Cincinnati: Dimitrov Out, Tsitsipas Through As Williams Loses Again
Stefanos Tsitsipas and Hurkacz advance in Cincinnati as Venus Williams suffers 14th straight loss.
Tsitsipas finally converted on his sixth match point with a late break two games...
A former Cincinnati champion crashed out on Friday at the hands of a South American clay-court specialist, while the 2022 finalist managed to advance to round two.
With the 64 seeded men and women skipping their first matches ahead of the US Open warm-up on August 30th, all eyes were on 2017 winner Grigor Dimitrov and 2022 runner-up Stefanos Tsitsipas as they began their campaigns on Saturday.
Fan favorite Dimitrov let a 4-1 lead slip in the deciding set against Argentina’s Sebastian Baez, going down 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the opening round after dropping the final five games.
The 35-year-old, ranked 138th and into the draw on a wild card, was chasing his first Cincinnati win in five years.
Baez will face American Learner Tien next, who reached the semi-finals in Montreal earlier this week.
Tsitsipas, once world No.3 and now down to No.49 after a lengthy dip in form, edged past France’s Valentin Royer 7-6(4), 7-5. The win sets up a second-round clash with second seed Felix Auger-Aliassime.
The Greek was up a set and 5-2, but got broken while serving for the match. Royer then saved two match points to level it at 5-5.
Tsitsipas finally converted on his sixth match point with a late break two games later to seal victory in two hours.
“I'm trying to come to the net as much as possible,” Tsitsipas said. “Whenever a ball is short I try to capture it inside the baseline. That's where I shined the most.
“I felt confidence running through my veins. My offensive strategy helped me today, my composure was excellent.”
Tsitsipas said he was put under pressure trying to finish off Royer, and admitted he stalled after failing to take his early chances to close it out.
“It was nerve-wracking at the end with those match points I was not able to capture,” the Greek said. “It would have been easy to get tight.
“I had to remind myself to stay loose and play aggressive. If I was going to miss, at least I knew I had done the right thing.”
Tsitsipas, now months on from splitting with his father as coach, has moved up to No.49 after coming through qualifying in Montreal, where he exited in round two.
Hurkacz Moves On As Williams’ Losing Run Reaches 14
Hubert Hurkacz, a semi-finalist here in 2023, eased through 6-2, 6-4 against lucky loser Sho Shimabukuro. Matteo Berrettini also came through, beating Thomas Droguet 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 in just his second match since Wimbledon because of injury.
On the WTA side, Colombia’s Emilia Arango ended Venus Williams’ wait for a win, rolling to a 6-2, 6-2 victory in 66 minutes. It’s now 14 straight defeats for the seven-time Grand Slam winner since July last year. The 45-year-old is currently ranked No.615.
The 46-year-old Williams received a wild card into a tournament where she made the semi-finals 12 years ago. This season she’s 0-11, with all of those appearances coming on wild cards.
Czech teenager Sara Bejlek dominated fellow countrywoman and 2016 champion Karolina Pliskova, cruising to a 6-0, 6-2 first-round win and giving Pliskova just two games.
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