The Pole triumphed in the previous round after an incredible match with Thanasi Kokkinakis. The Australian played great and had five match balls to eliminate the favorite, but in the decisive moment it was Hurkacz who climbed to the heights of his skills and after more than three hours he finally won the promotion. His rival did not have to spend so much time on the court.
Mannarino also had to play three sets, but this time he caused a sensation. In the first round, he defeated the Chinese Juncheng Shang, and then unexpectedly eliminated Ben Shelton, the hope of American tennis. This result should be considered a big surprise, because the young player had a decent start to the season. Now, however, the challenge was incomparably more difficult.
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Hurkacz was eliminated from the ATP tournament in Miami!
Both men faced each other for the last time during the tournament in Paris in November 2022. The Pole did not give the rival a set at that time and today many bet on a similar decision. The Wroclawian had three chances to break in the first game of his rival’s service, but this time Mannarino managed to save himself. At 2:2 the situation turned around and the rival had a break point, but he sent the ball into the net.
For a long time it looked like a repeat of the match against Kokkinakis. The gentlemen were unable to break the rival’s serve and finally the fate of the first set had to be decided by a tie-break. It was opened much better by Mannarino, who scored the first three points, but Hurkacz responded with two service aces. The rivalry was extremely even, but it was the Frenchman who converted his first set point.
The second set started much better for the Pole, because with a quick break. It got nervous at 3:2 when Mannarino scored two points on Hurkacz’s service. It was then that the older tennis player managed to make up for the losses, and then followed the blow and did not make mistakes resulting in the lead of the opponent. With the score 4:5 in favor of the Frenchman, the Wroclawian was leading 40:0, but he managed to catch up and it became nervous again.
What was missing was a slightly bolder game in the offensive, but the serve definitely did not disappoint, which, as usual, was one of the greatest allies of the Pole. He was the one who allowed him to stay alive in this game.
There were no surprises, again everything had to be decided by a tie-break. Interestingly, this is the 42nd such decision in ATP 1000 tournaments in Hubert Hurkacz’s matches from 2021. The Pole definitely dominates his rivals in this classification, the second John Isner played “only” 31 such sets.
It started very badly again as Mannarino took a three-point lead. However, the situation was even more difficult, because it happened after two Hurkacz services. Until then, he could rely on this element of his workshop, but at the most important moment he failed to use a great asset. The second tie-break was a nightmare. The Pole did not score a single point in it.
The 2021 Wimbledon semi-finalist will definitely leave the top ten of the ATP rankings. All because he defended a large part of his achievements in Miami, last year he reached the semi-finals here. Hubert Hurkacz will occupy no more than 11th place, and Frances Tiafoe, Karen Khaczanow and Tommy Paul may overtake him.
Author:PB
Source:Onet Sports Review
Date of creation: today, 01:25