Carlos Alcaraz received an apology from an unlikely source after suffering a shock exit in the Shanghai Masters quarter-final.

The number two in the world was defeated in straight sets by Tomas Machac.

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It was a result that saw Machac reach his first-ever ATP Masters semi-final as the 30th seed.

Most had believed that Alcaraz would brush aside the Czech to set up a semi-final against world number one Jannik Sinner.

But instead, it’s Machac who will face Sinner, who secured a 7-6, 7-5 win against all odds.

And that was not the only surprise that awaited Alcaraz.

The Spaniard was met with an apology from none other than his conqueror, Machac.

Alacaraz, always gracious in defeat, had taken to Instagram after the match to give his opponent due praise and appreciation.

“Congratulations @tomas_machac! Played well today,” he wrote in his story.

“I’m disappointed to lose, but happy with a great Asian swing!”

And Machac, clearly full of respect for the skilled player he just defeated, had posted his own message in response.

He repeated Alcaraz’s story and added an apology for stunning the world number 2.

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“Thank you. Sorry for my level today,” wrote Machac.

But Machac had little to apologize for, having treated the crowd to some beautiful tennis.

Even Alcaraz himself had admitted he was overwhelmed by how good the 23-year-old had been that day.

“Well, I feel like I played against a top five player, not even top ten, no, top five, his level was so high,” he reflected after the match.

“I thought he would give me a chance, a chance, but he didn’t. I mean, from the first game to the last, his level was so high. His ball speed was unbelievable.”

“So I feel good. To be honest, I felt good on the field, I felt the ball very well, I hit well, I moved well.

But honestly, at one point I didn’t know what to do. To be honest, it was one of those matches where it was insane that I couldn’t play his forehand.

‘I mean, every time he hit his forehand it was a winner, or the next ball he would hit another winner.

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“It was unbelievable, it was crazy for me.”

As for Machac, the Czech admitted that he knew he had played one of the matches of his life, but that the level of his opponents had recently forced him to improve his skills.

“Well, I played unbelievable,” he said. “I knew my tennis level would be great today because I’m definitely playing the best of my career right now.

“I beat Tommy Paul in the last match with an incredible performance. I have to play at this level with these types of players.

“Otherwise it’s 6-2 6-3 and you go home. There is no other option.”