Alex de Minaur beat Cruz Hewitt 6-2, 6-3 to reach the Washington Open quarter-finals. Ben Shelton, Jessica Pegula and Elina Svitolina also advanced in Washington.
WASHINGTON: Defending champion Alex de Minaur moved into the Washington Open quarter-finals on Thursday with a straight-sets win over fellow Australian Cruz Hewitt, while Ben Shelton, Jessica Pegula and Elina Svitolina also advanced.
Top-seeded De Minaur beat 17-year-old qualifier Hewitt 6-2, 6-3 in the first ATP Tour meeting between the two Australians. Hewitt, the son of former star Lleyton Hewitt, had earned his first ATP victory in Tuesday’s opening round but found De Minaur too strong.
De Minaur raced to a 5-0 lead in the opening set before,Hewitt broke back in the sixth game and held serve once more. The teenager began the second set with more confidence, but De Minaur broke him again in his second service game and stayed in control to close out the match.
Afterwards, De Minaur said facing a player he had known for years felt unusual. He said, “It was definitely weird. I knew I was going to play him on the tour someday, but I didn’t actually expect it to be this week.” He added, “It was an amazing feeling. Even all the lead up, seeing all the incredible pictures that we have together and how we’ve both grown up,” before saying, “I’m glad I managed to get through, but I’m sure we’re going to have many battles in the years to come.”
De Minaur’s next opponent will be American Brandon Nakashima, who knocked out Czech seventh seed Jakub Mensik 7-6 (7/5), 3-6, 6-4.
Second seed Shelton also came through in three sets, beating France’s Ugo Humbert 6-7 (3/7), 6-3, 6-4. Shelton dropped the first set with a double fault on set point, then took charge in the second before surviving a tight decider. After breaking for a 5-4 lead in the third, he saved a break point and finished the match with a sharply angled serve that Humbert returned into the net.
Shelton said, “For me, it was all about heart tonight,” after setting up a meeting with Chile’s Alejandro Tabile, who defeated France’s Terence Atmane 6-3, 7-6 (8/6).
