Alexander Zverev came back from a set down to reach the last 16 of the Paris Masters as he overcame a three-set thriller against Camilo Ugo Carabelli. 

In what was his first match since his defeat to Jannik Sinner in the Vienna Open final, the defending champion was put through his paces to clinch a 6-7 (5-7) 6-1 7-5 triumph. 

Both players could not be split in a pulsating first set, but it was Ugo Carabelli who claimed the early advantage in the tie-break, despite squandering three set points. 

However, third seed Zverev dusted himself down and dominated the second, reeling off two three-game bursts to ensure that the match would go the distance. 

But Ugo Carabelli was not rocked by that setback, breaking his opponent early in the decider, only for Zverev to return the favour in the following game. 

As the pair continued to trade blows, Zverev's experience eventually told as he grabbed a decisive break in the 11th game, teeing him up with the chance to serve for the win.

And he did just that with a love service game, sealing his progression to the next round with a forehand to the left baseline that Ugo Carabelli failed to return. 

PUSHING ON

Zverev claims the win over Ugo Carabelli 6-7 6-1 7-5…#RolexParisMasters pic.twitter.com/dtIBMYF8sh

— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 29, 2025

Elsewhere in Paris, Valentin Vacherot's stocks continued to rise after he beat his cousin Arthur Rinderknech once again to reach the last 16 of the competition. 

In what was a rematch of their clash in the Shanghai Masters final, the same result transpired as Vacherot emerged a 6-7 (9-11) 6-3 6-4 victor in an almost three-hour epic. 

Vacherot's reward is a meeting with Cameron Norrie, who stunned world number one Carlos Alcaraz on Tuesday. 

Another top 10 seed who will not be featuring in the next round in the French capital is Casper Ruud after he was defeated in straight sets by Daniel Altmaier. 

Altmaier's 6-3 7-5 win has now ended Ruud's hopes of a spot in the ATP Finals, which will now be contested by Alex de Minaur, Lorenzo Musetti and Felix Auger-Aliassime. 

Data Debrief: Comeback kings

The two standout matches on Wednesday came from the raquets of Zverev and Vacherot, with their impressive turnarounds keeping their hopes alive of glory in Paris. 

Indeed, among players born since 1990, Zverev equalled Milos Raonic (95) for the second-most ATP Masters 1000 match wins on hard court, trailing only Grigor Dimitrov (103).

And since 1990, only Lleyton Hewitt, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic (six each) have claimed more consecutive wins after losing the opening set at ATP Masters 1000 events than Vacherot (five).