Barcelona Open: Casper Ruud Escapes Trouble to Beat Medjedovic, Continues Title Defence
Casper Ruud, the Norwegian second seed, has continued his title defence at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, navigating a tricky encounter against Hamad Medjedovic to secure a 7-5, 7-5 victory. The win, which was reported by the ATP Tour, sees Ruud through to his 38th tour-level quarter-final on clay, as he seeks to become the fourth man this century to successfully defend the Barcelona title.
According to the ATP Tour, Ruud’s victory was a disciplined and clutch performance, with the Norwegian saving nine of 11 break points in the match, including three from 0/40 at 5-5 in the first set. He also battled through five deuces to hold at 5-5 in the second set — the longest game of the match at 10 minutes — before breaking at love to clinch victory. As noted by the ATP Tour, Ruud has not dropped a set in Barcelona dating back to the start of his 2024 run, but that streak was in danger after a shaky start against Medjedovic, who was seeking the second Top 10 win of his career.
The ATP Tour reports that Ruud will next face Holger Rune in Friday’s quarter-finals, after the sixth-seeded Dane beat Sebastian Baez 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 earlier on Wednesday. In other action, Stefanos Tsitsipas also advanced to the quarter-finals with a 7-6(4), 6-4 result against Sebastian Korda, as per the ATP Tour. The third-seeded Greek did not face a break point in the victory, though he converted on just one of the seven break chances he created.
As quoted by the ATP Tour, Ruud said, “That was quite fortunate today. I’m also happy with my mentality, that I didn’t give up, that I tried to hang in there. I saved some really important break points and broke him at 6-5 in both sets, so that’s kind of a little bit fortunate sometimes, but the last game I played some really good points.” The ATP Tour also reports that Tsitsipas improved to 2-1 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head against Korda, avenging his defeat to the American last month in the Miami third round.
The ATP Tour notes that Tsitsipas’s quarter-final opponent will be seventh-seeded Frenchman Arthur Fils, a 6-3, 6-2 winner against Pedro Martinez. With this win, Tsitsipas is through to his fifth consecutive Barcelona quarter-final, and his 17th quarter-final in 19 clay events played since the start of the 2022 season. His lone early exits came at Roland Garros in 2022 and in Madrid last season.
According to the ATP Tour, Ruud is bidding to become the fourth man this century to successfully defend the Barcelona title after 11-time champion Rafael Nadal, Kei Nishikori and Carlos Alcaraz. Having entered the event at No. 10 in the PIF ATP Rankings, Ruud must win the title in order to remain in the Top 10; he is currently No. 15 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings. The ATP Tour reports that Ruud’s title defence is on track, with the Norwegian seeking to make a statement in the competition.
The Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, also known as the Trofeo Conde de Godó, is a prestigious tournament on the ATP Tour, and this year’s event has seen some thrilling encounters. As reported by the ATP Tour, the competition has seen several top players in action, including Ruud, Tsitsipas, and Korda, all vying for the coveted title. With the quarter-finals set to take place on Friday, fans can expect more exciting tennis from the world’s top players.
Source link
