At the BMW Open in Munich on Thursday, Gabriel Diallo from Montreal suffered a defeat of 6-1, 6-2 against Alexander Zverev from Germany in the round of 16.
Zverev, the top seed and defending champion, who was playing on his home turf on clay, managed to convert five out of eight break points during the match that lasted one hour and 13 minutes.
Diallo struggled, winning only 55% of his first-serve points and 32% on his second serve, making a total of 19 unforced errors.
During the first set, Diallo received treatment for a back problem, affecting his serving performance in the subsequent set.
“I think he had some back issues and his serving was impacted in the second set,” Zverev commented during his on-court interview. “Nevertheless, I am satisfied with the victory and pleased to have a relatively easier match today.”
This victory extended Zverev’s head-to-head record against Diallo to 2-0, with his previous win occurring earlier this year at the Australian Open.
The world No. 3 is set to compete against the fifth-seeded Francisco Cerundolo from Argentina in the upcoming quarterfinals on Friday.
On the same day, Denis Shapovalov from Richmond Hill, Ontario, was facing Fabian Marozsan from Hungary.
Fernandez’s Comeback in 3-Set Victory
At the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, Germany, Canadian player Leylah Fernandez staged a remarkable comeback in her second-round match on Thursday.
Fernandez needed three sets to overcome Turkish qualifier Zeynep Sonmez with a score of 6-7 (2), 6-1, 7-6 (5) and secure her spot in the quarterfinals.
In an impressive turnaround, Fernandez fought back from a 5-1 deficit in the third set, forcing a tiebreaker with her third service break out of five opportunities in the final set. Both players struggled to hold serve in the set, with Sonmez achieving three breaks of her own.
The match showcased difficulty in holding serve for both players, with Fernandez capitalizing on nine break points out of 14 chances. Sonmez, on the other hand, secured six breaks but missed out on 24 opportunities.
Throughout the match, Fernandez recorded two aces and eight double faults, while Sonmez managed three aces and three double faults.
Next, Fernandez is set to play against top-seeded Elena Rybakina from Kazakhstan.
Tag: rewrite-pending