Austrian Dominic Thiem improved to 17-7 on the clay in Spain with an easy 6-4, 6-1 win over Britain’s Kyle Edmund on Thursday at the Mutua Madrid Open.
Thiem won 85.7 percent of his first serves and saved all four break points against Edmund in 84 minutes of work.
“It was not easy in the beginning,” Thiem said. “First match on the center court and I was mainly practicing outside, so it is a different feeling. “I had some crucial moments in the first set when I saved the break points and then I released a little bit and it got better and better.”
Up next for Thiem is fourth-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas. Thiem is 5-3 head-to-head lifetime against the Greek.
“I am looking forward to that one a lot,” Thiem said. “I like him a lot. He is an unbelievable player, I like watching his matches. He is very elegant. We’ve had some great matchups.”
In other action Thursday, Dusan Lajovic was a straight-sets winner over Jason Kubler, 6-3, 6-3.
Brit Andy Murray fell to Italian qualifier Andrea Vavassori 6-2, 7-6 (7), the latter’s first ATP Masters 1000 victory.
“It is a dream come true,” Vavassori said. “To play at a tournament like this, in a court like this against a true champion like him. He is a hero for everybody on the tour. I think until the second half of the second set, I played the best tennis of my life. Then the nerves came in, but at the end, just joy.”
Tomas Martin Etcheverry was one of two Argentines to advance. Etcheverry dispatched Frenchman Adrian Mannarino 6-4, 6-0, while Pedro Cachin defeated Jordanian wild card Abdullah Shelbayh 6-1, 6-4.
Marco Cecchinato of Italy took down Hungary’s Marton Fucsovics 7-6 (4), 6-3.
Cristian Garin of Chile was a straight-sets winner over Marc-Andrea Huesler and Marcos Giron beat Portugal’s Nuno Borges 6-2, 7-6 (7) to advance.
Christopher O’Connell of Australia outlasted Filip Krajinovic of Serbia 6-4, 6-7 (2), 6-2 in two hours, 19 minutes.
Russians Roman Safiullin and Alexander Shevchenko both advanced. Lucky loser Jan-Lennard Struff of Germany downed Lorenzo Sonego of Italy 6-3, 6-1.
Qualifier Yosuke Watanuki of Japan was a 6-3, 6-3 winner over France’s Corentin Moutet.
Zhizhen Zhang of China defeated qualifier Jurij Rodionev of Austria 7-6 (6), 6-4. The win was Zhang’s first ATP 1000 victory.
Bernabe Zapata Miralles of Spain outlasted Mackenzie McDonald 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4) and Russian qualifier Aslan Karatsev was a straight-sets winner over Laslo Djere of Serbia.
–Field Level Media
