Aussie Popyrin Knocks Off Fritz In Five
Alexei Popyrin rode a scintillating serving performance and a swell of crowd support to clinch the latest upset at the 2023 Australian Open. On Thursday in John Cain Arena, the Australian wild card scored a 6-7(4), 7-6(2), 6-4, 6-7(6), 6-2 victory against eighth seed Taylor Fritz to continue the trend of eye-catching results in the early rounds Down Under.
Popyrin faced just two break points in the match — and none until the fourth set — as he edged the American in a match of razor-thin margins. After missing out on a match point in the fourth-set tie-break, Popyrin stared down a break point as he served to open the fifth. But he erased it with an ace, one of 19 in the match, before building a 4-1 lead.
He soared through the finish with his fourth break of the match, ripping an inside-out forehand return on his second match point.
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Just how hot was Popyrin on serve? The 23-year-old won all 20 of his service points in the third set and finished with an 84 per cent win rate on his first serve. But there was much more to this match than aces and service winners.
Despite strong serving numbers from both men, there was no shortage of dramatic rallies as the competitors flashed their movement and touch in addition to abundant power. Popyrin's dominance in the rallies helped him pull away in the final set as he trusted his ground game to reach the Melbourne third round for the third time, equalling his best Grand Slam result.
More to follow...