World No1 Jannik Sinner was taken to three sets by Tomas Martin Etcheverry in Shanghai, with the Argentinian keeping the Italian on court for two-hours and 39-minutes before finally conceding a place in the last 16 of the Rolex Masters, 6-7(3) 6-4 6-2.
Sometimes you have to wait for your chances, which I have done, while trying to stay calm mentally. Today, that was the key. Jannik Sinner
Whereas in his opening match Sinner had little trouble dropping just five games, he was extended to the maximum in the third round under the closed roof of the Stadium Court but he has managed to maintain his unbeaten record against players outside the top 20 having now dispatched 43 of them during this season’s campaign.
The scene was set early in the opening game when the pair exchanged service games and then settled into a battle of attrition until the tiebreak after Sinner failed to convert a set point.
There the Argentinian took control to claim it after 62-minutes of pulsating play with the loss of just three points.
Again, neither player was able to break for the first four games of the second until the Italian finally achieved that following an 18-shot exchange to mark the start of his comeback.
But as Etcheverry had shown, he wasn’t playing to just make up the numbers. In response, he applied pressure and recovered that dropped set immediately for 3-3, but a double fault in the 7th game by the South American 25-year-old proved costly allowing Sinner to go on and force a decider.
The Italian, with the momentum behind him, should have got off to the ideal start in that decider but failed to convert three separate break points in the opening game, but made amends to take a 2-1 lead and followed up that break with another in the fourth.
However, Etcheverry kept fighting, surviving two break points in the fifth game to stay in contention.
A 15-minute sixth game would prove the most important of the match with Sinner surviving three separate break points before pinching the game from the Argentinian and taking a crucial 4-2 lead. Sinner then broke immediately in the following game to put him on the brink of a hard-fought victory, closing out the match with a love game.
“It got stressful because if I lose the game at 3-2, and he makes the break, then we are back even,” Sinner pointed out later.
“Sometimes you have to wait for your chances, which I have done, while trying to stay calm mentally. Today, that was the key.”
Carlos Alcaraz reaches last 16 comfortably
(Photo by Zhe Ji/Getty Images)
Meantime his rival Carlos Alvaraz joined him in the last 16 but it took him just 99-minutes to dispatch the Chinese wild card Yibing Wu 7-6(3) 6-3 for his 50th win of the season.
Alcaraz was made to work by his 24-year-old opponent but once the Spaniard had settled and worked him out, he had no trouble.
“He’s recovering his level,” Alcaraz pointed out. “He’s coming back from injury, so his level deserves to be at the top for sure.
“If he is still playing at this level and keeps going, then I’m going to see him around more often.
“I’m really happy to get through. I’m not used to the way I felt on court. He’s a really powerful player and played strong. I felt like I was not dominating the game.”
Novak Djokovic dug deep to get past Alex Michelsen
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The four-time Shanghai champion, Novak Djokovic, is one round behind and came close to an early exit as he was pushed all the way by the American Alex Michelsen before progressing, courtesy of two tie, 7-6 3) 7-6(9).
The Serbian found himself 3-0 down within the first 10-minutes, but as expected, fought his way back on serve and held for the tiebreak where he gained the initial mini-break for 3-1 which gave him the momentum to go on and claim the first set.
Alexander Zverev nearly didn’t make Shanghai
(Photo by Zhe Ji/Getty Images)
Also through is Alexander Zverev but again he is a round behind the two favorites and could face Djokovic in the semi-finals.
The German progressed past Italian qualifier Mattia Bellucci 6-4 6-2 to reach the third round.
“He is actually a very good player. He surprised me a lot for his size. His serve is incredible. He gets quite a lot of speed on that, and from [the] baseline, he is very, very aggressive,” Zverev said after the match.
After withdrawing from Beijing due to pneumonia last week, the 27-year-old notched his first victory in Shanghai since 2019 in 96-minutes.
“I didn’t practice, I didn’t do anything really. So, of course, I am happy with the level,” admitting there was uncertainty leading up to the tournament due to illness.
