Fritz Leads #NextGen Stars In Washington

A pair of #NextGen stars kicked off their Citi Open campaigns in winning style on Monday, with Taylor Fritz and Jared Donaldson tasting first-round success. Fritz – the youngest player in the Top 100 of the Emirates ATP Rankings – posted a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Israel’s Dudi Sela on Stadium Court.

The 18-year-old World No. 67 sent down 11 aces and staved off all seven break points on his way past the 31 year old to set up a clash with fellow #NextGen star, seventh seed Alexander Zverev.

Donaldson won his third straight match, after winning through qualifying, defeating Frenchman Vincent Millot 5-7, 6-2, 6-4. It was the 19 year old’s first ATP World Tour victory of the season and he will next take on Millot’s compatriot, No. 4 seed Benoit Paire.

In other matches, Japanese World No. 93 Yuichi Sugita had a tougher time of it finding a way past 2014 finalist Vasek Pospisil. The World No. 93 bounced back to steal a 1-6, 6-2, 7-6(4) victory over the Canadian and will face #NextGen star Borna Coric in the second round.

“In the first set, I made a lot of mistakes and could not get a good feel for my groundstrokes. Moving back a bit and focusing on my first serve made a big difference,” Sugita said. “I’m always learning. I enjoy moving on the court, even in the hot conditions here. I can run until the end of any match, so that’s my weapon.”