Djere, Eyeing Second Title, Holds Off Gulbis

Fifth seed Laslo Djere recovered from letting two match points slip in the second set and beat Latvian Ernests Gulbis 6-4, 6-7(6), 7-6(2) on Tuesday at the Hungarian Open.

Djere led 6/4 in the second-set tie-break and served for the match at 6/5, but Gulbis staved off the match points to force a decider. The six-time ATP Tour titlist then served for the match at 5-4 in the third before Djere broke back and won the final seven points of the tie-break.

The Serbian will next meet 17-year-old Italian Jannik Sinner or Hungarian wild card Mate Valkusz. Djere won his maiden ATP Tour title in February at the Rio Open presented by Claro.

Sixth seed John Millman routed #NextGenATP Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic, who made the quarter-finals of the BNP Paribas Open in March, 6-1, 6-2. The Aussie, who made his maiden ATP Tour final last year in Budapest, will next face Hungarian wild card Attila Balazs, who beat Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz 6-3, 6-4.

Robin Haase held off Italy’s Thomas Fabbiano 6-7(4), 6-3, 6-2 to set up a second-round meeting with No. 2 seed Borna Coric, and Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert, who made the third round at last week’s Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, beat lucky loser Egor Gerasimov of Belarus 6-3, 6-2.