Denis Shapovalov outlasted Fábián Marozsán 7-6, 6-2 on Thursday to reach the quarterfinals of the BMW Open in Munich.
Shapovalov needed a tight opening set to separate from Marozsán, then took control in the second while serving produced both risk and reward. He finished with eight double faults and four aces, landed 57 per cent of his first serves and broke Marozsán twice in four attempts. Marozsán, who put 73 per cent of his first serves in play, had three break chances and did not convert any of them.
The result sends Shapovalov into Friday’s quarterfinal against Alex Molcan at a clay-court event where margins have already been thin. For Shapovalov, the straight-sets win was the kind that can look cleaner in the scoreline than it felt on court, especially with the first-set tiebreak hanging in the balance.
Alexander Zverev also moved on with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Gabriel Diallo that lasted one hour, 13 minutes, and he converted five of eight break points. Diallo received treatment for a back issue late in the first set, and Zverev said afterward that he thought Diallo had back trouble and was not serving fully in the second set, adding that he was happy with the win and with getting an easier match.
Zverev, the top seed and defending champion in Munich, improved his career record against Diallo to 2-0 and was scheduled to face Francisco Cerundolo in Friday’s quarterfinals. The two results left the BMW Open’s draw moving toward its later rounds with both Shapovalov and Zverev still in position to push deeper into the tournament.
