Monte Carlo rally for Evans as he claims first tour-level win on clay for four years

Dan Evans ended a four-match losing streak with his first tourlevel victory on clay for four years at the Rolex Monte-carlo Masters.

The British No 1 has lost a series of close contests in recent weeks and saw two match points saved in a second-set tie-break against 2019 runner-up Dusan Lajovic before prevailing 6-3, 6-7 (11), 6-2.

Evans has always struggled on clay and he had not won a match on the surface at any level since a qualifying victory over Serbian Lajovic in Rome in May 2019.

The match began on Monday but rain washed out play for the day after Evans withstood early pressure to take the opening set. In a dramatic second-set tie-break, Lajovic led 6-4 but Evans hit back to force two match points only to miss a forehand and a smash. He saved another three set points but Lajovic took his sixth chance, with Evans making his frustration clear at the missed opportunity.

But it was Lajovic who made a shaky start to the deciding set and Evans capitalised, fighting off more pressure in the final game before clinching his fourth match point and letting out a loud roar.

He said: “It obviously got a bit ugly in the second set. It was difficult because the last few matches have been tough and I was thinking about that a bit. It was tough to swallow the missed smash, but I came back and I thought I played well throughout the whole match to be honest. Dusan's a good clay-court player. It sounds a bit silly but it’s better when I play a clay-courter on this stuff because they’re not used to my game.” Evans will now play Miami Open champion Hubert Hurkacz.