Second seed Carlos Alcaraz suffered a shock straight sets defeat on Monday at the Italian Open to the Hungarian qualifier Fabian Marozsan.
The 23-year-old won 6-3, 7-6 in Rome to reach the last-16 at a Masters 1000 competition – considered the most prestigious tournaments on the circuit after the four Grand Slam events in Melbourne, Paris, London and New York.
"I’m very, very happy. I can’t imagine this one," said Marozsan who at 135 in the world is the lowest ranked player to beat Alcaraz since July 2021.
Until he came through the qualifying draw in Rome and defeated the world number 67 Corentin Moutet in the first round, Marozsan had never won a match on the main ATP circuit.
He followed that victory over the 24-year-old Frenchman by dispatching the rising Czech Jiri Lehecka in three sets.
Run
Although Marozsan claimed an ATP challenger on clay in March, he started the Italian Open having lost five of his previous six matches.
Alcaraz, by contrast, had compiled a 30-2 record this year to furnish him with titles in Buenos Aires, Indian Wells, Barcelona and Madrid.
But Marozsan tore up the form book with sustained aggression in his groundstrokes. He also deployed a tactic from the Alcaraz manual: a constant stream of winning drop shots.
After coming back from a break down in the second set, Alcaraz appeared to be on the way to parity when he led 4-1 in the tiebreak.
But it was a false dawn. Marozsan reeled off six consecutive points to clinch the tie.
Effort
“I just tried to do something special, win a few games and maybe a set,” said Marozsan who will play the 15th seed Borna Coric for a place in the last eight.
“I just beat the world number one, he’s the best in our sport, so I’m really happy with this.”
Alcaraz, who will return to number one in Monday's new rankings and top billing at the French Open in Paris, was munificent in defeat.
"He played at a high level and I couldn't follow it. I tried to fight until the last ball but it wasn't enough."
The 20-year-old added: "He deserves the win and if he plays at that level, he's going to surprise more people."
