Former top-10 player Tommy Robredo have proved that he still has the ability to play at the highest level of the men’s game following a 6-4, 1-6, 6-1, win over top seed Grigor Dimitrov at the Marrakech Open.
Troubled by injury in recent years, the Spaniard now finds himself ranked outside the world’s top 300. A foot injury forced the 34-year-old to end his 2015 season early. Then the following year, he missed six months of action due to an elbow injury, which required surgery.
Many could have been forgiven for forgetting about the former world No.5, who last won a title at the 2013 Umag Open in Croatia. Still, the plucky Spaniard illustrated his determination to continue his career with a three-set win over Dimitrov. Even a second set thrashing failed to derail Robredo as he sent the lackluster top seed packing with the help of a 60% winning service rate.
“Grigor is a great player,” Robredo told atpworldtour.com. “I’m very happy with my victory today. I played a great first set, but then got broken quickly in the second even though I was up 40/0 in the first game. I’m glad I managed to bounce back in the third set. I really like Marrakech. I came here for a holiday last year and now I’m back playing the tournament.”
Thursday’s win has elevated Robredo into his first quarter-final on the ATP Tour since the 2015 Shenzhen Open. Awaiting him in the last eight will be French sixth seed Benoit Paire. Paire was in a dominant mood during his 6-2, 6-2, triumph over Radu Albot. The world No.39 fired six aces and won 80% of his first service points.
Seeds Kohlschreiber, Lorenzi survive
Third seed Philipp Kohlschreiber avoided the same fate as Dimitrov by coming through 6-0, 2-6, 6-3, against France’s Jeremy Chardy. Kohlschreiber, who has won at least one title on the clay every year since 2014, converted five out of his 12 break-point opportunities against Chardy. Marrakesh is his third quarter-final appearance on the tour this season after Sydney and Dubai.
Next up for the third seed will be a meeting against compatriot Jan-Lennard Struff. Facing Morocco’s Amine Ahouda, a player ranked almost 900 places lower than him, Stuff prevailed 6-3, 6-4.
Paolo Lorenzi survived a marathon match against former junior prodigy and 2013 Wimbledon boys champion Gianluigi Quinzi. In a match that was nine minutes shy of the three-hour mark, Lorenzi scored back-to-back breaks at the start of the deciding set to secure a 7-6 (5), 2-6, 6-4, win.
Finally, former world No.1 junior player Jiri Vesely stunned fourth seed Mischa Zverev 6-4, 6-4. This month marks the two years since the Czech 23-year-old last played in a tournament final on the ATP Tour.
.@ATPWorldTour Marrakech QFs:
🇪🇸 Robredo v Paire 🇫🇷
🇩🇪 Kohlschreiber v Struff 🇩🇪
🇮🇹 Lorenzi v Vesely 🇨🇿
🇭🇷 Coric v Ramos-Vinolas 🇪🇸#ATP— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) 13 April 2017
