One hour and 22 minutes: that’s enough for Lorenzo Sonego to get rid of Richard Gasquet on his debut in the Masters 1000 in Madrid. The Frenchman, who passed through the qualifiers, is unable to stop an excellent version of the Turin player, who prevails 6-2 7-5 and secures the second round derby with Jannik Sinner: will be played on Saturday.
Sonego’s start is one to remember, against a Gasquet who, however, can easily be defined as a bit slow in the situation. Three very effective forehands in a row lead him to the opening break, always replying with such precision a few minutes later to go up 3-0 and then 4-0. The Turin native, in this case, effectively secures the first set. Although his opponent is starting to get better, Sonego remains implacable. Five aces in the partial, including the two that allow him to put together the 6-2.
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The Piedmontese’s first real thrill comes in the second game of the second set, in which he finds himself having to face three break points in a row. He saves them all, with serve and forehand, management of a long exchange and, finally, with a forehand that takes the line. In general, however, in this phase it is Gasquet who shows the best things, and not only because he manages to create difficulties for the Piedmontese more often. Slowly, however, the perspective changes, as the Italian manages to hold serve better. And, at 5-5, comes the turning point: another great game in response leads him to find the break and serve for the match at 6-5. The Frenchman, however, is someone who never gives up, he plays a beautiful exchange in the net area to reach 15-30, but from there the blue finds concreteness to close after the former top ten’s last volley ends up just wide.
There are nine aces that characterize Sonego’s excellent performance today, also characterized by an excellent 33/40 (83%) with the first serve. Also noteworthy is the fact that, right at serve, the Turin player practically never really trembled: the only three break points conceded came in a single game, and then (but also before) never again.
