American favourite for ATP event
American John Isner’s preparations for the US Open continued in fine style with a solid 6-3, 6-2 defeat of Australian Alex de Minaur in Atlanta this week.
Isner was dominant throughout, losing just five games in an hour and five minutes of play.
“I’m happy to be in Atlanta.”
“Of course everyone knows how much I love this tournament. It’s good to be back home in the United States.”
After the epic against South African Kevin Anderson at Wimbledon a fortnight go final, won by Anderson 26-24 in the fifth set, this was a ‘walk in the park’ for the tall Isner, who controlled the game from the outset.
Isner broke de Minaur for a 4-2 lead in the first set but the young Aussie hung on and held serve before the American wrapped it up. The second was a formality, as de Minaur dropped service in the opening game and again in the fifth.
Cypriot veteran Marcos Baghdatis reached the quarterfinals of the tournament with a solid 7-5, 6-1 defeat of Francis Tiafoe.
The World No. 95 took just 77 minutes to see off the challenge of the fifth seed and will meet Ausise Matt Ebden in the quarters.
“It’s been a tough year. Before Miami I was playing pretty well. After Miami, I struggled a bit until Wimbledon. But what happened, happened. Now I’m here and I’m in the quarter-finals,” Baghdatis said.
“I’m happy. I try to play every match as it’s the same and try to go as far as possible in the tournament.”
Isner will now face Mischa Zverev and Ryan Harrison will meet Hyeon Chung in the quarters later today.
Meanwhile, Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas is trying to raise money to support the many who have suffered due to wildfires in Greece, including a friend a tennis player form the region.
“Many people lost their lives. Many families were affected. It was a very rough day for the nation and all the citizens of the country,” Tsitsipas said on YouTube.
“I happen to have a friend (Alex) with whom I used to play when I was younger in Greece. We used to play in the same tournaments.
He’s currently in the hospital in a very bad condition. He lost his home. The fire reached his house, and he’s been through really tough times. It’s a disaster.”
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Our Friday wrap wouldn’t be complete without mention of the Hamburg Open where Dominic Thiem powered his way to the quarters of the clay court tournament, beating Australia’s John Millman 6-2, 6-2.
The Austrian will face Pablo Busta in the last eight.
