Borges Beats Buse to Reach Paris Masters QF

Nuno Borges did not just sneak into the Paris Masters quarterfinals. The Portuguese lucky loser dismantled Ignacio Buse 6-0, 6-2 in 1 hour and 11 minutes on Thursday and became the first lucky loser ever to reach the last eight at this tournament.

Borges had lost all six of his previous Masters 1000 round-of-16 matches. This one was never close. He never faced a break point, converted five of 11 break chances, and won 12 of 13 points at the net while hitting 19 winners to Buse's eight, per Tennis Majors.

Lucky Loser Path to History

Borges fell in qualifying to Alex Molcan 7-6 (5), 6-2 after beating Adrian Mannarino 4-6, 6-1, 7-5. Given a main-draw spot as a lucky loser, he beat Moise Kouame 6-3, 6-1, then Karen Khachanov 6-3, 6-4, before Thursday's thrashing of Buse. That is three main-draw wins after a qualifying loss, and the biggest quarterfinal of his career.

He is the third Portuguese man into a Masters 1000 quarterfinal after Frederico Gil at Monte-Carlo in 2011 and Joao Sousa in Madrid in 2016. His only ATP Tour title remains Bastad in 2024, when he beat Rafael Nadal in the final.

Buse's Medvedev Upset Ended Cold

Buse had won their only prior meeting, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 on clay in Davis Cup in September 2025. On Thursday he had nothing. The Peruvian had already stunned Daniil Medvedev 6-4, 6-4 earlier in the week. Borges flipped that momentum in a little over an hour and left Buse staring at a 6-0, 6-2 scoreline with two match points saved and nowhere else to go.

Unforced errors ran 21-13 against Buse. Borges controlled every service game and never let the match breathe. For a lucky loser who had never won a Masters round of 16 before, the statement was loud.

Quarterfinal Waiting on Ruud-Struff

Borges' quarterfinal opponent is the winner of Casper Ruud against Jan-Lennard Struff, which was still unfinished when this result posted. Either way, a lucky loser into the Paris last eight is rare air. Borges has already rewritten what a second-chance story looks like at Bercy.

Smacktok pick lean: Lean higher on Borges holding serve early in the quarterfinal. He faced zero break points against Buse and has now won three straight main-draw matches after losing in qualifying.

First lucky loser into a Paris quarterfinal, and he got there with a 6-0, 6-2 thrashing. That is the kind of run that sticks.