Top-seeded Taylor Fritz broke Britain’s Cameron Norrie late in both sets to earn a 7-5, 6-3 victory Wednesday in the second round of the Bybit Stockholm Open.
Fritz rallied from 3-5 in the opening set, saving two set points while serving at 4-5. He also saved two break points at 5-all before breaking Norrie at love to take the set. Fritz broke again for a 5-3 lead in the second set before serving out the match.
Fritz, who had a first-round bye, will face Denmark’s Holger Rune in the quarterfinals. Rune defeated Serbia’s Miomir Kecmanovic 2-6, 6-1, 6-4 to reach his second quarterfinal in three events since returning from an 11-month absence following a ruptured Achilles tendon sustained during last year’s Stockholm semifinals.
Fritz has won two of three previous matches against Rune, with all of those matches occurring in the Round of 16 at ATP Masters 1000 events.
In other Round of 16 matches, Qualifier Aleksandr Shevchenko of Kazakhstan produced the day’s biggest upset, defeating defending champion and second-seeded Norwegian Casper Ruud 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-3. Fourth-seeded Alejandro Tabilo of Chile edged Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego, 7-6 (2), 6-7 (7), 7-5 and seventh-seeded Frenchman Ugo Humbert dismissed Croatian Borna Gojo, 6-2, 6-4.
Shevchenko produced 50 winners and 20 unforced errors in his victory, and pounded 18 winners to only five errors in the deciding set.
–Field Level Media
