Tsitsipas Stunned By Lucky Loser Struff in Madrid Quarterfinals

Lucky loser Jan Lennard Struff shocked Stefanos Tsitsipas, securing a spot in the 2023 Madrid Open semi-finals, marking a remarkable comeback.

The 33-year-old German, who initially lost in the final round of qualifying, has now earned a spot in his first-ever ATP Masters 1000 semi-final. Struff, a lucky loser, met with the fourth-seeded Tsitsipas in the quarterfinals after both players had a difficult journey to those stages.

Before, they met five times on the ATP Tour, with the Greek winning three matches and Struff triumphing in two of those. He wanted to follow up on two of those previous wins at La Caja Magica as he previously managed to beat Ben Shelton and Dusan Lajovic in the Spanish capital.

In the first set, the fourth seed was the first player who had a set point, but the set eventually reached a tie-break and it was the lucky loser who played it better, winning 7-5, as Tsitsipas' chances of returning to the Top 3 started to diminish.

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But Tsitsipas was able to come back in the second set, which delighted fans in Spain to only one break of serve. It came in the eleventh game and the Greek used his chances to take the match into the decider.

Despite boasting an impressive 8-1 record in deciding sets this season and a 9-2 record on clay throughout his career, Tsitsipas faced an unwavering opponent in Struff, who responded to every challenge the Greek posed.

In the end, Struff managed to save a break point at 4-2 and overcame a 15-30 deficit when serving for the match. After Tsitsipas saved one match point with an astounding forehand passing shot, Struff won two consecutive points, clinching the victory as the fourth seed's backhand return went long, winning the match 7-6(5), 5-7, 6-3 in two hours and 32 minutes..

Struff's incredible journey at the Madrid Open puts him in the company of Thomas Johansson (2004 Toronto) and Lucas Pouille (2016 Rome), making him the third lucky loser to advance to the semi-finals of the ATP Masters 1000 event.

This achievement represents a significant milestone for 33-year-old Struff, who earlier this year ranked as low as No. 167 in the ATP Rankings due to a right foot injury he sustained during the previous season in Miami. Now, at No. 31 in the ATP Live Rankings, Struff's powerful game has demonstrated that he's still capable of playing his best tennis.

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