Stefanos Tsitsipas defeated Bernabe Zapata Miralles 6-3, 6-1 in the round of 16 at the Madrid Open.
Tsitsipas had a tough debut against Dominic Thiem, which was decided in the third-set tiebreak, and then managed to defeat Argentine Sebastian Baez despite not playing at his best level. Local player Bernabe Zapata Miralles reached the round of 16 after victories over McKenzie McDonald, Daniel Evans, and Roman Safiulin.
The first set had both players struggling on their serves, with four breaks in favor of the Greek and two for the Spaniard. Although the match was even in the beginning until 3-3, Tsitsipas found answers to Zapata's resistance and won nine of the next ten games, breaking serve five times in a row.
Jan-Lennard Struff awaits him in the quarterfinals, who is having a great moment this clay season. The German reached the quarterfinals of Monte-Carlo after coming from qualifying and defeating Alex de Minaur and Casper Ruud on the way before losing to Rublev. He entered Madrid as a lucky loser and will try to cause an upset as he faces the world No. 5 for a spot in the final.