The ATP500 Acapulco station, where five of the world's top ten players competed, was full of drama and a bit overwhelming in the first three days of the tournament.
Before the start of the first day of the match, two post-95 American giants announced their retirement, they were: Nadal's first-round opponent, the 2.11-meter-tall ATP first-time senior Opelka, and Nadal's second-round potential opponent, 1.98-meter-tall, is a rare serve-on-the-internet player in the current ATP Tour. In this way, Nadal, who was originally a hard battle after another, the pressure was suddenly reduced!
After the first round opponent was replaced by the lucky loser of the qualifiers, the American player Kudra outside the world ranking 100, yesterday morning, Nadal, who won all ten games this season and won the ATP250 Melbourne station and the 2022 Australian Open, continued to be in good form, taking the opponent in two sets and successfully entering the second round.
Dramatically, Nadal's opponent in the second round today is his practice partner in the tournament, the World No. 130 American Kozlov. In the first round of the first day, Kozlov, who replaced his compatriot Cressy as the lucky loser of the qualifier, fought with the world's 36th-ranked Bulgarian coach Dimitrov for 3 hours and 21 minutes in three sets, and won the final victory with difficulty. This hard-won victory is bound to make Kozlov remember it deeply! Because this match set a record for the longest race time in Acapulco. Because Kozlov won seven sets and 5:3 in the second set, he suddenly had a severe cramp, so that he lost four consecutive sets and entered the decider before winning the match 6:3. Because Kozlov, who participated temporarily, interrupted the pre-match practice with Nadal, he also apologized to Nadal in the live interview after the game. Before he could celebrate his victory, he considered that the opponent for the next second round would most likely be Nadal (as Nadal's first round was played the second day). Now, the two of them don't need to be invited to practice, and today they will compete directly on the field. The results are predictable! Nadal beat his opponents in two sets 6:0, 6:3 to create a career-best 12-game winning streak for the season start and advance to the quarter-finals.
The biggest underdog in the first round of the tournament was undoubtedly the world's sixth-ranked Italian young coach Berrettini, who retired due to injury when he won the first set 6:4 and fell behind 1:5 in the second set. It seems that Berrettini should take a good rest. The 2022 Australian Open semi-final defeat to Spanish god of war Nadal in the fourth set was not a small blow to Berrettini. And last week's ATP500 Rio Clay Tournament, Berrettini 1/4 finals again encountered the 2022 Australian Open five sets of the opponent narrowly won, only 18-year-old Spanish youngster, Nadal successor Alcaraz, the result of three sets lost, this blow is even bigger!
Acapulco's most dramatic performance of the first three days was that of Zverev Jr., the world's third-ranked Olympic champion, year-end finals champion and defending champion of the tournament. In the first round, Zverev Jr. and American rising star Brooks fought for 3 hours and 20 minutes in three sets, and the second set also saved two match points, fighting until 4:55 a.m. local time, before winning with difficulty. This game thus became the latest game in the history of the ATP Tour.
Immediately after, the young and energetic Zverev jr., partnered with Brazilian doubles star Melo, played in the doubles match of this station. When he was 6:8 behind a pair of lucky losers in the qualifying round, Merlot served out of bounds without shouting, and the opponent received the ball normally through the net, at which point Zverev Jr. stopped doing it, shouting at the referee: Get out, you! The referee was also unambiguous, directly awarding a penalty to lose a point, 6:9. Opponents at match points issue ACE balls, taking away the victory of the match. Zverev Jr. was completely out of control, slapping the referee's seat with a slap, venting his anger to the referee, frightening the referee on duty to shrink his feet and avoid it. After three consecutive blows, Zverev Jr. returned to his seat, still furious, and got up again and slapped the referee's seat.
Soon, the Acapulco Tournament Organizing Committee announced that because of the reckless behavior of the little Zverev, he was ordered to withdraw from the tournament and cancel all the prize money! Not only that, but Zverev Jr. will also face more severe penalties from the ATP.
In this way, before and after the first round of the ATP500 Acapulco station, there were too many dramatic changes, and the two world's top ten players, Zverev Jr. and Beretini, also rolled up their sleeves and went home in advance. (Source: Tennis House Author: Colorful Bean Powder)