Felix Auger-Aliassime and Denis Shapovalov earn Masters history in Miami
In the battle of the upcoming youngsters, Denis Shapovalov took down Stefanos Tsitsipas 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 in two hours and 14 minutes, with two breaks on each side and 100 points won for each player! It was a wild run from start to finish, with Denis having the upper hand in the shortest and Stefanos in the more extended rallies, with both players dominating with their forehands and making a similar number of winners and errors. The Greek was the better competitor in the opener, facing no break points and forcing a mistake from Denis to secure a break in the seventh game. Stefanos held after a deuce in game ten to grab the opener, losing the edge in set number two when Shapovalov raced into a 5-1 lead with a double break.
The Canadian clinched the set with a service winner at 5-3 to set up a decider where they both served well to reach the tie break, with Shapovalov moving over the top with a forehand winner in the tenth point to advance into the third Masters 1000 quarter-final. An 18-year-old has been one of the biggest prospects in the world of tennis in the last couple of years and has already achieved numerous milestones for himself and 2000 generation. Passing two qualifying rounds, Felix scored four main draw wins to book the place in the quarter-final as the first player born in 2000, also the first 18-year-old since Rafael Nadal in 2005!
Super talented prodigy is the youngest Miami quarter-finalist since Andy Roddick in 2001 and the sixth youngest overall at Masters 1000 series after Denis Shapovalov, Michael Chang, Fabrice Santoro, Andy Roddick and Pete Sampras. Today, Felix took down the 17th seed Nikoloz Basialshvili 7-6, 6-4 in an hour and 36 minutes, fending off six out of eight break points and breaking the more experienced rival thrice to cross the finish line first and book the place in the quarters. The youngster had 22 winners and 24 unforced errors, leaving Nikoloz on an 18-27 ratio and prevailing with a better performance in the shortest points up to four strokes.
The Canadian needed some time to settle into the desired rhythm, repelling three break points in the opening two service games to avoid an early setback, erasing another one at 4-4 with a forehand winner to stay in the opener. Nikoloz finally found the way to grab a break in the 11th game although it wasn't to be for him, losing serve in the worst possible moment to set up a tie break that Felix won 7-4 with three mini-breaks after forcing an error from the Georgian. Carried by this momentum, Felix broke at the start of the second set after a terrible backhand error from Basilashvili who pulled the break back in game six when Auger-Aliassime netted a forehand, leveling the score at 3-3 and extending his chances. Nonetheless, the youngster stayed focused to steal another break in the following game, delivering two good holds and moving over the finish line when Nikoloz sprayed a forehand error in game ten to propel Felix into the last eight.
from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2CGVaSl
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