By Tennis Now | Tuesday, April 23, 2019
Lucky Loser Nicolas Jarry withstood match point to force the tie breaker than rallied from 0-3 down toppling third-ranked Alexander Zverev, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (5), to squeeze into the Barcelona round of 16.
Photo credit: Barcelona Open BancSabadell – Trofeo Conde de Godo Facebook
Lucky loser Nicolas Jarry denied match point pulling off his greatest win.
A gritty Jarry withstood match point to force the tie breaker than rallied from 0-3 down toppling third-ranked Alexander Zverev, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (5), to squeeze into the Barcelona round of 16.
Nadal: Searching For Self
The 81st-ranked Jarry is a big man proving to be a big-match player, too. He improved to 3-1 vs. Top 10 opponents. Jarry will play either Fernando Verdasco or wild card Grigor Dimitrov for a quarterfinal spot.
ATP Finals champion Zverev dropped to 3-6 in his last nine matches as the world's top three have each showed vulnerability on clay in the last week.
World No. 1 Novak Djokovic lost to Daniil Medvedev in the Monte Carlo quarterfinals before 13th-seeded Fabio Fognini shocked 11-time Monte Carlo champion Rafael Nadal in the semifinals on Saturday. Reigning Barcelona champion Nadal returns to action tomorrow, on the court named in his honor, against Leonardo Mayer.
It was a tough day at the office for the Zverev brothers.
Prior to Alexander Zverev's exit, David Ferrer dismissed Mischa Zverev, the second seed's older brother, 6-3, 6-1.
In his 15th and final Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell appearance, the feisty Ferrer advanced to a second-round match with 15th-seeded Frenchman Lucas Pouille.
The first meeting between Jarry and Zverev escalated into a wild two-hour, 34-minute rollercoaster ride popping with fierce strikes, jittery nerves and sudden lead shifts in the final set.
The 23-year-old Chilean showed his net skills blocking a backhand volley for the double-break and a 3-0 lead. Jarry saved a break point with fine backhand volley—he was 13 of 16 on net trips to that point—and held a game point for 4-0, but could not close. Zverev broke back and eventually evened the set after six games before Jarry responded breaking back for 4-3.
A break isn't really a break until you hold.
Driving the ball deeper in the court, Zverev broke back at 15 to level the decider at 4-all.
The 22-year-old German's two-handed backhand is typically his most rock-solid stroke, but holding match point in the 12th game Zverev tried to thread the needle with this two-hander down the line and narrowly missed the mark wide.
Jarry dodged that match point then roared back from 0-3 down in the decisive tie breaker with a five-point run. Zverev's 10th double fault gave Jarry a 5-3 lead.
There was more drama to come: Jarry clanked his first double fault of the set to fall to 5-all.
Throughout the match, Jarry was the more assertive player at crunch time. Jarry slashed a forehand down the line for match point and closed a gripping two hour, 34-minute triumph when Zverev netted a final backhand.
Third-seeded Dominic Thiem broke serve six times sweeping Diego Schwartzman, 6-3, 6-3.
Schwartzman hit seven double faults, including double-faulting on match point to cap a one hour, 27-minute match.
Indian Wells champion Thiem avenged a 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (5) Buenos Aires semifinal loss to Schwartzman.
The 2017 Barcelona finalist will play Spain's Jaume Munar next. Munar converted four of five break points in a 6-4, 6-3 win over 14th-seeded American Frances Tiafoe.
Two-time Barcelona champion Kei Nishikori conrolled the center of the court in a 7-5, 6-2 victory over American Taylor Fritz.
The seventh-ranked Nishikori improved to 20-5 lifetime in Barcelona.