Aslan Karatsev scripts history by becoming the first player to reach a Grand Slam and Masters 1000 SF as a qualifier

Aslan Karatsev reached his maiden Masters 1000 semifinal by beating Zhang Zhizhen 7-6(3), 6-4 at the 2023 Madrid Open on Thursday.

The Russian, who is currently ranked 121st in the world, had to qualify for the main draw of the clay-court tournament. He did so with straight-sets wins over Raul Brancaccio and Jan-Lennard Struff.

Karatsev then beat Laslo Djere, Botic van de Zandschulp and Alex de Minaur before stunning second seed Daniil Medvedev to book his place in the quarterfinals.

There, he faced Zhang Zhizhen and won a tightly-contested opening set 7-6(3). Karatsev broke the Chinese player's serve in the opening game of the second set which turned out to be decisive, as he won it 6-4 to seal his spot in the semifinals.

The Russian thus became the first qualifier to reach the final four of a Masters 1000 event on clay since Richard Gasquet and Oliver Rochus at Hamburg in 2005.

Back in 2021, Karatsev reached the semifinals of the Australian Open (loss to Novak Djokovic) after qualifying for the main draw. The Russian is the first player to reach the semifinals of both a Grand Slam and a Masters 1000 tournament as a qualifier.

After the semifinal match, Karatsev said that he was glad to be back at the top level and that he was feeling well mentally.

"I am happy with my condition. Back to the top level. Playing well and feeling well. From the qualifying, match by match, it has got harder, so mentally you have to be there more. Because your opponent doesn't give you any free points so you have to be there yourself. The important thing is now recover well," the Russian said.

Aslan Karatsev will face either Stefanos Tsitsipas or Jan-Lennard Struff in the semifinals of the Madrid Open

Aslan Karatsev in action at the Madrid Open

Aslan Karatsev's semifinal opponent at the 2023 Madrid Open will be either fourth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas or lucky loser Jan-Lennard Struff. Incidentally, Karatsev previously beat Struff in the qualifiers.

The Russian has faced Tsitsipas just once before -- in the second round of the 2021 Monte-Carlo Masters, where the Greek won 6-3, 6-4.

Karatsev had a pretty disappointing 2023 season before the Madrid Open, with four wins out of 11 matches. However, his run in the Spanish capital has taken his win-loss tally to 9-7.

If Karatsev wins his semifinal, he will reach his maiden Masters 1000 final, where his opponent will be either defending champion Carlos Alcaraz or 17th seed Borna Coric.