Home » Barcelona ATP: Stefanos Tsitsipas begins his title defense

Stefanos Tsitsipas began his second championship defense at the prestigious clay tournament, two years after he let a match point against Rafael Nadal in the Barcelona Open final slip away. In the second round, the second seed faced Pedro Cachin and won 6-4, 6-2 in one hour and 18 minutes to advance to the round of 16.

Stefanos won one return game in the first game and overcame the opposition’s resistance early in the second to win in less than 80 minutes. The Greek never faced a break point while losing 15 points in nine service games.

After putting up a respectable fight in the opener, the Argentine could not withstand the strain. Cachin’s run in the second round came to an end when he was unable to defend any of the three break points presented to Tsitsipas. With a forehand crosscourt victory near the net, Pedro maintained his 30-point lead in the opening game of the match.

In Barcelona, Stefanos Tsitsipas got off to a strong start.

With a solid forehand, Tsitsipas held at deuce in game two and secured a 2-2 tie with a forehand victory in game four. In the fifth game, the Greek approached the net and unleashed a smash winner to open up break possibilities.

Stefanos seized the opening opportunity to extend his lead and create a 3-2 deficit. Game six saw Tsitsipas score yet another forehand winner to extend his lead, while game seven saw Cachin hold at love with a service winner to close the gap to one break.

Stefanos served for the opening at 5-4 after moving ahead 5-3 with a service winner. The Greek held after a deuce to win the match and gain momentum going into the second set. After Stefanos’ forehand crosscourt winner in the second set, Pedro blew game points and was broken.

For a commanding 3-0 lead, a player with a higher ranking held at love in games two and three. With a hold at the net, Tsitsipas increased his lead to 4-0 before winning the next two games with a flawless drop shot.

In game eight, Stefanos served to win after Pedro cut the lead to 5-2. With a hold at 15 and a score of 5-2, Tsitsipas completed the deal, moving on to the next round and securing a thrilling matchup with Denis Shapovalov.