In a battle of former Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF champions, Stefanos Tsitsipas beat Hamad Medjedovic 7-6(6), 6-3 on Wednesday to earn a debut win at the EFG Swiss Open Gstaad.
The top-seeded Greek saved four set points in the first set — three from 0/40 at 4-5 and another at 5/6 in the tie-break — but managed to snatch the opener before claiming the second set behind the lone break of the match.
"Hamad played great today," Tsitsipas said of the 2023 Jeddah champion. "From the start of the match it was difficult for me to figure it out. He put out a great effort to put me in trouble."
First W in Gstaad for @steftsitsipas 🙌💪
No. 1 seed Tsisipas takes the win with an ace over Medjedovic 7-6(6) 6-3@SwissOpenGstaad | #SwissOpenGstaad pic.twitter.com/LOYkK5CoP3
Tsitsipas saved all five break points against him, according to Infosys ATP Stats, and raised his level as the match wore on to improve to 22-1 in opening rounds on clay since the start of 2021.
"The tie-break was a great comeback from my side. I fought so hard and was very effective towards the end," said the Greek, mentioning his serve and forehand as two key shots in the victory.
[ATP APP]After beating Medjedovic in the pair's first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting, Tsitsipas will next meet seventh seed Fabio Fognini. The Italian reached his 76th tour-level quarter-final and his 51st on clay with a 3-6, 7-6(5), 7-5 win against qualifier Juan Pablo Varillas earlier on Wednesday.
Fourth seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry also advanced on centre court with a 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 win against Botic van de Zandschulp, improving to 9-1 in opening rounds on clay this season.