De Minaur boosts Turin hopes with comeback Vienna win
Alex de Minaur kept his hopes of qualifying for the Nitto ATP Finals alive by dispatching #NextGenATP star Jakub Mensik 6-7(2), 6-3, 6-4 on Friday, to reach the semi-finals at the Erste Bank Open.
The 25-year-old, currently ninth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, dug deep and emerged victorious in two hours and 34 minutes.
“Now it’s crunch time. Every match counts. Every single point counts,” de Minaur said.
“I am gonna do my best. I haven’t played enough tennis this year, I have been sidelined for a while. So, plenty of energy and plenty of fight in me. So, I am going to make sure I give it my all every time I step out on court.”
Mensik was the first to switch gears as the opening set went into a tie-break. He employed aggressive groundstrokes and forced errors from the Australian to claim the first set 7-6(2). He fired 24 winners in the first set, including nine aces, according to the Infosys ATP Stats.
De Minaur responded by earning a crucial break in the sixth game of the second set and leveled the match by clinching the set 6-3. The Australian improved his serve and won 70 per cent (21/30) of points behind his first delivery. Going all in, the Australian broke Mensik again in the fifth game of the third set and stayed in control for the rest of the match.
Bidding to make his debut at the season-ending championships, de Minaur took a 1-0 lead in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series and reached his 25th tour-level semi-final.
Despite the loss, Mensik remains on track to qualify for the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF in December. The 19-year-old is third in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah.
De Minaur will play Karen Khachanov for a spot in the final.
[ATP APP]Khachanov defeated Matteo Berrettini 6-1, 6-4, and extended his winning streak to seven matches.
The 28-year-old, who won the Almaty Open last week, dispatched the Italian in one hour and 18 minutes to reach his first semi-final at the ATP 500 tournament in Vienna.
Khachanov gained momentum early on with his aggressive play. He broke Berrettini twice, fired 10 winners, and made two unforced errors in the first set. Berrettini stayed on par by holding serve in the second set, including back-to-back love holds in his first two service games. But the seven-time tour-level titlist proved too strong and needed a single break point in the ninth game to emerge victorious. He was also successful while charging forward, claiming 100 per cent (7/7) of points at the net.
With the win, Khachanov registered his first victory in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head Series, which Berrettini leads 4-1.
[NEWSLETTER FORM]