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Carlos Alcaraz's next match at the Paris Masters has been cancelled, with his opponent Matteo Berrettini having had to withdraw. The pair were set to battle it out for a spot in the last eight later today but Alcaraz now automatically advances to the next round without having to play. Berrettini has confirmed he will undergo medical examinations to identify the exact nature of his arm injury.
An official social media announcement from the tournament read: "Matteo Berrettini has to withdraw from the Rolex Paris Masters. Wishing you a speedy recovery Matteo. Carlos Alcaraz is qualified for the quarter-finals. #RolexParisMasters."
While Berrettini posted a statement of his own which read: "Hi all, unfortunately the pain in my arm that I've had for a few days won't allow me to take the court tonight...
"In the next few days I will have all the necessary tests to better understand what this is. Thank you all for the support and affection you show me every day on and off the court. Mat."
The schedule change means a Court 1 match will be moved to Centre Court to appease fans who will now miss out on what would have been a thrilling contest.
World No.43 Berrettini defeated Ugo Humbert 7-6, 7-5 in a strong second-round performance on Wednesday. But injury problems are sadly nothing new for the Italian, who has repeatedly suffered physical problems in recent years.
The 30-year-old also suffered frustration in the capital of France back in June, when he retired in tears at the French Open while losing to countryman Matteo Arnaldi.
Berrettini said after: "It was really hard – mostly because I've done it many times, and I'm tired of retiring. I'm the last one who wants to retire. I don't want to do it, but sometimes you have to."
Alcaraz, meanwhile, defeated Alex Michelsen 7-6, 6-3 in his opener in Paris after a first-round bye.
The recent Vienna Open champion will now face the winner of sixth seed Arthur Fils' clash with 11th seed Taylor Fritz in the quarter-finals on Friday.
Surprisingly, the seven-time Grand Slam champion has never progressed past the quarters of this Masters 1000 tournament.
But he said earlier this week: "At this tournament I really want to do great, at some point. Coming into this week, being the champion of Vienna, [I got] a lot of experience, rhythm, and confidence.
"I just hope to deliver great tennis and a great level this week. Excited and looking forward to playing my first match."
Alcaraz is 39-5 record for the season so far and has already qualified for the ATP Finals in Turin later this month having won four titles this year - the Australian Open, the Qatar Open, the Japan Open and the Vienna Open.
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L. Musetti/L. Van Assche vs R. Hijikata [Q]/T. Etcheverry
[3] B. Shelton/A. Rinderknech vs T. Paul [12]/Q. Halys
[SE] J. Struff/C. Ruud vs N. Borges [LL]/I. Buse
[6] A. Fils/T. Fritz [11] vs C. Alcaraz [2]
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