By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Sunday January 21, 2024
Taylor Fritz had a major breakthrough at the Australian Open on Sunday night.
The American had never defeated a Top-10 player at the majors but he flipped that script in style as he hammered past last year’s runner-up Stefanos Tsitsipas 7-6(3) 5-7 6-3 6-3.
Fritz, the No.12 seed, had lost each of his previous 11 meetings against Top 10 opponents at the majors. He is 5-19 overall against the Top 10.
“It’s huge,” he said. “I made two quarterfinals before [at the majors] but I feel like in both situations the draws were a bit more open for me. It feels great to beat a top player, to get in the final eight of another tournament – to start the year with another quarterfinal at a Slam, it’s amazing.”
Fritz has reached the last eight at back-to-back Slams. At the US Open last September he lost to eventual champion Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals.
Into uncharted territory 👊
Taylor Fritz charges into the AO quarterfinals for the first time 👏#AusOpen • #AO2024 pic.twitter.com/ONEX5nikOM
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 21, 2024
Djokovic, who blazed past France’s Adrian Mannarino in fourth-round action on Day 8, will be Fritz opponent in the last eight.
Fritz fired 13 aces past Tsitsipas and won 68 of 79 first-serve points to improve to 2-3 against the talented Greek.
“I trusted my shots a lot. I served well the whole match,” Fritz said. “It kept me in it as there were some games he was in that I could get out of with my serve. At the end when I really needed it, I turned it up a level and played some of my best tennis to finish it.”
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