In a thrilling second round at the ATP 500 event in Rio, the world’s second-ranked player, Alexander Zverev, managed to outlast his adversary, Alexander Shevchenko, in a match that lasted two hours and 28 minutes. The intense face-off saw Zverev claim a hard-earned spot in the quarterfinals with a 7-6, 7-6 victory.
Zverev, hailing from Germany, was on the brink of an early departure, reminiscent of his experience in Buenos Aires the previous week. Shevchenko, from Kazakhstan, had a promising start, leading 5-3 in the first set and even securing two set points in the second set’s tiebreaker. However, despite a valiant effort, he failed to capitalize on his opportunities, ultimately ending on the losing side.
The match statistics favored Zverev, who scored 15 points more than Shevchenko and demonstrated higher efficiency behind the second serve. Despite losing his serve three times from five opportunities presented to his opponent, Zverev managed to maintain his composure. On the other hand, Shevchenko faced 12 break points, succumbing to three breaks.
In an interesting game of numbers, Zverev boasted a 26-31 ratio and capitalised on 47 errors made by Shevchenko. The Kazakh player, unfortunately, missed from both wings and squandered his chances to at least force a decider and endure a three-hour marathon. Zverev, on the other hand, exhibited superior control over his strokes and dominated from the baseline.
The opening game itself was a testament to the looming intensity, lasting for a prolonged ten minutes. Shevchenko faced an unfortunate early setback, missing numerous game points and suffering a break when Zverev masterfully painted a backhand down the line. Zverev then held at love in the second game before facing his own challenges at 2-1.
However, Zverev’s missed volley on a break point allowed Shevchenko to equalise the break. They both served well in the next three games, until Shevchenko made a decisive push on the return at 4-3. Zverev took a gamble on a second serve break point, unfortunately double faulting and falling behind 5-3.
Nevertheless, the German player managed to regain his footing, pulling the break back in the ninth game after Shevchenko’s loose backhand. Shevchenko found himself in a tight spot at 5-5, but managed to deny four break points and held with a service winner to stay in the game.
The first set ended in a tiebreak, with Zverev seizing control on the return. He swiftly grabbed a mini-break in the first point, followed by a backhand winner for a 3-0 lead. Zverev continued his momentum, securing two more points on the return and opening a 5-0 gap. He managed to convert his second set point, wrapping up the first set 7-6 in an hour and 12 minutes.
In the second set, Zverev denied a break point in the third game with impressive net coverage and asserted his dominance with a backhand down the line return winner in the following game for a 3-1 lead. However, Shevchenko managed to pull the break back in the seventh game, capitalising on a careless backhand from Zverev. The back and forth continued, with the Kazakh holding his serve in the eighth game from 0-30 and levelling the score at 4-4.
The players served well in the remaining four games, leading to another tiebreak. Zverev found himself 3-1 behind after dropping two points on his serve. Shevchenko had an opportunity at 5-2 but missed a critical forehand. He managed to secure two set points with a service winner at 5-4, but couldn’t take the set home.
The match reached a nail-biting climax as Shevchenko’s backhand errors brought Zverev back to 6-6. Zverev then launched an aggressive attack in the 13th point, landing a smash winner for a match point. Sealing his victory, Zverev capitalised on Shevchenko’s double fault, thereby avoiding the need for additional court time.