Zverev Advances to Quarterfinals at the National Bank Open After Cerundolo’s Retirement
German tennis player Alexander Zverev, the top seed, advanced to the quarterfinals of the National Bank Open after the retirement of Argentine Francisco Cerundolo due to an abdominal injury.
Zverev, who was leading the match with a score of 6-4 and 1-0, benefited from the situation to secure his place in the next round. The match took place on Saturday night.
In the next phase, Zverev will face the defending champion, the Australian Alexei Popyrin.
Popyrin, seeded number 18, achieved a victory over the Dane Holger Rune, fifth seed, with partials of 4-6, 6-2 and 6-3 in the first match of the night.
Zverev, who was champion in 2017 and currently holds the third position in the world ranking, became the main favorite of the tournament due to the absence of Jannik Sinner, champion of 2023, and Carlos Alcaraz, number two in the world.
Furthermore, Jack Draper and Novak Djokovic, ranked number 5 and 6 respectively, also did not participate in the hard court event.
In April, Zverev won his twenty-fourth tour title by winning in Munich, on clay court.
In other results, Alex Michelsen managed to advance to the quarterfinals after defeating his American compatriot Learner Tien with a score of 6-3 and 6-3.
Michelsen will face Russian Karen Khachanov, the eleventh seed, who won his match against Norwegian Casper Ruud, the eighth seed, with a score of 6-4 and 7-5.
