UMAG, July 29 — Carlos Alcaraz racked up his 40th win of the year on Thursday when he defeated Norbert Gombos of Slovakia 6-2, 6-3 to begin his Umag title defence in style.

The Spaniard won his maiden title at the Croatian clay court tournament in 2021 and has returned this year as the youngest man to make the top five in the world since Rafael Nadal in 2005.

Since defeating Richard Gasquet in the Umag final last year, 19-year-old Alcaraz has added four further titles to his collection, including Masters crowns at Miami and Madrid.

Thursday's win came after a surprise weekend loss in the Hamburg final against Lorenzo Musetti.

Alcaraz, who is now 25-3 on clay this season, will face Argentina's Facundo Bagnis on Friday for a place in the semi-finals. — AFP