The Halle Open continued today with the new world No. 1 and French Open semifinalist, Jannik Sinner, who’s also the top seed, contesting against Tallon Griekspoor for a place in the second round. Other top 10 seeds slated to play today are Alexander Zverev (2), Andrey Rublev (4), Stefano Tsitsipas (6), and Alexander Bublik (7).
Stuttgart Open finalist and 2-time champion of the Queen’s Club Championships that is being played simultaneously, Matteo Berrettini received a special exemption seeding to the first round and would face Alex Michelsen later today.
Defending Champion Into 2nd Round
In Court 1 of the Halle Open, Alexander Bublik continued from where he stopped in the Stuttgart Open, slated to kick off the day against Australian Max Purcell. Both players played the first set seemingly canceling each other out with their excellent serves and returns. Bublik hit 21 points on his serve, besting Purcell by three points.
With one breakpoint apiece, they dragged the first set to a tiebreak which Bublik dominated 7-1. Alexander Bublik then turned up the heat on the Australian in the second set, smashing eight aces past him with just one double fault. His first serve was near flawless, hitting 15 points to Purcell’s eight.
On his serve, Bublik got broken by Purcell once but managed to earn a double break of the Australian’s serve to earn him a 6-4 second set win. Alexander Bublik’s win over Purcell sets him up to face Christopher Eubanks in the second round.
Rublev Suffers Halle Open Day 2 Upset
While Alexander Bublik’s Halle Open clash with Max Purcell was going on in Court 1, Andrey Rublev, one the finalists of the 2023 Halle Open edition alongside Alexander Bublik, started his 2024 contest on the Owl Arena against Marcos Giron.
Marcos Giron had a better percentage on his first serve points (85% to Rublev’s 72%), although Rublev scored two more points on his first serve than the American. Where the American thrived was in his second serve and his return of Rublev’s serve. He managed to steal one of three breakpoints off Rublev’s serve.
After beating Rublev 6-4 in the first set, Rublev came out in the second set, playing better. Both players broke each other’s serve once, dragging each other to a second-set tiebreak. Marcos Giron then completed the upset by beating the world No. 6 7-5 in the tiebreak.
Eubanks Fights Off Pedro Martinez
In Court 2 of the Halle Open, America’s golden talent, Christopher Eubanks, took on world No. 46, Pedro Martinez. After a tight hold of his serve at the beginning of the first set, Eubanks successfully broke Martinez’s serve, dropping just one point in the game.
Both players then stayed on serve until Eubanks served out the set to win 6-3 inside 33 minutes to put one foot in the second round of the Halle Open. Just as the first set started, Christopher Eubanks put a toe of his second foot into the second round after breaking Martinez’s serve to lead by a set and a break.
Martinez struggled to salvage his Halle Open campaign by dragging Eubanks to deuce in the very next game, but the American held his serve. Martinez eventually broke Eubanks’ serve in the sixth game and saved a breakpoint in the seventh to stay on serve.
In the ninth game, the Spaniard capitulated and lost the break of his serve to love. It took Christopher Eubanks two minutes to hold his serve in a relatively straightforward service game to win the match 6-3, 6-4.
About the Author
Ebenezer has been an avid writer for over a decade and a half. Within that period, he has garnered experience in various fields such as editing, graphics design, transcribing, sales, data analysis, and football management. He’s also the author of the mystery thriller novel “The Eye of Ra.” For more articles by Ebenezer Ugorji, click here and here!
For More Great Content
Check out all the great content Total Apex Sports has to offer. Check us out on X @TotalApexSports and our other sites: Total Apex Sports Bets and Total Apex Fantasy Sports.
