Moustached Alcaraz cruises past Cerundolo in Shanghai opener

Four days after lifting the trophy in Tokyo, Carlos Alcaraz carried his form straight into the Rolex Shanghai Masters. The second seed beat Argentina's Juan Manuel Cerundolo 6-3, 6-3 in his second-round opener on Saturday night, and he did it with a new addition to his look: a freshly grown moustache.

No break points, no problems

After a first-round bye, Alcaraz needed just over an hour to move into the third round. He broke in the sixth game of the opening set and struck again at the very start of the second, and Cerundolo, ranked No. 55, never earned a single break point. Alcaraz finished with 24 winners, three times as many as his opponent's eight, and won 80 percent of the points on his own serve.

The win extended his winning streak to seven matches, following his title defence in Tokyo, where he beat Jiří Lehečka in Tuesday's final for his first trophy since returning from injury.

Alcaraz admitted the turnaround from Japan had not been simple. "Really, really happy with the way I played today. It wasn't easy. Just had two days of preparation... I came from Tokyo, there were totally different conditions. Just tried to play the best that I can," he said.

A bet settled in Shanghai

The talking point, though, was above his upper lip. Alcaraz explained that the moustache was the result of a deal struck with his team before Tokyo. "Before Tokyo it was like, 'All right, if I win the tournament, we all have to have the mustache and play Shanghai with a mustache,'" he said.

He confirmed the look is not going anywhere for now. "It's going to stay for the week. I always wanted to step on court at least once with a moustache," the world No. 3 added.

Paul ends Bergs' Shanghai run after Alcaraz upset, faces Medvedev next

Bergs next as the draw opens up

Next up for Alcaraz is Belgium's Zizou Bergs, ranked No. 39. The pair have met once before, in Tokyo last year, when Alcaraz won 6-4, 6-3.

The Spaniard arrives in Shanghai as the headline name in a field that has already lost several big names. World No. 1 Jannik Sinner withdrew before the tournament and has ended his 2026 season with a right knee injury, while Novak Djokovic was knocked out by Hubert Hurkacz on Friday. That leaves Alcaraz and top seed Alexander Zverev as the clear favourites, with the two placed in opposite halves of the draw.

Elsewhere on Saturday, fourth seed Félix Auger-Aliassime survived a three-hour battle with Camilo Ugo Carabelli, winning 4-6, 7-6(1), 7-5, and Daniil Medvedev came from a set down to beat Jan-Lennard Struff 4-6, 6-4, 6-3. Spain's Rafael Jódar also recovered from a set down against Thiago Agustín Tirante to set up a third-round meeting with Lehečka. Alcaraz, for his part, will take on Bergs carrying a seven-match winning run and, for at least one more week, a moustache.