Acapulco, February 26 – Top seed Alexander Zverev was eliminated from the Mexican Open after losing to Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic 6-3, 7-6(3), 7-6(4).
This is the second time Zverev has been knocked out in the round of 16 in Acapulco, after winning the title in the 2021 edition.
Kecmanovic capitalized on Zverev's 34 unforced errors to clinch the match with a tiebreak in the third set, after the Serbian had won the first set; however, the German evened the score in the second set.
"I guess I was more aggressive when it mattered. I served much better than my usual standards, so I'm happy that things went well today," said Kecmanovic. "Obviously, he was the big favourite, so I didn't have any pressure there, but you still have to play well when it matters, close out the match, and thankfully, it went my way."
This was Kecmanovic's first Top 5 win of his career. He has improved to 2-2 in his ATP Head-to-Head series with the 24-time tour-level title holder.
Kecmanovic will face France's Terence Atmane in the quarterfinals of the hard-court ATP 500 tournament.
In other action, fifth seed Flavio Cobolli defeated Dalibor Svrcina 6-4, 6-4. According to ATP Stats, Cobolli won 86 per cent (37/43) of his first-serve points and saved all six break points he faced.
“I love playing in Mexico. I’ve been coming here for three years now. The Mexican fans bring a lot of color to the court and on social media. I’m very happy with the match I played. I don’t know who I’ll be playing next, but I’m sure it will be a tough match. It doesn’t matter what my opponent’s ranking is," said Cobolli.
In another match of the day, Spain's Rafael Jódar was eliminated from the tournament after losing 6-2, 4-6, 6-1 to France's Terence Atmane (No. 163). The Madrid native lost the first set by committing 14 unforced errors and leaving many balls in the net.
However, in the second set, the Spanish player recovered, but he was unable to overcome the Frenchman in the third set, who showed his power with his left hand.
