The Argentinian Francisco Cerundolo won’t repeat the success of reaching the semifinals of Miami Masters 1,000 last year and fell this Thursday in the quarterfinals against the Russian Karen Khachanova by 6-3 and 6-2 in one hour and 16 minutes.
The Russian, who completed a brilliant match and was unbeaten, reached the semifinals as he did last year in Australia and the US Open. He will face his compatriot Daniil Medvedev this Friday (7:00 pm) for a place in the grand final.
Khachanov’s forehand was impressive from the first match point, but Cerúndolo’s response in the early games was remarkable, the Argentine taking it 3-2 in favor and breaking his rival’s serve.
Then came the collapse of the Argentine tennis player, who conceded four games in a row and saw how the first set escaped 6-3. A blow that reflected not only on the scoreboard, but also on the head of Cerúndolo, who was never comfortable again.
The Russian started often in the network, and the Argentine was not able to return to him. Steady and with powerful punches, a double ‘break’ on top, and a 5-1 in favor of Khachanov was quickly put together decisively.
Cerúndolo was able to win his serve just one more time before closing out the second set at 6-2. Khachanov made it clear that he is in one of the sweetest moments of his career.
After the match, Cerúndolo reflected on his collapse in the middle of the first set: “I didn’t play a good match, I started the first set well, he started with more doubts and played less. my chance, ruined me and from there I started to play a little worse. He raised the level a lot at the end of the first and in the second I felt that he passed me on all sides, he had nowhere to go, he lost. all rallies.”
The Argentine tennis player made a self-criticism in a press conference, recognizing the enormous level shown by his rival, to which he could not answer.
“From 4-3 he started hitting the ball very hard and I didn’t know where he was going to attack, he beat me and put me on defense with one or two shots. He played comfortably and I always ran back. It was very difficult for me later ,” he says.
Cerúndolo is losing a little more mental strength in the last two matches, something that will be seen after, surely, the opponent’s serve is broken.
“In tennis a lot happens, when one is down, he relaxes a bit and the other goes out to play a better game because he knows he’s down and if he doesn’t pick it up, the game gets away. It happens to me and to a lot. Obviously two games in a row happened to me and I’m very angry, because the little advantage you get in the game you lose after a short time and you go down. It’s something I have to improve and work on,” said he.
to a great degree
After suffering from him on the track, Cerúndolo is clear that Khachanov may have important things to say in Miami.
“I think he is at a great level, I played him in Montreal and he was inferior. Today I saw him very good, solid on both sides, he hit very hard. I was surprised by that, he hit very hard on both sides if they are parallel, crossed, in the middle,” he said.
“He has a tough match against Medvedev who is playing unbelievably but he has made the semis in Australia and the US Open on hard courts, I think he is one of the candidates out there that is disruptive and he is playing a great paper in recent months. ,” he continued.
The Argentine tennis player acknowledges that there are two tennis players higher than others in Miami, one of them is Carlos Alcaraz and the other is Medvedev, who are both big favorites to win the tournament.
“Very likely that they are a couple of steps above the others. Every week they play, they make the final, champion, final, champion… together with Novak Djokovic I think they are the best today. I think there “Many men go there, that sometimes they beat them but they are the three best in the world”, he thought.
His conclusions are good to tackle the dirt tour.
“I had a great tournament to get back to the level I had last year, in 2023 I didn’t find it. I got my confidence back. It motivates me to face the dust tour with good expectations. Happy -I’m happy with the week I did, It’s crazy to lose but I’ll see the positive side in him when it’s cold”, he concluded.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Robert Maynard, and I am a passionate journalist with experience in sports writing. For the last few years, I have been writing for Today Times Live. My main focus has been on sports-related stories and features. With my strong background in journalism and extensive knowledge of the industry, I am able to provide readers with well-crafted pieces that are both informative and engaging.
