Edmund Books Spot In Estoril QFs

Kyle Edmund booked his place in a fourth tour-level quarter-final of the year on Wednesday at the Millennium Estoril Open. The third-seeded Briton proved to be too strong for 19-year-old Australian wild card Alex de Minaur 6-2, 7-5 in one hour and 37 minutes.

De Minaur worked his way back from a 2-4 deficit in the second set, but had his serve broken in the 11th game when he hit a backhand slice wide at 15/40. Edmund calmly closed out to love for his 12th match win of 2018, which includes a runner-up finish at the Grand Prix Hassan II (l. to Andujar) and an Australian Open semi-final exit (l. to Cilic).

Edmund will next face Joao Sousa, who saved two match points at 4-5 and 5-6 in the second set to beat World No. 143 Pedro Sousa 4-6, 7-6(1), 7-5 in two hours and 25 minutes. Pedro Sousa lead 5-3 in the deciding set, but Portuguese No. 1 Joao Sousa won four straight games — including a 22-point final game, which he clinched on his fifth match point.

Two days after saving three match points against Tennys Sandgren, #NextGenATP star Frances Tiafoe overcame a tense second set to eliminate fourth seed Gilles Muller 6-4, 7-5. The 20-year-old American clinched the first set 6-4 but Muller, a finalist in 2017, raced out to a 4-1 lead early in the second.

Tiafoe broke back in the seventh and 11th games of the set, then closed out the match with an ace to secure his place in the quarter-finals, where he’ll face Simone Bolelli. The Italian qualifier battled from a set down to defeat Federico Delbonis 3-6, 7-5, 6-2 in the last match of the day.