Jannik Sinner battled past Ben Shelton 7-6 (7-2) 7-5 at the Erste Bank Open at the Wiener Stadthalle in Vienna to set up an Italian second round clash against Lorenzo Sonego.
Sinner avenged his recent defeat to Shelton, who beat his Italian rival in Shanghai earlier this month.
Shelton showed sings of fatigue after winning his first ATP Tour title in Tokyo last Sunday, but he pushed Sinner, who had to fend off four break points.
Sinner earned two mini-breaks to win the tie-break 7-2. The Italian clinched the only break of the match in the 11th game to take a 6-5 lead in the second set.
Sinner leads 3-0 in his head-to-head series against Sonego after winning his previous matches in Montpellier, Halle and at the US Open.
“It was a very tough match. He always serves really well, and today was obviously the same. He is confident. He is a very tough player to beat. I was looking forward to it. I lost the last match-up, so I am happy that I won this one. I am looking forward to the next one. I wish him the best for the rest of the season. I think he will finish the year strong. I a already looking forward to the next one”, said Sinner.
Zverev beats Norrie in straight sets
Alexander Zverev beat Cameron Norrie 6-2 6-4 in 79 minutes to score his second straight-set win this week at the Erste Bank Open in Vienna.
Zverev has improved to 4-0 in in his head-to-head series against Norrie. The German player set up a match against either Andrey Rublev or Matteo Arnaldi.
Zverev will aim to win his third ATP Tour title this season after his triumphs in Hamburg and Chengdu.
Zverev started the match with an early break in the first game. The German player went up a double break in the fifth game to take a 4-1 lead. Norrie did not convert three break points in the sixth game. Zverev served it out 6-2 on his second set point.
Zverev earned an early break in the third game of the second set to take a 2-1 lead. Norrie saved a break point in the seventh game to hold serve for 3-4. Zverev served out the win on his first match point after saving two break points in the 10th game.
