Daniil Medvedev lost a mere five points on serve as the 20-time ATP titleholder schooled French teenager Arthur Fils 6-4, 6-2 to reach the second round in Vienna.
Veteran Gael Monfils, 37, gained back some of the Gallic respect as the weekend Stockholm champion extended his win streak to six straight with a 6-4, 6-4 defeat of German Daniel Altmaier.
Medvedev is hoping to repeat as a tournament titleholder for the first time in his career if he can find his way to the Vienna trophy on Sunday.
He advanced with 16 winners and eight unforced errors in 75 minutes; Fils produced 31 unforced errors in his first match since losing the Antwerp final three days ago to Alexander Bublik.
“I was a little bit nervous coming into the match,” Monfils said after taking a week off following Shanghai this month.
“I managed to serve well, play well and work him out during the match, so I’m very happy.”
Medvedev now faces Grigor Dimitrov for a quarter-final place in the Austrian capital.
Main photo:- Daniil Medvedev winning today – by Erste Bank
