TRIESTE, August 27, 2020
Following the defeat of Yannick Hanfman in the second round of the Citta di Trieste, no seeded players are left in the singles draw of the €88,520 ATP Challenger event. The tournament’s No. 3 from Germany, champion of last week’s re-start of the circuit in Todi, fell to Mario Vilella Martinez 6-4, 3-6, 2-6 on Thursday afternoon at the Tennis Club Triestino.
After a slow start, the 25-year-old Spaniard capitalized on five of his 10 break point chances to secure victory in one hour and 54 minutes. Vilella Martinez, who practices at the Equelite Sport Academy of former World No. 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero in Villena, will next take on Liam Broady from Great Britain, who ended the run of German lucky loser Tobias Kamke. The World No. 212 from Stockport, England won 7-6(7), 6-2 in one hour and 34 minutes.
Marterer back on the tour
In other action, Maximilian Marterer has booked his spot in the stage of the final eight through a 7-6(9), 7-6(6) victory over Andrea Collarini of Argentina. The 25-year-old German sent down eight aces and won 71 per cent of his first-service points to prevail after two hours and 16 minutes.
“I am happy with my start into the tournament,” Marterer told Tennis TourTalk after his first-round win in straight sets over Frenchman Hugo Gaston. Trieste marks the Nuremberg native’s first appearance at an international tournament since the re-start of the circuit.
Marterer, a former World No. 45, is currently sitting at 377 of the ATP Rankings. He entered the main draw in Italy with his protected ranking. The system helps players, who are returning from long-term injury. However, it can only be used for a limited number of times to enter tournaments’ main draws when returning from injury when their reduced official ranking is insufficient.
“I only have a limited number of these options, so I have to be very careful in preparing my tournament selection. The decision was made to re-start here and play another two weeks on the Challenger Tour in Cordenons and Aix-en-Provence or Prostejov,” Marterer described his further planning.
Sticking to the rules
In general, the left-hander is looking forward to traveling again, but is well aware of the risks involved and tries to deal with it responsibly in times of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We came by car and are doing a bit of our own thing. We try to stick to all the rules, although I sometimes think that the people here are a bit careless,” said Marterer and also suggested improvements. “It would be an advantage if the spectators wore a mask to protect us players and others. I don’t feel insecure, but I try to approach everything from an appropriate distance.”
New tournament, same rules. #TravelTheTour pic.twitter.com/pZ5xpjGQFw
— Florian Heer (@Florian_Heer) August 24, 2020
Therefore, excursions to Trieste, a highly attractive seaport situated in the the autonomous region Friuli-Venezia Giulia are not the order of the day. “This is my first time here and I haven’t seen much because the venue is located outside of the city. For me, however, a lot will only happen between the hotel and the tennis courts. I think that’s the most sensible thing to do.”
Marterer will take on Italian qualifier Riccardo Bonadio in the quarterfinals. The 27-year-old from Azzano Decimo continued his good run of form this week by rallying past Roberto Cid Subervi from the Dominican Republic 4-6, 6-3, 6-3. Both players spent almost three hours on the court.
