WASHINGTON: Big-serving South African Kevin Anderson squandered two match points before finally overcoming Austrian top seed Dominic Thiem in a compelling three-set slugfest to advance to the quarter-finals of the Citi Open n Thursday.

The clock had almost struck midnight when the 15th seed finally closed out the third-round match with his 21st ace to seal a 6-3, 6-7 (6-8), 7-6 (9-7) victory in a little under three hours.

In a high-quality contest, 45th-ranked Anderson seemed to have frittered away his chances when he wasted a first match point in the second set but regrouped mentally and even survived a match point against him in the deciding tiebreak.

Next up for Anderson is 200th-ranked Indian qualifier Yuki Bhambri, who eliminated Argentina’s 100th-ranked Guido Pella 6-7 (5-7), 6-3, 6-1.

Canadian third seed Milos Raonic, the 2014 Citi Open champion, won a lengthy first-set tiebreak on the way to beating Marcos Baghdatis 7-6 (9-7), 6-3 to book quarter-final against US eighth seed Jack Sock, who downed countryman Jared Donaldson 7-6 (8/6), 6-2.

As play extended into Friday morning, Alexander Zverev beat American Tennys Sandgren 7-5, 7-5 in a match that finished at 1:25 a.m. local time, with the German advancing to meet Russian Daniil Medvedev in the quarter-finals. Medvedev upset Bulgarian fourth seed Grigor Dimitrov 6-4, 6-2.

Japanese second seed Kei Nishikori won a battle of past champions as he saw off Argentine Juan Martin Del Porto 6-4 7-5 to advance to the quarters, where he will face American Tommy Paul.

In the women’s draw, Canadian wild card Bianca Andreescu knocked off second-seeded Frenchwoman Kristina Mladenovic 6-2, 6-3 to advance to the quarter-finals.

Next up for 167th-ranked Andreescu is German Andrea Petkovic, who blanked Canadian Eugenie Bouchard in the third set for a 6-2, 4-6, 6-0 victory.

Top seed Simona Halep came back from losing the first set to beat Colombian Mariana Duque-Marino 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 and book a last-eight date with Russian seventh seed Ekaterina Makarova.

Another quarter-final will send German fourth seed Julia Goerges against Romanian sixth seed Monica Niculescu, who eliminated compatriot Patricia Maria Tig 6-4, 7-6 (7/2).

Germany’s Sabine Lisicki defeated Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 and will face French fifth seed Oceane Dodin for a place in the semis.

Published in Dawn, August 5th, 2017