Stefanos Tsitsipas came back from one set down to beat Jordan Thompson 4-6 6-4 6-2 at the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters.
Thompson dropped just four points on serve in the first set. Tsitsipas saved four break points to hold serve for 2-1 in the third game after three deuces. Thompson broke serve to 15 in the seventh game to take a 4-3 lead. The Australian player served out the first set 6-4 on his second set point in the 10th game.
Tsitsipas broke serve at 30 in the second game and held serve at 30 to open up a 3-0 lead. Thompson saved two break points to hold serve at deuce in the sixth game for 4-2. The Australian player converted his second break-back point in the ninth game, but Tsitsipas earned his second break at 15 in the 10th game sending the match to the third set.
Tsitsipas won seven of the final games including two breaks in the sixth and eighth games to win the third set 6-2.
Tsitsipas has improved to 4-1 in his head-to-head matches against Thompson.
Tsitsipas will take on either Nuno Borges or Pedro Martinez.
“I really didn’t know what to expect, you don’t know what your opponent is capable of. He showed a good first set, he seemed to be playing quite reserved and wasn’t giving me much to work with. I was just trying to find something to reignite that consistency within my game. I tried to work around my serve, I felt like these were the moments that were tricky at the start of the match. Once that felt more consistent, I tried to focus on my return. I was trying to return from far back. It didn’t seem to work much… I have had success returning far back on clay courts, but today it didn’t do the job, so I had to rely on closer returns, and it seemed to work well”, said Tsitsipas.
