Daily Dose of Social Media: “Why so early?" Zverev hilariously interrogates Alcaraz's Rome arrival

In a new Daily Dose of Social Media, Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev starred in a funny moment in the morning at the Rome Open when they met in the hallways of the Foro Italico. The German was surprised to see Alcaraz starting his preparation so early, although the Spaniard explained that the reason was his interest in watching the Real Madrid vs. Barcelona match peacefully.

On the other hand, ATP and WTA stars chose who they would have as personal chefs from among their fellow colleagues, with the participation of Aryna Sabalenka, Ons Jabeur, Grigor Dimitrov, among others.

ATP and WTA stars chose which of their colleagues they would hire as a personal chef, while the Italian Open is being played. With the participation of figures such as Aryna Sabalenka, Grigor Dimitrov, Ons Jabeur, Alexander Zverev, and Mirra Andreeva, the players revealed their choices in a fun round of questions and answers. "Let them cook. We asked tennis players which colleague they would hire as their personal chef 🤌" the official Rome Open Instagram account posted. The tournament will begin its second week of competition this Monday, with the Round of 32 on the men's side and the Round of 16 on the women's side. World No. 1s Aryna Sabalenka and Jannik Sinner will be the main stars of a new day at the Foro Italico.

Carlos Alcaraz had a funny encounter with Alexander Zverev at the Foro Italico when they met in the morning before a new day of the Rome Open. The Spaniard was arriving at the tournament facilities while Zverev was warming up to go on court during the morning session, and he was surprised to see Alcaraz arrive several hours before his match was scheduled.

Zverev faced Lithuanian Vilius Gaubas in the morning, winning 6-4, 6-0 and advancing to the round of 16 of the tournament where he is the defending champion. “Why are you here so early?” Zverev asked as soon as Alcaraz greeted him.

“It’s Real Madrid – Barca at 4:15,” Alcaraz responded.

“Ok, but they don’t play here right?” Zverev added.

“No, but I have to watch it,” Alcaraz said with a smile.

“You have to warm up also nine hours before the match,” Zverev added.

“I do it now and then I watch the football in peace,” concluded the Spanish world No. 3.

Alcaraz went out for his third-round match in the evening, about an hour after the Barcelona vs. Real Madrid match ended, with a 4-3 victory for the former. Alcaraz was the protagonist of the central match of the night in Rome, where he defeated Serbian Laslo Djere in straight sets, guaranteeing his passage to the 4th round. Zverev will face Arthur Fils (13th seed), while Alcaraz will face Karen Khachanov (23rd seed).

Corentin Moutet had an emotional reaction after achieving a notable victory against Holger Rune after 3 hours and 44 minutes, with a score of 7-5, 5-7, 7-6(4), which allowed him to advance to the 4th round of a Masters 1000 for the first time. The talented Frenchman survived a rollercoaster against Rune, in what was also his first victory against a top-10 player.

It was a match in which neither player could impose themselves for a long time, in a constant exchange of dominance. In the first set, Rune had to save 6 break points before finally conceding his serve for 6-5 to the Frenchman, who took the first set with his serve. In the second set, Rune broke twice and only lost one serve, allowing him to take the match to a third set where a tie-break had to decide the winner.

Moutet, physically stronger after three and a half hours, sealed his place in the round of 16, where he will face Englishman Jack Draper (5th seed), who defeated Czech Vit Kopriva (92nd) 6-4, 6-3.