On a rainy Thursday at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, almost all of the day’s action was cancelled because of the weather. But in one of two singles matches played, Stefanos Tsitsipas overcame the conditions and a tough opponent to reach the third round.
Tsitsipas clawed past Belarusian Ilya Ivashka 6-1, 4-6, 6-2 after two hours and 13 minutes. The Greek will next play 14th seed Grigor Dimitrov.
Tsitsipas who last week won his second consecutive Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters title, walked onto Pista Jan Kodes with a 5-1 advantage. Although the top seed closed out the first set, it was clear the rain suspension from Wednesday to Thursday made this a whole new match.
Ivashka showed some of the form that helped him to a career-high No. 41 in the ATP Rankings in March. The 28-year-old showed no fear of stepping into the court and taking the action to Tsitsipas when the opportunity arose.
Last year’s Winston-Salem titlist ripped a backhand up the line to take the second set as the crowd, which was thrilled to watch some tennis on a rainy day, made for a a fun atmosphere with plenty of singing and cheering.
Ultimately, Tsitsipas’ consistency proved the deciding factor. He took advantage of a forehand error from Ivashka to break for a 2-1 lead in the deciding set, which he would not relinquish. The Greek won 65 per cent of his second-serve points in the match compared to just 36 per cent for Ivashka.
The Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell has proven a successful event for Tsitsipas, who reached the final of the ATP 500 in 2018 and 2021, losing against Rafael Nadal on both occasions.
In the only other completed singles match of the day, Dimitrov finished his 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory against Argentine Federico Coria.
The Bulgarian is fresh off a run to the semi-finals in Monte Carlo, where he lost against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. Tsitsipas leads the pair’s ATP Head2Head series 2-1, including a win on clay at Roland Garros two years ago.
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