(Reuters) – World number one Daniil Medvedev wore down Canadian Denis Shapovalov 7-5 7-5 on Thursday to reach the Cincinnati quarter-finals ahead of his U.S. Open title defence.
Russian Medvedev suffered a jarring early exit from the Canadian Masters this month but overcame early mistakes at the tune-up tournament for the year’s final major, trading breaks with Shapovalov before breaking him again in the 11th game.
A frustrated Shapovalov received a warning for whacking his racket as Medvedev, who won the tournament in 2019, wrapped up the first set.
Medvedev dropped just four first-serve points in the second set and never faced a break as Shapovalov saved five break points before losing his serve in the penultimate game.
“The match was pretty tight, I felt like it was (a) great level,” Medvedev said. “My goal was to stay there every point possible.”
He faces Taylor Fritz in the next round, after the Indian Wells winner came back from a set down to beat Russian Andrey Rublev 6-7(4) 6-2 7-5 on Center Court.
Rublev’s game deteriorated just as Fritz found his form, the American breaking in the third and fifth games of the second set and hitting a dozen winners, twice as many as his opponent.
Fritz saved three break points in a tense sixth game of the decider before converting his own break point in the 11th.
Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas had few problems taking down Diego Schwartzman 6-3 6-3 in a little over 90 minutes after the Argentine served up nine double faults.
(Reporting by Amy Tennery in New York, editing by Ed Osmond)
