Holger Rune did not raise his head. The Dane extended his losing streak on Monday after being eliminated in the third round of the Rome Masters 1000 by Argentine Sebastián Báez, winning in three sets, 2-6, 6-2 and 6-3, to seal the his pass in the round of 16.
Signs of Rune’s weakness against Nardi were already seen in the second roundbut it was Báez who took advantage of them with ferocity to celebrate the best victory of his career, as he had never reached the round of 16 of the Masters 1,000.
Rune added this disappointment to the harvest in Madrid, where he did not make it past the third roundMiami, where he was swept in his debut by the Hungarian Fabian Marozsan (6-1, 6-1) or the Australian Open, where he said goodbye in the second round.
The Masters 1000 ATP in Rome is not won for fears. Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz were also unable to travel due to injury. The legends Rafa Nadal and Novak Djokovic immediately said goodbye.
Suddenly, the 109th in the world, from the previous stage, beat the recent hero of Madrid in the third round. To the Russian champion Andrey Rublev, who while ill managed to be the best at Caja Mágica. To then spend two and a half days admitted to a hospital only to find out that he was suffering from a tonsillar abscess, which has now healed. He arrived in time for Rome, but lost 3-6, 6-3 and 6-2 against Frenchman Alexandre Muller
And Báez gave the eleventh surprise so far in the tournament and eliminated the finalist of the last edition with a revival exercise to overcome the first defeat.
As Rune took the lead in the rivalry with an initial 4-0 that seemed to lay the foundation for a quiet victory which Báez refused to give. The first set was impossible, the Dane solved with a huge 6-2.
However, in the second match, Baéz freed himself from all nerves, erasing the thoughts of the first set. and he worked with concentration, determination and precision to try to restore it. He gave the Dane his own medicine and got two breaks that extended the match to the third stake.
Rome will never be forgotten for Baézwho will be looking to continue to extend his good form against Polish Hubert Hurkacz in the next round.
Source: La Verdad
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