Madrid Open: Francisco Cerundolo upsets Alexander Zverev to seal quarter-final berth
Apr 30, 2024
Madrid [Spain], April 30 : Francisco Cerundolo bagged his third Top 5 victory on Tuesday at the Madrid Open as he upset World No. 5 Alexander Zverev to reach his fourth ATP Masters 1000 quarterfinal.
The Argentine saved both break points he faced to register a 6-3, 6-4 win over the two-time Madrid champ Zverev after a 90-minute battle.
According to ATP stats, the Argentine won 79 per cent (33/42) of his first-serve points and saved both break points that he faced.
Since Juan Martin del Potro advanced to the round of eight in the Spanish capital in 2012, Cerundolo is the first Argentine to reach the quarterfinals in Madrid.
The 25-year-old, who defeated American Taylor Fritz in the 2022 Tour-level clay-court championship in Bastad, hopes to advance to his second ATP Masters 1000 semifinal in Miami.
In 88 minutes, Fritz overcame Hubert Hurkacz 7-6(2), 6-4 to reach his first Masters 1000 quarterfinal of the year.
The ninth American to make it to the quarterfinals of ten Masters 1000 events is the player ranked No. 13 in the ATP Rankings.
After winning the first set in a tie-break, Fritz showed patience throughout his fourth ATP Head2Head match against Hurkacz. In the opening game of the second set, Fritz earned the sole break of the match.
