Filip Krajinovic felt 'dominant' in shock win against Dominic Thiem

A dominant 6-2 6-1 victory over No. 2 seed Dominic Thiem even left world No. 32 Filip Krajinovic surprised. 

Krajinovic, a former world No. 26, played probably the best match of his career when he met Thiem in the Cincinnati Masters second round.

"I’m honestly a little surprised by how the match went. My first Top 10 victory, I am very happy because of that, and also because I played well, the way I wanted to - I prepared good tactics and I feel good to be in the third round," Krajinovic exclusively told Sport Klub. 

In his service games for the entire match, Krajinovic dropped only two points.

"I didn't see that stat, but I'm very happy because we dedicated a lot of time to the service. It still doesn't work the way we want, it's a process, in some moments it's very good, sometimes I fail, but I keep working. Now, in this match, service was a big weapon - when that is the case, I play much more relaxed and I am much more aggressive. That meant a lot to me, you could see how I was going to the front," Krajinovic added.

But Krajinovic's main focus is on improving his second service.

"Mostly my second service, we are working on that. For the highest level and better rank, I need to have a faster second serve. Progress can be seen. In addition, the percentage of the first service must be higher for me."

Krajinovic knew Thiem would try to do something different 

After easily losing the first set, Thiem tried to surprise Krajinovic by constantly coming to the net but the Serb was ready.

"He was changing tactics because I was great from the baseline, I felt dominant. I knew he would change something, I didn't expect constant serve and volley, it was his first match in a long time and he needs time," Krajinovic said. 

Krajinovic next plays against Hungarian Martin Fucsovics, who beat 2017 Nitto ATP Finals champion Grigor Dimitrov.

"He is an outstanding player, I have known him for a very long time, we still played together in the juniors, and we are good friends off the field. I will try to be aggressive again, that is the style with which I have prospects against top players. The chances are 50-50, we both see an opportunity, we are ready, the stakes are the quarterfinals," Krajinovic said of his upcoming match.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2D2Dt3g