Zizou Bergs beat Carlos Alcaraz 7–5, 7–6 (4) in the Shanghai Masters third round Monday, producing an upset that also confirmed Alexander Zverev as the ATP’s year-end world No. 1.
The unseeded Belgian broke Alcaraz’s serve three times during the two-hour, two-minute match. He reached the last 16 with what the ATP described as the biggest win of his career.
Alcaraz had been rebuilding momentum after a lengthy wrist-injury absence and a successful title defense at the Japan Open. In Shanghai, he struggled to find a consistent rhythm against Bergs’s all-court play.
The result removed another leading name from the tournament. Novak Djokovic and Ben Shelton had also been eliminated before the last 16.
Its significance reached beyond the Shanghai draw. With Alcaraz out, Zverev secured his first year-end No. 1 finish, Reuters reported. The German won the French Open and US Open this season and is continuing his own run in Shanghai.
Jannik Sinner’s absence has also shaped the ranking race. He has not played since Wimbledon because of a knee injury and is not due to return for the remaining indoor season, according to the same report.
Zverev’s next Shanghai opponent is Alexander Bublik. Bergs’s immediate reward is a place in the fourth round after turning a difficult assignment against Alcaraz into the defining result of his tournament so far.
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