Nadal Makes Dreams Come True For China Open Ball Kids Beijing 2017
Nadal Makes Dreams Come True For China Open Ball Kids Beijing 2017
Oct042017
The more aces Nick Kyrgios hits, the more help Puerto Rico, which was devastated by Hurricane Maria, will receive.
The 22-year-old Aussie upped his planned giving to the U.S. territory on Wednesday, saying he would give $50 for every ace he hits through the remainder of the season. Kyrgios had said he would give $10 for every ace, joining WTA player Monica Puig, who is from Puerto Rico, in helping rebuild the island, which is home to 3.4 million people.
Kyrgios won again on Wednesday, hitting 11 aces to beat German Mischa Zverev 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 at the China Open in Beijing. The Aussie will meet Belgian Steve Darcis in the quarter-finals.
You know what? I’m upping my offer for @MonicaAce93 #DonateWithMonica to $50 per ace. Let’s help Puerto Rico ❤️??https://t.co/ydPq2wzUod
— Nicholas Kyrgios (@NickKyrgios) October 4, 2017
World number eight Grigor Dimitrov beat Argentina’s Juan Martin del Potro to reach the China Open quarter-finals.
The Bulgarian third seed won 7-6 (8-6) 7-5 in Beijing to set up a meeting with Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut.
Former US Open champion Del Potro, a wildcard here, served for the second set but a series of forehand errors gave Dimitrov the decisive break.
British number three Aljaz Bedene retired from his last-16 match against Bautista Agut with a knee injury.
The 28-year-old, ranked 50th in the world, lost the first set 6-0 to the fifth seed, and was trailing 4-0 in the second when he decided not to continue.
Elsewhere, Australian eighth seed Nick Kyrgios beat Germany’s Mischa Zverev 3-6 6-2 6-2 in 82 minutes.
Kyrgios received a warning from the umpire after smashing his racquet at the end of the first set, but quickly recovered his composure.
He struck 11 aces and converted all four break point opportunities to beat Zverev and reach the quarter-finals, where he will face Belgian qualifier Steve Darcis, who beat Dusan Lajovic 6-3 6-4.
Before mid-August, Grigor Dimitrov had lost all five of his FedEx ATP Head2Head match-ups with Juan Martin del Potro. The Bulgarian had never been able to solve the game of the big-hitting Argentine.
How things have changed. Dimitrov won his second consecutive match against del Potro on Wednesday at the China Open, coming through in a tight second-round affair 7-6(6), 7-5 to move into the quarter-finals in Beijing and boost his chances of qualifying for the Nitto ATP Finals.
“Very pleased that I was able to finish in straight sets. DelPo is an absolutely unbelievable competitor… Every time we play it’s absolutely stunning. He’s a great guy. I love practising with him. I love competing against him,” Dimitrov said.
The third seed was down a break in the second set and served at 2-5 to stay in the set. But Dimitrov ran off five consecutive games, including two breaks, to improve to 2-5 against del Potro in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series. The win adds 45 more points to Dimitrov’s Emirates ATP Race To London tally, giving him 3,185 points, 530 behind fourth-placed Dominic Thiem, who lost in Tokyo on Tuesday.
“I really needed that match… I just had to find a way today. I fought really hard, lowered my expectations, stayed positive,” Dimitrov said. “He’s the kind of competitor who can beat anybody… There’s not going to be any freebies against him. So I had to work, work and only work today. That was it. I didn’t think I played my best tennis but it feels awesome to win on days like that.”
See Who’s Pushing Dimitrov In The Emirates ATP Race To London
Dimitrov is seeking to make his debut at the season-ending tournament, to be held 12-19 November at The O2 in London. The right-hander will next face Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut, who was leading Aljaz Bedene 6-0, 4-0 when the Brit retired.
Romanian second seed Simona Halep recorded her first victory over Maria Sharapova and advanced to the China Open quarter-finals with a 6-2 6-2 win.
The 26-year-old world number two, in her eighth match with Russian ex-world number one Sharapova, raced 4-1 ahead.
She won in 72 minutes to reach her second China Open quarter-final.
In the last eight Halep will play the winner of the evening match between Polish world number 11 Agnieszka Radwanska and Russian Daria Kasatkina.
Sharapova beat Halep at the US Open in August but committed 39 unforced errors in an untidy display in Beijing.
The 30-year-old Russian, who returned to competitive tennis in April following a 15-month doping ban, was competing at the China Open for the first since she won the title in 2014.
Now ranked 104, Sharapova beat fellow Russian Ekaterina Makarova in three sets in the previous round but could find no answer to the power and precision of the groundstrokes from Halep, who made only six unforced errors.
Dimitrov faces del Potro later on Wednesday
Nick Kyrgios is through to the quarter-finals of the China Open in Beijing after finishing strongly to defeat Mischa Zverev 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 on Wednesday.
“I knew it was going to be tough,” said Kyrgios, who struck 11 aces and converted all four of his break point opportunities in the 82-minute win. “He plays a very old-school type of tennis, likes to come forward a lot.
“I got broken early in the first. Then I kind of knew I had to loosen up and find my rhythm a little bit. I started serving much better, started just relaxing. I knew I was going to feel pretty comfortable at some stage out there. Obviously just really happy to get through.”
Kyrgios goes on to face either Steve Darcis or Dusan Lajovic as he bids to advance to his fifth ATP World Tour semi-final of the season. The 22-year-old Australian reached his first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 final in August at the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati (l. to Dimitrov) and has a 29-14 match record on the season.
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