Carlos Alcaraz boosted his hopes of finishing ATP Year-End No. 1 presented by Pepperstone for a second consecutive year on Monday when he downed Casper Ruud 6-4, 6-2 to reach his 12th semi-final of the season.

The Spaniard became the first player to earn 60 tour-level wins this season when he defeated Lorenzo Musetti in the second round and quickly moved to 61 with an aggressive display against Ruud. The top seed recovered from falling 0-3 behind in the first set, hitting with too much power and intensity for Ruud, who was seeking his first win against Alcaraz in his fourth attempt.

With his win, Alcaraz set a last-four clash against Jannik Sinner or Grigor Dimitrov. The 20-year-old is currently 635 points behind first-placed Novak Djokovic in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin but can move to within 415 points with the title.

“I am very happy,” Alcaraz said. “To be able to beat a player like Casper in straight sets is really good. It means you are playing well. It is really tough, big rallies at the beggining of the match, but I am really happy with the level. Being able to find solutions after the start of the first set. These kind of matches give you extra confidence.”

Alcaraz, who is seeking his seventh crown of the season this week, now holds a 12-1 record in quarter-finals in 2023. He struck 30 winners against Ruud and broke the seventh seed’s serve four times to advance after one hour and 45 minutes.

Ruud leaves Beijing 10th in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin, 410 points behind eighth-placed Holger Rune, who is in the final qualification spot. The 24-year-old advanced to the title match at the Nitto ATP Finals in 2022.