Stefanos Tsitsipas advanced into the second round of the 2024 Monte-Carlo Masters after Laslo Djere suddenly retired from the match.
The Greek player is a two-time champion at the first clay-court ATP Masters 1000 tournament of the year, but since he was ranked in the Top 10 for the majority of his career, he's used to having a first-round bye at the event.
That's not the case in 2024, as he exited the Top 10 recently, and as a result, he had to play the first round, and he was drawn against Djere, who can be a difficult opponent, especially on clay.
The 25-year-old has struggled a lot with his level in recent months, but it's clear that the courts in Monte Carlo suit him, and he showed it early on in this match, when he won four consecutive games to establish a two-break advantage.
Tsitsipas led 5-1 in the first set and even had two set points on his serve, but his Serbian opponent was able to recover one of the breaks. Still, it didn't stop the 12th seed from winning the first set 6-3.
In the second set, Tsitsipas faced break points in the fourth game, but he saved both and in the next game, he broke his opponent's serve to lead 3-2, serving to confirm the break.
After the two-time Monte-Carlo Masters champion won the second point of the game, making it 30-0, his opponent suddenly started walking towards the chair umpire, announcing his retirement from the match, which surprised everyone, including Tsitsipas.
"I didn't expect such a finish. This is not something very common when I play. I did my job well, and obviously, I'm wishing speedy recovery, because injuries are not fun."
In the second round of the event, he will play against the winner of the match between Nicolas Jarry and Tomas Martin Etcheverry, who can both perform well on clay courts.
0 Comments