Jannik Sinner saves one match point to beat Hubert Hurkacz in Monte-carlo third round - UBITENNIS
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Jannik Sinner saves one match point to beat Hubert Hurkacz in Monte-carlo third round

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8 months ago

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Jannik Sinner saved a match point to beat Hubert Hurkacz 3-6 7-6 (8-6) 6-1 after 2 hours and 27 minutes on Court Rainier III at the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters. 

 

Sinner saved six of eight break points he faced and broke serve four times. 

Hurkacz came back from 15-40 down to hold serve at deuce in the first game. The Polish player earned his first break in the second game to take a 2-0 lead. Sinner went down 0-3 0-40 in the fourth game, but he saved three break points to hold serve at deuce for 1-3. Hurkacz saved two break points in the fifth game and held his final two service games to close out the first set 6-3 on his third set point. 

Sinner trailed Hurkacz by a set and a break at 3-6 1-2, but he broke straight back to draw level to 2-2. Sinner did not convert two break points in the eighth and twelfth games. The Italian player came back from the brink of defeat when he trailed 5-6 facing a match point in the tie-break of the second set. He reeled off three consecutive points to save the match point and sealed the tie-break of the second set 8-6. 

Sinner cruised through to a 6-1 win in the third set with three breaks of serve improving his win-loss record to 23-5. 

Sinner has reached the quarter finals at six of the seven tournaments he has played this year. 

Sinner has drawn level to 2-2 in his four head-to-head matches against Hurkacz. 

Sinner set up an all-Italian quarter final match against Lorenzo Musetti, who upset world number 1 Novak Djokovic 4-6 7-5 6-4. 

“It was a very tough match. Playing against him, I knew already from the beginning that it was very tough to get into the rhythm. I think he served incredible in the first one and a half sets, and when I broke him the first time the momentum changed a little bit. He also had match point. These kinds of matches can go both ways. I am happy that it went my way, and happy that I can play at least one more match. I can feel the energy of the crowd. There are a lot of Italians here and and they helped me  a lot, especially when I am in a very tough situation on the court. This helps me, and I try to get a lot of energy from that. Let’s see what’s coming from the next round”, said Sinner. 

Andrey Rublev moved past his compatriot Karen Khachanov 7-6 (7-4) 6-2 after 1 hour and 30 minutes earning his 50th tour-level win. 

The first set went on serve en route to the tie-break. Rublev raced out to a 4-0 lead with two mini-breaks. Khachanov pulled one mini-break back for 2-5. Rublev earned three set points at 6-3 with his third mini-break. Khachanov saved the first set point, but Rublev closed out the tie-break 7-4 on his second opportunity.

Khachanov earned an immediate break in the first game of the second set. Rublev came back by winning six of the next seven games with three breaks of serve. 

“We know each other too well. The first set was only mental. We did not show some tennis skills, but it was tough to show skills because the wind was really hard and the court was slippery. It was tough  do something. The first set was super mental. As soon as I was able to win a set, I started to feel more free and I felt Karen more down, so that was the difference”, said Rublev. 

Rublev set up a quarter final match against Jan Lennard Struff, who upset last week’s Estoril Open champion Casper Ruud 6-1 7-6 (10-8). Struff fired 37 aces and broke four times to reach his first Masters 1000 quarter final since Cincinnati 2020. The German player moved up 36 spots to world number 64 in the Live ATP Ranking. 

Rublev and Khachanov lost to Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski

Stuff dropped to world number 168 after suffering from a foot injury last year during a match in Miami. He was sidelined foor more than two months. He returned to the top 100 last month.

Struff cruised through the first set 6-1 with two breaks of serve in the second and sixth games before overcoming Ruud in a tight second set. Struff broke serve in the fifth and seventh games to take a 5-2 lead. 

Ruud saved two match points and fought back from 2-5 down to take a 6-5 lead in the second set by winning four consecutive games, but Struff drew level to 6-6 forcing the match to the tie-break. 

Struff ended Ruud’s nine-match winning streak on clay. The Norwegian player, who reached the Roland Garros final in Gstaad last year and in Estoril last week. Ruud saved a third match point in the tie-break. Struff sealed a hard-fought tie-break, when Ruud sent a return out. 

Two-time defending champion Stefanos Tsitsipas extended his winning streak in Monte-Carlo to 12 consecutive matches with a 6-3 6-4 win over Nicolas Jarry after 93 minutes on Court Rainier III. 

Tsitsipas won 80% of his first serve points, broke once in each set and saved both break points he faced. Jarry avenged his defeat against Jarry, who had beaten his Greek opponent in s’Hertogenbosh on grass. 

“He is someone that has had good results on clay, someone that can serve big as well. It was all sort played in the small details. I am really happy that I pulled through and gave myself such a good ending to my match”, said Tsitsipas. 

Tsitsipas set up a quarter final match against Taylor Fritz, who came back from one set down to beat Jir Lehecka 4-6 6-4 6-1. Lehecka converted his only break point in the third game to seal the first set 6-4. 

Fritz earned his first break in the second game of the second set to take a 2-0 lead. Lehecka broke straight back in the third game and held on his serve to draw level to 2-2. Fritz converted his second break point in the 10th game to win the second set 6-4. Fritz broke twice in the second and sixth games to win the third set 6-1.

Holger Rune advanced to the quarter final via walkover after Matteo Berrettini withdrew before the match due to an injury problem. 

“I don’t know where to start. I was finding my level and getting back to where I wanted to be. This is a difficult one. I am very sad to announce I will not be able to play my match today in Monte-Carlo. I felt some pain. In my obliques during my match yesterday. The pain became significantly worse overnight. After consulting with my medical team we decided to have a MRI this morning. I have a grade 2 tear in my internal oblique muscle. I can’t thank you all enough for the support. It means so much and is what gets me through these moments”, Berrettini wrote on Instagram. 

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Luca Van Assche edges past Abdullah Shelbayh at the Next Gen ATP Finals in Jeddah

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37 mins ago

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28/11/2023

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Luca Van Assche beat Abdullah Shelbayh 4-3 (7-5) 3-4 (5-7) 4-1 4-1 to move to 1-0 in Red Group at the Next Gen ATP Finals in Jeddah. 

 

Shelbayh thrilled the crowd with net approaches and drop shots but he converted just 2 of his 17 break points. 

Both players were making their first appearance at the Next Gen Finals. 

Shelbayh hit 28 winners to Van Assche’s 17. Van Assche made only 19 unforced errors to Shelbayh’s 34. 

Van Assche earned an early break in the first game and saved three break points to hold serve on the deciding point in the second game to take a 2-0 lead. Shelbayh broke back at love in the fourth game to draw level to 2-2. Van Assche came back from 2-4 down to win the tie-break 7-5.

The second set went on serve en route to the tie-break. Van Assche saved four break points in the third game to hold serve on the deciding point. Shelbayh earned four set points at 6-2. Van Assche saved the first three set points to claw his way back to 5-6, but Shelbayh earned his fourth mini-break with a drop-shot to seal the tie-break 7-5. 

Van Assche broke twice in the first and fifth games to win the third set 4-1. Shelbayh converted his third break point in the first game of the fourth set to take a 1-0 lead, but Van Assche won four consecutive games with two breaks of serve. 

Van Assche won seven of the ten deciding points of the match. 

“It was a tough match today against a tough opponent. I know Abdullah very well. He is an amazing player. He was almost at home with the crowd cheering for him. It was a good match for me and really tough from the beginning to the end. It is very difficult not to have a warm-up. I just hit a couple of balls before I entered the court”, said Van Assche. 

Shelbayh received a strong support of the crowd from neighbouring Jordan. 

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Flavio Cobolli beats Dominic Stricker on his debut at the Next Gen Finals

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5 hours ago

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28/11/2023

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Flavio Cobolli overcame 2022 semifinalist Dominic Stricker 4-2 3-4 (4-7) 4-1 4-2 after 1 hour and 39 minutes on his debut at the Next Gen ATP Finals in Jeddah to move to 1-0 in Green Group. 

 

Cobolli converted four of his five break points and won nine of his ten games on the deciding point.

Sticker earned the first break point in the second game of the opening set, but Cobolli saved it with a forehand inside-out on the deciding point. Cobolli fended off another break point on the deciding point with a first serve winner in the fourth game. The Italian player broke serve in the fifth game on the deciding point with a forehand passing shot to take a 3-2 lead and served out the first set at 15. 

The second set went on serve in the first three games with no break points. Stricker earned a break point in the fourth game, but Cobolli saved it to hold serve for 2-2. Stricker went up a 4-1 lead in the tie-break with a mini-break on the second point, but Cobolli pulled the mini-break back to draw level to 5-5. Cobolli saved two set points at 5-6 with a forehand down the line and another chance at 6-7. Stricker converted his third set point to win the tie-break 9-7 after 56 minutes.

Cobolli went down 0-40 on serve in the first game of the third set, but he won four consecutive points to save four break points to hold serve on the deciding point. The Italian player won 11 of the next 12 points and broke serve in the second game to open up a 2-0 lead. Stricker rallied from 0-40 down to 40-40, but Cobolli held serve on the deciding point with a forehand in the third game. Stricker earned three break points at 1-3 15-40 but Cobolli saved them to hold serve on the deciding point for 4-1.   

The fourth set started with a series of breaks and counterbreaks, as Cobolli took a 2-1 lead with a break on the deciding point and held serve at 30 to open up a 3-1 lead. Cobolli earned a match point, but Stricker saved it on the deciding point. Cobolli served out the win on his second match point in the sixth game.

Cobolli will face Arthur Fils in the second match on Wednesday.

“I warmed up for a lot of time, so I was really hot on the court. I started the match really well. The courts are so fast, but I was faster than Stricker. I played a really good match and I am really happy”, said Cobolli.

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Arthur Fils edges Luca Nardi in the opening match of the Next Gen Finals in Jeddah

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7 hours ago

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28/11/2023

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Arthur Fils made a winning start to Green Group with a 2-4 4-3 (8-6) 4-2 1-4 4-2 win of Luca Nardi after 2 hours and 2 minutes in the opening match of the 2023 Next Gen ATP Finals at King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah.

 

Fils served at 51% and faced only two break points. 

Both players went on serve in the first four games. Nardi earned his first break at 15 in the fifth game to take a 3-2 lead, when Fils netted a forehand. Nardi served for the set at 3-2 and fired a service winner to close out the first set in 19 minutes. 

Both players went on serve in the second set en route to the tie-break. Nardi fired an ace on the sixth point to draw level to 3-3. Fils earned a mini-break  after Nardi made a loose backhand. Nardi pulled the mini-break back to draw level to 4-4 and forced a mistake from Fils to earn a set point at 5-5. 

Fils saved a set point at 5-6 with a service winner. The Frenchman earned a mini-break at 7-6 to wrap up the tie-break of the second set 8-6 after 55 minutes. 

Fils broke serve at 15 in the first game of the third set after a lucky net cord winner and earned another break point at 2-0. Nardi won the decisive point with a forehand down the line winner to hold serve in the third game. Fils held serve at 30 in the sixth game to win the third set 4-2 after 1 hour and 18 minutes. 

Nardi faced two break points in the first game of the fourth set and saved them on the deciding point. 

Nardi broke Fils in the fifth game when Fils made a forehand error. The Italian player closed out the fourth set with a service winner in the sixth game forcing the match to the fifth set after 1 hour and 38 minutes. 

Both players went on serve in the opening five games of the decider. Nardi wasted a game point, and Fils earned the decisive break with a return winner to seal the win after 2 hours and 3 minutes. 

Fils won the first ATP title in Lyon last May and finished the season at number 36. The Frenchman started 2023 at number 249, making the biggest jump into the top 50 from last yeat of any player on Tour. 

“It was a tough match. The first set in my life I am playing first to four games. Things can change very quickly. I was leading two sets to one, had break points and I was feeling very good. Then I lost a deuce point and everything changed, but I I am really happy to win today”, said Fils. 

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