DELRAY BEACH, February 22, 2019
The quarterfinals of the Delray Beach Open by Vitacost.com are set. The line-up is led by top seed Juan Martin del Potro. The World No. 4 beat US-American Reilly Opelka 6-4, 6-4 on Thursday evening.
Del Potro withstood 18 aces, breaking his opponent’s serve twice to prevail afater one hour and 13 minutes.
The win moves the 30-year-old Argentine into Friday’s quarterfinals where he will face US-American Mackenzie McDonald in the final encounter of the day.
“First of all, it was a little bit weird to play a guy who is taller than me,” del Potro mused after the match.
Earlier in the day, No. 4 seed Steve Johnson defeated Italian veteran Paolo Lorenzi 7-5, 7-5. The 29-year-old US-American saved both break points he faced, converting two of his own to secure victory in one hour and 57 minutes.
“Probably one of the worst days I’ve had here in Delray,” Johnson said. “It’s always windy, but the wind was swirling and gusting. I was having a hard time being really accurate with my shots. I tried to play as passive as possible and not beat myself. Just glad I served well today.”
Next up for Johnson will be Radu Albot, who knocked out Nick Kyrgios from Australia 6-2, 3-6, 6-3. The World No. 82 from Moldova won 53 per cent of the total points played to advance in one hour and 24 minutes.
Are you not entertained? 😏
Radu Albot takes down Nick Kyrgios 6-2 3-6 6-3 to reach his second quarter-final of the season @DelrayBeachOpen. pic.twitter.com/j2ume2e8dP
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) 21. Februar 2019
“It’s a very good win,” Albot said after reaching the stage of the final eight for the second time this season. “He’s for sure one of the best servers in the world. He plays some crazy shots, great serve. You just have to be ready. Great win. I’m very happy.”
It was Albot’s first win over Kyrgios in the pair’s second meeting following the Aussies victory at last year’s US Open.
“At the U. S. Open, I was leading in the first set and I lost that set, so it was a little bit maybe a missed opportunity. Today I managed to break him twice,” Albot said.
