Zizou Bergs was not quite sure “what was going on” after his stunning win over Carlos Alcaraz at the Shanghai Masters, admitting he was in “disbelief”.
The world No 39 claimed the biggest win of his career as he beat seven-time Grand Slam winner Alcaraz 7-5, 7-6 (7-5) in just over two hours in the third round of the ATP Masters 1000 event.
It is only his third top-10 win following victories over world No 9 Andrey Rublev at the 2025 Miami Open and world No 5 Felix Auger-Aliassime at this year’s United Cup.
Alcaraz was the overwhelming favourite as he is fresh from winning the Japan Open and also cruised past Juan Manuel Cerundolo in the second round, but never got his nose in front as the Belgian broke in game five before the second seed got back on terms in the next game.
Bergs, though, claimed the crucial break in 11, but the second set had a similar theme with the Belgian breaking first only for Alcaraz to hit back. This time Bergs went on to get the job done in the tie-breaker.
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Naturally, the 27-year-old was stunned after his win saying: “It’s a little about disbelief and not feeling too much. These are some of the moments where you don’t realise what’s going on.
“You’re just really in the moment, focused on the points you have to play. It’s tough to calm down a little bit, but I’ll be very happy.
“I obviously just tried to play my game. I felt like last week in Tokyo I really was in good shape. This week in training as well, I’m feeling the ball, being aggressive, and also serving quite well.
“My percentage is really high in the last number of matches, we’ve really worked on it, and it gives me a little bit of breathing room. I have a very good return and if I serve well we can utilise that even more.”
Bergs claimed a late mini break in the tie-breaker and then served it out.
He added: “I’m very happy how I handled the tie-break. He’s never easy to get broken when you can serve for the match. Really, to get back into the tie-break, play those key moments, serve big, I’m very happy with that one especially.
“It’s nice, this is something that has been very tough for me. I often have too much respect for these guys, which is part of the culture, and I’m proud of that, but it’s a little bit in the way when you have to play them.”
The Belgian reached the quarter-final last year, but lost in straight sets against Novak Djokovic.
Bergs continued: “I think I had a great moment last year here against Djokovic, I was definitely playing the name, not the guy. The more experience you have practising and playing the matches, the more it becomes the new standard a little bit on the Tour.
“To have this moment, it’s really a relief. Like okay, I feel like now I can win against those guys. I can play against them I can win against them. It’s a matter of also staying in the process and trying to be better all the time. That’s the only way to do it, step by step.”
