Ruusuvuori Rolls Past Wawrinka In Montreal

  • Posted: Aug 09, 2022

Ruusuvuori Rolls Past Wawrinka In Montreal

Finn next plays Hurkacz

Emil Ruusuvuori backed up his third-round run in Washington with another impressive performance at the National Bank Open Presented by Rogers on Monday, moving past Stan Wawrinka 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 to reach the second round in rainy Montreal.

The Finn defeated World No. 11 Hubert Hurkacz in Washington last week to earn the biggest win of his season and he played with confidence against Wawrinka, outmanoeuvring the Swiss star to advance after two hours and 12 minutes.

The 23-year-old recovered from squandering a break advantage in the second set as he raised his level in the decider, saving the one break point he faced in the third set to triumph in his first ATP Head2Head meeting against Wawrinka.

“I grew up watching Stan and have huge respect for this guy,” Ruusuvuori said in his on-court interview. “He is still such a tough competitor and he has inspired so many people, so I hope he can continue and bring this level. I really enjoyed this match and it was a dream come true.”

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Ruusuvuori, who is making his second appearance at the Canadian ATP Masters 1000 event, will look to earn a second consecutive victory over Hurkacz when he plays the eighth seed in the second round.

“It was a good match for me last week and not the best from him. I am sure he is going to come hot and he is going to study,” Ruusuvuori said when looking ahead to his match against the Pole. “He is a Top 10-level player and I will need to bring my absolute best to beat him.”

The World No. 44’s best result this season came in Pune, where he advanced to his first tour-level final.

Wawrinka was seeking his first hard-court win since the 2021 Australian Open. The former World No. 3 was making his eighth appearance in Montreal, with his best result a run to the quarter-finals in 2011.

In other action, Alex Molcan earned victory on his Montreal debut, downing Mackenzie McDonald 7-6(1), 6-4 in one hour and 47 minutes. The Slovakian is now 23-14 on the season, having reached tour-level finals in Marrakech and Lyon. Molcan will next play fourth seed Casper Ruud.

Karen Khachanov edged past Argentine Francisco Cerundolo 7-6(4), 5-7, 6-3 to earn his 200th tour-level win. The 26-year-old, who earned his maiden tour-level victory in St. Petersburg in 2013, will take on Marin Cilic or Borna Coric in the second round.

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