World No. 1 Jannik dispatches retiring Frenchman Richard Gasquet 6-3, 6-0, 6-4 to enter third round; ninth seed Alex de Minaur stunned by Alexander Bublik
Jannik Sinner during his Rd 2 win over Richard Gasquet yesterday. Pic/Getty Images
World No.1 Jannik Sinner eased into the third round at Roland Garros on Thursday with a 6-3, 6-0, 6-4 over Richard Gasquet in the final match of the Frenchman’s career.
Reigning US and Australian Open champion Sinner is on a 16-match winning run at Grand Slams and is attempting to become the first Italian man to win the French Open since 1976. He will face 34th-ranked Czech Jiri Lehecka for a place in the last 16.
Strong start
Sinner broke for a 3-1 lead in the opening set and then fought off three break points to serve out for a one-set lead against Gasquet, playing in his 22nd and final French Open.
The 23-year-old top seed ran away with the second set against an opponent who turns 39 next month and made his Roland Garros debut in 2002, when Sinner was just months old.
“It’s obviously a very special place for me to play,” said Sinner, who also beat Gasquet in Paris last year. “Against Gasquet, we already played last year here, it’s always very tough. I’m generally very happy to be in the third round,” he added.
Gasquet’s 610 wins are the most by a Frenchman in the Open era and huge cheers greeted him as he held serve to start the third set to end a seven-game skid. He put up more resistance, fighting valiantly to prolong his final tournament appearance, but Sinner eventually broke for a 5-4 advantage before sealing victory.
Zverev avoids slip-up
Also progressing to the third round was Germany’s Alexander Zverev. However, unlike Sinner, the World No.3 had to overcome a hiccup in the first set to beat Dutchman Jesper de Jong 3-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-3.
Zverev will next face either Flavio Cobolli or Matteo Arnaldi for a last-16 berth. Earlier, Australian ninth seed Alex de Minaur’s run of reaching four consecutive Grand Slam quarter-finals was ended as he blew a two-set lead to lose 2-6, 2-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 to Alexander Bublik.
This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
