The World Today
MADRID, 20 (EUROPA PRESS)
Spanish tennis players Roberto Bautista and Jaume Munar have advanced to the round of 16 of the Winston-Salem (United States) ATP 250 tournament played on hard courts, after Bautista's opponent in his debut, Australian Christopher O'Connell, had to retire due to physical problems after the first set (6-4), while Munar defeated Italian Mattia Bellucci (3-6 and 1-6).
The Castellón native, world number 47, began the match by dropping his first serve, but won the next four games to take the lead (4-1). Despite suffering another break at 5-4, he closed out the set on return.
Just before the start of the second set, the Oceanian player announced his withdrawal from the match due to an abdominal injury. The Spaniard will now face Hungarian Marton Fucsovics in the round of 16, after he eliminated Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor (6-3, 4-6, 6-3).
Pedro Martínez, on the other hand, was unable to overcome his main draw debut against Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard (2-6, 6-3, 7-6(3)). The Valencian player used three breaks to win the opening set, but his opponent managed to tie the match in the second. Everything had to be decided in the tie-break of the third, where the Alzira native was unable to break the Frenchman's serve.
Meanwhile, in the evening session, Jaume Munar defeated Italian Mattia Bellucci (3-6, 1-6), in a match that didn't get off to a good start for the Mallorcan tennis player, who lost his serve at the first opportunity. However, in the fourth game of the match, he managed to break back and ultimately won the first set 3-6.
The second set was uneventful, with Belluci dropping his serve early on, allowing Munar to take a comfortable lead. The Italian could only win one game, and the Mallorcan secured his place in the round of 16, where he will face Lorenzo Sonego.
The bad news of the night came with Pablo Carreño's defeat of Argentine Sebastian Báez (7-5, 6-2). The Asturian had up to three points to take the first set, but ultimately lost it after 1 hour and 10 minutes. In the second set, he lost his serve in the first game and was unable to recover, ultimately losing his debut in the US tournament.
