ATP Tour

Zverev escapes late drama to fend off Atmane in Cincinnati

Alexander Zverev advanced to the fourth round at the Cincinnati Open Monday, when he navigated a late twist to overcome Terence Atmane 7-6(4), 7-6(8).

The top seed held two match points at 6/4 in the second-set tie-break. Atmane erased the first with a blistering ace out wide, and Zverev committed a double fault on the second one to level the tie-break at 6/6. The 29-year-old, however, steadied himself, reeling off the next two points to seal a straight-sets victory in two hours and nine minutes.

The 2021 champion was pushed to three sets by Cameron Norrie in his opening match at the ATP Masters 1000 event but avoided the trend against Atmane, even though Frenchman disrupted Zverev's rhythm with his lefty forehand and solid serving. But Zverev's ability to stay composed in the key moments proved decisive. The German improved to 2-0 in the pair's Lexus ATP Head2Head series with the win.

“Really a step up from my first match,” Zverev said. “Atmane played amazing tennis, incredibly aggressive, unbelievable serve, hitting forehands all over the court. I am happy to be through in straight sets.”

Zverev, the No. 3 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, suffered an opening-round exit to Tallon Griekspoor at the Masters 1000 event in Montreal two weeks ago and is aiming to bounce back from that disappointment in Cincinnati. The German has reached at least the semi-finals in each of his past four appearances at the tournament.

Atmane, who made a surprise run to the semi-finals in Cincinnati last year, was seeking the biggest win of his career. The 24-year-old was also aiming to earn the fourth Top-10 victory of his career.

The next test for Zverev in Cincinnati will be a fourth-round clash with American Tommy Paul. The 18th-seeded Paul rallied past Adolfo Daniel Vallejo 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 in two hours and 17 minutes. With the triumph, the 29-year-old advanced to Round of 16 at the Masters 1000 level for the second time this season, following his run to the last eight in Miami.

In other action, Arthur Fils survived a major test from Jiri Lehecka to upset the ninth seed 6-1, 6-7(7), 6-3. Fils held a match point at 7/6 in the second-set tie-break before Lehecka fended it off to force a third set. The Frenchman eventually overcame the wobble to seal the win in two hours and one minute. With the victory, Fils improved to 4-2 in the pair's rivalry, having earned three of those victories this year.

Watch Fils vs. Lehecka Cincinnati R3 highlights:

Fils will next face fifth seed Alex de Minaur, who also survived some drama of his own earlier in the day to defeat Arthur Fery 7-5, 7-6(3). In a match that was thrice disrupted by rain delays, the Australian held a comfortable 5-1 lead in the second set, before Fery reeled off six consecutive games to go ahead 6-5. But De Minaur held his nerve and stormed through a watertight tie-break to seal a straight-sets triumph.