HAMBURG: Continuing his love affair with the Hamburg European Open, Russia's Andrey Rublev beat lucky loser Ricardas Berankis 6-3, 6-4 to reach the second round of the tournament, here on Wednesday.
Rublev now holds a 10-2 record at the ATP 500 clay-court event, having advanced to the final in 2019, before he defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas to lift the trophy in his previous appearance in 2020.
With his 32nd tour-level win of the year, the 24-year-old has improved to 3-0 in his ATP Head to Head series against Berankis and will next face Bastad champion Francisco Cerundolo.
Rublev is aiming to win his fourth tour-level title of the season this week in northern Germany. The World No 8 clinched crowns in Marseille, Dubai and Belgrade earlier this year and arrived in Hamburg off the back of a run to the semi-finals on clay in Bastad.
Earlier in the day, Croatian Borna Coric eliminated Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor 6-3, 6-4 to earn consecutive tour-level wins for the first time since March 2021. The 25-year-old, who overcame Laslo Djere in the first round, will play reigning champion Pablo Carreno Busta or Slovakian Alex Molcan in the quarter-finals. IANS
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