Stefanos Tsitsipas hails ‘great comeptitor and great fighter’ Thanasi Kokkinakis after five-set win

Thanasi Kokkinakis got here up simply in need of one other memorable victory after his Australian Open comeback was led to 5 units by Stefanos Tsitsipas.

Kokkinakis’ emotional opening-round win over South Korea’s Kwon Quickly-woo on Tuesday night time was his first victory in Melbourne since 2015 following a collection of accidents and sicknesses that threatened to destroy his profession.

The Australians have been offering the excessive drama at their residence Grand Slam, an occasion in any other case comparatively low on thrills, low on crowds, and with gamers low on health following quarantine.

Nick Kyrgios bought the occasion began on Wednesday night time together with his rollercoaster five-set win over Ugo Humbert and he was within the stands to help his good buddy and doubles accomplice Kokkinakis.

The 24-year-old wild card took the primary set towards world quantity six Tsitsipas after a tie-break and, like Kyrgios 24 hours earlier, saved a match level within the fourth.

However Greek star Tsitsipas wore down his tiring opponent and ultimately ran out 6-7 (5-7), 6-4, 6-1, 6-7 (5-7), 6-4 winner.

Take a bow, @TKokkinakis 👏

We’re already counting down till we meet once more.#AO2021 | #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/x1HQ4EBF40

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) February 11, 2021

“I simply need an ice bathtub proper now,” stated Tsitsipas on court docket afterwards. “Thanasi is a good competitor and an excellent fighter. It was very troublesome dealing with him right this moment. He’s a expertise with enormous potential.

“Thanasi wasn’t in a position to play all these years and we have been dropping somebody who was not on the tour so I’m glad to see him again competing at this degree.”

Elsewhere within the males’s draw, Russian seventh seed Andrey Rublev reached the third spherical with a straight-sets victory over Thiago Monteiro.

Rublev beat the Brazilian 6-4, 6-4, 7-6 (10-8) and can face 39-year-old Feliciano Lopez subsequent after the Spaniard fought again to knock out Italy’s thirty first seed Lorenzo Sonego 5-7, 3-6, 6-3, 7-5, 6-4.

Italian ninth seed Matteo Berrettini beat Czech qualifier Tomas Machac 6-3, 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 to arrange a gathering with Russian nineteenth seed Karen Khachanov, who noticed off Lithuania’s Ricardas Berankis in three units.

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