraz missed a break point at 30/40, and Shelton held firm, then broke Alcaraz to gain momentum. But the Spaniard roared back in the fourth, playing with relentless aggression to seal the win and improve to 3-0 in his head-to-head against Shelton.

Now, the defending champion is eyeing his fifth Grand Slam title and will face 12th seed Tommy Paul next—he leads Paul 4-2 in their ATP rivalry. Additionally, he aims to join legends Rafael Nadal and Gustavo Kuerten as only the third man this century to defend the Roland Garros title. Can Carlos Alcaraz pull it off? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!