Tsitsipas Rolls to 15th Win in Miami

March 27, 2021 c_admin Tennis News Comments Off on Tsitsipas Rolls to 15th Win in Miami

By Richard Pagliaro | Saturday, March 27, 2021


 


A sharp Stefanos Tsitsipas dismissed Damir Dzumhur 6-1, 6-4 scoring his 15th win of the season and rolling into the Miami Open third round.

Photo credit: ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament Facebook

Creative construction is Stefanos Tsitsipas’ blue-print for this Miami Open.

Today, Tsitsipas was determined demolition man.

More: Medvedev Makes Major Footprint

Tsitsipas stormed through the first five games of the match dismissing Damir Dzumhur 6-1, 6-4 rolling into the Miami Open third round.

Facing a familiar nemesis who had won three of their prior four meetings, Tsitsipas snuffed out Dzumhur’s hope stomping the former world No. 23 with his electric serve. Tsitsipas, who was sixth on the ATP Tour in service games won in 2020 (88 percent), served 78 percent, swatted six aces and did not face a break point dispensing a 68-minute thrashing.

“When I serve well I feel well everywhere on court,” Tsitsipas told Tennis Channel’s Prakash Amritraj afterward. “I think it contributes a lot to my overall game. It adds confidence in crucial moments.

“I think it all starts from the serve. If the serve works and I can place it at the right side of the court I think that definitively contributes a lot to my psychological and mental state on the court.”

The second-seeded Greek improved to 15-4 on the season joining top-seeded Daniil Medvedev and ATP 500 king Andrey Rublev as the third man to post 15 victories on the season.

The absence of the Big 3—world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer—as well as third-seeded Alexander Zverev’s loss to talented Fin Email Ruusuvuori, make this Miami Masters the opportunity Open and Tsitsipas, who lost to Zverev in last week’s Acapulco final, is eager to exploit his chance.

“Well, it is an opportunity, I won’t lie. It is an opportunity,” said Tsitsipas, who snapped a two-match losing streak to Dzumhur. “There are plenty of good guys that aren’t in the top five that can play good tennis, as well. I can see them as a threat, too. I don’t see myself as the favorite of the tournament.

“I like to enter a tournament with low expectations and build my way through. I have a pretty I would consider difficult road despite all of this. I have matches that I will really have to fight hard and give out my best.”

Tsitsipas snapped a smash for set points and completed a commanding opening set in 26 minutes. The world No. 5 served 88 percent and repeatedly pushed forward in the first set.

A distracted Dzumhur did not consistently find his baseline range and betrayed his own cause netting some drop shots in the opening set.

Dodging break point to start the second set, Dzumhur streaked sidelined to sideline and flicked a fantastic forehand pass crosscourt. That shot helped him hold in the opening game of the second.

The lucky loser tried steadying himself, but Tsitsipas kept attacking. Jerking the world No. 126 around the court with a pair of drop shots, Tsitsipas broke for 2-1 on a Dzumhur double fault.

The trainer came out on court during the ensuing changeover and gave Dzumhur some tablets. When play resumed, Tsitsipas thumped an ace down the middle holding at 15 for 3-1 and never looked back.

Tennis Express

Seeking his first title since the 2020 Marseille, Tsitsipas will play Kei Nishikori for a spot in the round of 16.

The 28th-seeded Nishikori defeated Aljaz Bedene for the second straight tournament, 7-6(6), 5-7, 6-4.

“Well, it’s a place that he trains, so, you know, I guess he’s acclimatized to the conditions,” Tsitsipas said of Nishikori. “He’s a player that has played very well in the past, and even now he can raise his level really high. I’ll try and be ready for the battle.

“It’s important for me to have matches against strong opponents like him. I am very pumped for the match and I’m going to try and put my best performance out there. I’m going to try and take it game by game. It’s important to have a clear picture and follow my tactics.”

Earlier, Milos Raonic rocketed 14 aces and won 22 of 23 first-serve points overwhelming Jordan Thompson 6-2, 6-1 in 59 minutes.

Talented Italian teenager Lorenzo Musetti continued his winning ways sweeping an apathetic Benoit Paire 6-3, 6-3 in one hour.

Life on the pro tour amid a pandemic is driving Paire bonkers.

In a candid Instagram post earlier this month, Benoit blasted the “pseudo ATP circuit” as “sad, boring and ridiculous” and suggests competing in sterile stadiums largely without fans has drained his pleasure of playing.

“I will talk about the ATP circuit which has become sad, boring and ridiculous,” Benoit wrote in an Instagram post. “I know you are going to say you don’t realize how lucky you are blah-blah-blah, but playing in closed stadiums without any atmosphere Isn’t that why I play tennis.”

Meanwhile, the 19-year-old Musetti continues his inspired run scoring his eighth win in his last nine matches. Musetti will play either 13th-seeded Cristian Garin or former US Open champion Marin Cilic next.

Last week in Acapulco, Musetti played through qualifying and scored his first Top 10 win over Diego Schwartzman en route to the Acapulco semifinals where he fell to Tsitsipas and impressed the 2019 ATP Finals champion.

“I really like his game. He has a very complete, diverse game,” Tsitsipas said of Musetti. “He can take good use of his backhand. I think also his forehand is an element of surprise for his game. His backhand, he curates it really well. I think he has still a lot to improve in his serve. I personally find.

“But his whole game is very well-constructed. I feel like he knows what he’s doing. When he’s on the court, he mixes up a lot with slice backhands and one-handed backhand down the lines. He has I would say a clay court game, but he can definitely adjust it accordingly according to the surface. I would say it was difficult playing against him. There were some games that were tight, that were close. I dealt with the situation better than he did.”