World number one Jannik Sinner dug deep to reach the quarterfinals of the Halle grass-court tournament on Thursday as the former champion unleashed 17 aces on his way to the last eight.
Sinner defeated Hungary’s Fabian Marozsan 6-4, 6-7 (4/7), 6-3 in the key Wimbledon warm-up event.
“It’s the first time I’ve faced him. He’s already beaten incredible players, so I knew I had to play really, really good,” said Sinner.
“The first couple of matches are never easy on a new surface. This grass is a little different to Wimbledon. Fabian is an incredible player. It was a tough match and I’m pleased to be in the quarters.”
Fifth seed and 2022 champion Hurkacz launched an aces barrage past Australian James Duckworth to advance to the quarterfinals with a 7-6 (7/3), 6-4 win.
Jan-Lennard Struff gave the home fans something to cheer when he shocked sixth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4, 6-4 to set up a last-eight clash with Sinner.
“It’s very special,” said 34-year-old Struff. “The crowd was supporting me like hell and it was just an amazing feeling, amazing atmosphere.”
On Wednesday, Struff had saved a match point to defeat Luciano Darderi while needing 10 of his own to seal the deal.
Twenty four hours later, he hit 22 winners past Tsitsipas to just five unforced errors. Struff is 0-2 against Sinner with both meetings coming this season at Indian Wells and then in Monte-Carlo.
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