World number 8 and seeded number 1 at the ATP 250 in Brisbane, Holger Rune qualified for the quarter-finals on Wednesday. But, for his first tournament of the season, the Dane had to battle for 2 hours and 25 minutes. As in his first round against Max Purcell, he won in three sets against Alexander Shevchenko (6-4, 5-7, 6-2).
The Russian, 48th in the world, made life difficult for him during the first two rounds. In particular by stubbornly refusing to back down too much, by taking the ball early and maintaining the sustained pace set by his rival. Some exchanges actually resembled ping-pong more than tennis.
He will face Duckworth in the next round
Shevchenko even took advantage of her extreme solidity on serve during the second set (only five points lost on her engagement) to come back to level. But he stalled at the start of the third act, releasing a forehand taken in half-volley on a break point. Rune rushed into the breach to quickly lead 4-0. Mass was said.
In the absence of his coaches Boris Becker and Severin Lüthi, who will only join him in Australia next week, the Dane thus signs his seventh success in a row over players ranked higher than 20th in the world. In the quarters, he will face the Australian James Duckworth (116th), difficult winner of Yannick Hanfmann (4-6, 6-1, 7-6 [2]).
2024-01-03 13:11:51
#Holger #Rune #qualifies #quarterfinals #Brisbane
