Brandon Nakashima kept his breakout summer rolling on Tuesday, surviving three match points to defeat former Cincinnati champion Daniil Medvedev 6-7(3), 7-6(4), 6-1 and reach the Round of 16 at the Cincinnati Open.
Brandon Nakashima’s Impressive Performance
Serving at 4-5, 0/40 in the second set, the American was a point from defeat three times but held firm, flipped the momentum, and pulled away in a two-hour, 51-minute win. The result extends a strong North American hard-court stretch for the 25-year-old, who made his first Masters 1000 final in Montreal last week after a semifinal run in Washington earlier this month.
Nakashima is up to a career-high No. 22 in the ATP rankings and, with this victory, matched Medvedev for the second-most hard-court wins on tour this season at 20. Only Jakub Mensik has more, with 21. Nakashima erased the match points with a combination of precise net play, a grinding rally win, and a well-timed serve-and-volley, securing his fifth career victory over a Top-10 opponent.
Next up for Nakashima is Nuno Borges, who beat 13th seed Andrey Rublev 6-3, 6-4 to snap a five-match head-to-head skid and return to the fourth round of a Masters 1000. Borges has reached that stage six times and is still seeking a first win there.
In other results, Taylor Fritz extended his winning streak on U.S. courts to seven matches with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Spain’s Daniel Merida. The 28-year-old, who claimed the Washington title earlier this month, has now made the Cincinnati Round of 16 in four of the past five years and will face Australian qualifier Christopher O’Connell next.
As the Cincinnati Open progresses, fans are eagerly watching players like Nakashima and Fritz, who are showcasing their impressive skills on hard courts. With Nakashima’s recent performances, he is certainly a player to keep an eye on as the tournament advances.