Thursday was quite a day of tennis at the 2023 Western & Southern Open.
The day started promising with sunny skies, but as the hours passed, seeded players and rain began falling.
Those players include the following:
1. Daniil Medvedev, ATP No. 3
Daniil Medvedev lost to Alexander Zverev in a tight three-set match.
Alexander Zverev d. Daniil Medvedev 6-4 5-7 6-4
Zverev snaps a 3 match losing streak against Daniil.
Coming into this match, he had lost 3 consecutive matches to him this year, all coming in the Round of 16.
Fourth time’s the charm. pic.twitter.com/ULveAB6x1l
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) August 17, 2023
Zverev lost in the previous three meetings between the two so he was jubilant to finally get over the hump.
2. Stefanos Tsitsipas, ATP No. 4
Hubert Hurkacz defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas by playing some of his best tennis of the year.
Tsitsipas had fought hard in previous rounds against tough opponents, but he had no answer for the imposing serve and game of the Pole Hurkacz on Thursday.
Hubert Hurkacz hits the shot of the tournament against Stefanos Tsitsipas
Front-facing tweener passing shot.
We love a confident Hubi. 🇵🇱
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) August 17, 2023
3. Jessica Pegula, WTA No. 3
The 2023 National Bank Open champion looked tired on Thursday.
Her loss to Marie Bouzkova underscores the difficulty of the schedule the players keep.
She was in Montreal until Sunday and came to Cincinnati immediately to prepare for play this week in very different conditions than she had last week.
Bouzkova breakthrough🔥
Headed to the quarterfinals @MarieBouzkova defeats Pegula to claim her spot in the final 8! #CincyTennis pic.twitter.com/Q52OAU8r33
— wta (@WTA) August 17, 2023
4. Elena Rybakina, WTA No. 4
Elena Rybakina has been open about how last week’s schedule has impacted her recovery.
She dealt with rain delays, very late matches, one that ended near 3 am, along with early starts.
It is not surprising to anyone that she retired from her match given last week’s conditions and the fact that her shoulder has been taped.
Rybakina retires to Paolini at 6-4 2-5
Gutted for Elena
After a 3 & a half hour match last week that finished at 3 am, she just didn’t have anything left
When tennis isn’t taking care of their players, you know there’s something seriously wrong
See you soon, Lena.
🇰🇿🩵🇰🇿 pic.twitter.com/9363fQ8MnV
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) August 17, 2023
5. Maria Sakkari, WTA No. 8
Maria Sakkari fell to the French Open finalist, Karolina Muchova, in straight sets.
Sakkari has been trying to get her game on track this spring and summer.
Karolina is headed to the quarterfinals 💪
Defeating Sakkari 6-3, 2-6, 6-3 where she will face the winner of Pegula vs Bouzkova. @karomuchova7 | #CincyTennis pic.twitter.com/er4Uz9IWAt
— wta (@WTA) August 17, 2023
6. Tommy Paul, ATP No. 14
After multiple stops and starts due to rain, Tommy Paul was not able to defeat World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz for the second week in a row.
The two play intense matches, and this one was no exception, but the end result was Alcaraz coming out with the win in three sets.
Alcaraz d. Paul 7-6(6) 6-7(0) 6-3
Insane fight from Tommy. There’s clearly something about his game that makes Carlos uncomfortable.
But beating Carlos twice in one week was always going to be an uphill battle for anyone.
Revenge is a dish best served by Carlitos.
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) August 18, 2023
Not all of the day matches have been completed, and hopefully, the night matches go off as planned where there are other noteworthy Americans like Coco Gauff and Taylor Fritz scheduled to play.
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