By Tennis Now | Tuesday, October 2, 2018
Playing their first matches since the US Open, top-seeded Juan Martin del Potro and second-seeded Alexander Zverev each advanced at the China Open.
Photo credit: @China Open
Top seeds made strong starts against Spaniards in Beijing.
Playing his first match since the US Open, Alexander Zverev pounded out a 6-4, 6-4, sweep of Roberto Bautista Agut.
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Zverev's sniper return game saw him win 50 percent of Bautista Agut's first-serve points and break serve four times.
Playing his first match since bowing to compatriot Philipp Kohlschreiber in the US Open third round, Zverev controlled rallies in bursting out to a 5-2 double-break lead in the second set.
Bautista Agut broke back and cut the lead to 4-5.
Zverev zapped a bounce-smash for his third match point and when Bautista Agut netted a running forehand, the German was through in 90 minutes.
The second-seeded Zverev will play Malek Jaziri for spot in the quarterfinals.
The fifth-ranked Zverev has won three of four meetings with Jaziri, including a 6-2, 6-1, thrashing in Washington, DC in August.
Top-seeded Juan Martin del Potro made a winning return.
In his first match since the US Open final, del Potro won eight of the last 10 games dispatching 50th-ranked Albert Ramos-Vinolas, 7-5, 6-2.
"I said to myself that the first set could be the key of the match," del Potro said. "So I tried to play my best tennis, especially in the 5-all game, then I could close the set with my serve.
“I think it was the right effort because after that I played much better the second one, and I took all my chances during the game. I did well specifically in the important moments of the match.”
The victory vaults del Potro into a blockbuster round of 16 meeting with Karen Khachanov.
The 24th-ranked Russian defeated American Sam Querrey, 6-4, 6-4.
Del Potro has won both prior meetings with the hard-hitting Khachanov, including a 6-4, 7-6 (4), 6-7 (0), 6-4 victory at the Australian Open in January.
Fabio Fognini moved forward with a 1-6, 6-3, 6-3 over Moldova's Radu Albot.
The fourth-seeded Fognini, who was runner-up to Bernard Tomic in the Chengdu Open final over the weekend, takes on baseline blaster Andrey Rublev next. Rublev routed Joao Sousa, 6-0, 6-4.