New Feat for Atmane, Who Topples Fritz in Cincinnati Round of 16
Late Wednesday night into Thursday, Terence Atmane played his first Masters 1000 round of 16 in Cincinnati. Coming through qualifying, the Frenchman then confirmed his form in the main draw with wins over Yoshihito Nishioka (6-2, 6-2), Flavio Cobolli (6-4, 3-6, 7-6), and João Fonseca (6-3, 6-4).
This time, it was world No. 4 Taylor Fritz who stood in Atmane’s way on the path to his first Masters 1000 quarterfinal. Was the challenge too steep for the world No. 136?
Defeated by the same Fritz in two tiebreaks last year in Shanghai, the Frenchman, with his back against the wall and trailing by a set, ultimately found the resources to turn the match around (3-6, 7-5, 6-3 in 2 hours and 3 minutes).
While competing in only his fifth main draw at this tournament level, Atmane has now reached the quarterfinals, having defeated three higher-ranked opponents in a row (Cobolli, Fonseca, and now Fritz).
To keep his semifinal hopes alive, Atmane will face last year’s semifinalist in Ohio: Holger Rune. The Dane had little trouble in his match against Frances Tiafoe.
In a rematch of his loss at this same tournament last year, Rune benefited from his opponent’s early retirement (6-4, 3-1 ret.). Ranked No. 9 in the ATP, the 2022 Paris-Bercy Masters 1000 champion will be another major hurdle for Atmane. The two have never faced each other before.
