[Singles Semifinal]
○Carlos Alcaraz (ESP) [1]  3-6, 6-3, 6-4  ●Casper Ruud (NOR) [4] 

■Carlos Alcaraz, the tournament’s top seed, came from behind to defeat fourth seed Casper Ruud in a gripping semifinal match.
While Alcaraz leads their head-to-head record 4-1, Ruud’s impressive form in this tournament made the match intensely competitive. Known for his heavy baseline strokes, Ruud added aggression to his game, stepping inside the baseline for early shots and taking the initiative. Alcaraz failed to convert any of his four break points in the first set and lost it 3-6.

■The match wasn’t going as Alcaraz had expected, but his comeback was swift. Reflecting on the turnaround in the second set, he said,"I missed chances, and it was hard to control my emotions. The key was to calm myself down." 

■He added "I wasn’t playing badly. So it was all about what I told myself. I aimed to play better, stay calm, and read the situation clearly. I had break points, so I knew more chances would come. I kept saying positive things to myself."

■That talk with himself paid off. Alcaraz stuck to his aggressive game plan, forcing Ruud to run with powerful cross-court shots and relentless drop shots. He deliberately avoided long rallies, likely due to lingering concerns about his left ankle, which made extensive baseline movement undesirable. Despite not being at 100% physically and facing an in-form opponent, Alcaraz’s confidence never wavered.

■This marks Alcaraz’s 10th final of the season, where he will face second seed Taylor Fritz (USA). "He’s been incredibly consistent and aggressive, and he's full of confidence. Alcaraz said“ His level is very high right now. I’ll do everything I can to beat him,"  and  means it when he say "I’m genuinely excited for this challenge."

(Japan Tennis Association)