Zverev survives Dzumhur challenge
German second seed reaches last 16 for first time, Verdasco downs fourth seed Dimitrov in three
>> PARIS: German second seed Alexander Zverev saved a match point and survived a second successive French Open scare yesterday, coming back to defeat Bosnia’s Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 3-6, 4-6, 7-6 (7/3), 7-5 to reach the fourth round for the first time.
Zverev, 21, who is seen as Rafael Nadal’s principal obstacle to the Spaniard’s expected coronation as champion for an 11th time, endured a nightmare outing before claiming victory after almost four hours on Court Philippe Chatrier.
He hit 73 unforced errors, dropped serve eight times and served up seven double faults.
He had to save a match point in the 10th game of the decider before breaking and holding to make the last16 where he will face either French 15th seed Lucas Pouille or Russia’s Karen Khachanov.
“It was an amazing, high level match,” said Zverev, bidding to become the first German men’s champion in Paris since 1937. “It was the first time I have won on this court and I hope there are many more to come.”
Dzumhur, the 26th seed, was left to regret squandering a host of opportunities.
He served for the match at 6-5 in the fourth set only to be broken to love before battling back from 1-3 down in the decider to go to match point at 5-5.
That was saved by a nerveless outwide serve from the German who held, then broke for 6-5 before claiming victory when the Bosnian hit long.
Dzumhur finished with 51 winners — the same as Zverev — but 68 unforced errors and was broken nine times.
“All I could do was keep fighting,” said Zverev who had also needed five sets to beat Serbia’s Dusan Lajovic in the second round.
Zverev has now equalled his best ever Slam performance after also making the fourth round at Wimbledon last year. It was the German’s 33rd win of the season, the best figures on the tour which has also yielded claycourt titles in Munich and Madrid as well as a runners-up spot to Nadal in Rome.
In a dramatic — if error-plagued match — there was a worrying moment when Dzumhur accidentally collided with a ball boy as they both chased an airborne dead ball after two games of the fourth set.
The distressed youngster needed to leave Court Philippe Chatrier after receiving a consoling hug from the Bosnian player.
Earlier, Grigor Dimitrov’s French Open hopes bit the dust as the fourth seed was outplayed by Spanish veteran Fernando Verdasco 7-6 (7/4) 6-2 6-4 in the third round yesterday.
Dimitrov was pushed to five sets by American Jared Donaldson in the previous round and once he failed to convert four set points in the 12th game of the opener against Verdasco and lost the ensuing tie-break, he looked flat.
The aggressive left-handed Spaniard broke twice in the second set and although he allowed Dimitrov back from 4-2 in the third, he broke again to claim his third career win against the 27-year-old.
Verdasco has now reached the last 16 in Paris for the seventh time and will hope to finally break through that barrier having fallen at that stage on six occasions.
In the women’s event, American 13th seed Madison Keys overcame a second-set wobble to beat Japan’s Naomi Osaka 6-1, 7-6 (9/7) and reach the last 16 for the second time.
Keys is one of three Americans to reach the third round with Sloane Stephens, who beat her in the Flushing Meadows final last year, and threetime champion Serena Williams also in the hunt.