Mpetshi Perricard, Daniel make winning starts in Chengdu

Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard survived a scare on Wednesday, when he rallied from a set down to defeat Chinese wild card Fajing Sun 6-7(5), 7-5, 6-4 and advance to the second round of the Chengdu Open.

The Frenchman, who has experienced an eye-catching breakthrough year, dug deep to outlast the No. 359 in the PIF ATP Rankings in a gripping contest that lasted two hours, 28 minutes. The win was just Mpetshi Perricard’s second hard-court triumph on the ATP Tour this season but will be a welcome one as he quashed a four-match drought to advance in China.

The 21-year-old enjoyed a dazzling run to the fourth round of Wimbledon earlier this year, becoming just the seventh man in history to hit more than 50 aces in a match (51). Seeking a second title of the season, the Lyon champion will next play Yannick Hanfmann or Shintaro Mochizuki. 

34 aces ?

Mpetshi Perricard closes the day with a 6-7 7-5 6-4 win over sun to advance into the second round!@ChengduOpen | #ChengduOpen pic.twitter.com/3o4EaNdgLD

Taro Daniel bounced back from his gut-wrenching five-set defeat in the US Open first round to Tristan Schoolkate to secure his first Top 50 win since January, upsetting sixth seed Lorenzo Sonego 6-4, 7-5 to progress to the second round.

In winning his first tour-level match since the Mutua Madrid Open in April, the Japanese star snapped an 11-match losing streak. Sonego, the No. 50 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, has been unable to capitalise on the form that drove him to his fourth ATP title at the Winston-Salem Open last month, falling to back-to-back first-round defeats in his past two tournaments.

In the first match on centre court, Lukas Klein muscled his way past Adam Walton 7-6(3), 6-4 in a battle that was largely dominated by the serving prowess on display from both men. Klein, however, slammed down 12 aces to seal victory as he became the first Slovak to record a match win in Chengdu.

Walton’s difficult end to the season continued as the Australian fell to his seventh straight defeat at all levels since reaching the last 16 at the Atlanta Open in July.

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