Pedro Martinez shows his confidence in Kitzbühel | ATP Tour

Kitzbuhel

Pedro Martínez shows his confidence in Kitzbühel

The Spaniard makes it to the quarter-finals of the Generali Open

July 24, 2024

Pedro Martínez’s step forward this season is not only reflected in the PIF ATP Rankings – he is five positions away from his career-high – but also in his ability to win matches such as the one this Wednesday at the Generali Open.

The Spaniard, who comes into Kitzbühel as the No. 4 seed, came through a much more difficult opening match than the scoreline suggested against Sumit Nagal 7-5, 7-5 in two hours and 36 minutes.

The 27-year-old from Valencia is close to the best moment of his professional career, which in 2022 took him up to world No. 40, after winning his only title in Santiago. Now he arrives on the Austrian clay, just a few days after signing his first semi-final in an ATP 500 at the Hamburg Open.

Martinez, who had no previous Lexus ATP Head2Head match at ATP Tour level against Nagal, had won on the ATP Challenger Tour in their only head-to-head match to date in Como 2023 (6-4, 6-4).

It was a match with a multitude of alternatives to the rest, in which a total of 35 break opportunities were recorded: 4/18 for the Spaniard and 2/17 for the Indian. Martínez’s greater ability to take advantage of them tipped the balance in his favour.

In the quarter-finals of an ATP Tour tournament for the fifth time this season (Santiago, Estoril, Bucharest, Hamburg and Kitzbühel) awaits Argentine Facundo Díaz Acosta, who beat Colombian Daniel Elahi Galán 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 in two hours and 20 minutes.

Matteo Berrettini, meanwhile, remains unstoppable. The Italian has now won seven consecutive games on clay without dropping a set. After lifting the trophy last week in Gstaad, he is now in the quarter-finals in Kitzbühel, having beaten No. 2 seed Alejandro Tabilo 7-6(4), 7-6(5) in one hour and 48 minutes.

Berrettini will be looking for another semi-final this season against American wild card Nicolas Moreno de Alboran, who beat local wild card Lukas Neumayer 6-4, 6-4 in one hour and 24 minutes.

The top seed Sebastián Báez also did not fail in his debut in this edition on the Austrian clay, raising his record of victories on the surface this season to 24, after defeating his compatriot Thiago Agustín Tirante 6-3, 6-3 in one hour and 22 minutes.

The first quarter-final clash in Kitzbühel on Wednesday was between Yannick Hanfmann and Thiago Seyboth Wild. The German, who was already a finalist in the tournament in 2020, was due to face third seed Tomás Martín Etcheverry, but was forced to withdraw due to a back injury.

The Argentine was replaced by lucky loser Gustavo Heide, who put up a fight before eventually losing 6-3, 1-6, 6-2 in one hour and 52 minutes. Meanwhile, Brazilian Seyboth Wild beat Laslo Djere 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 in two hours and eight minutes.

Did you know…?

Pedro Martínez has achieved 15 ATP Tour victories this season out of 65 total career wins. His best year was 2022, when he set his record for matches won in a single year with 20.