A runner-up showing at the China Open six years could be David Ferrer’s lucky omen this week as the Spaniard seeks to reach his first ATP World Tour final of 2016. On Monday, he made the first step towards doing so with a 6-4, 7-6(3) victory over Uruguay’s Pablo Cuevas.
The fifth seed, having slipped to No. 13 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, extended his FedEx ATP Head2Head record against the Uruguayan to 4-0 in what was the pair’s first clash on hard court. In the match, which featured only one break point between the two, it was Ferrer who made the most of his sole opportunity.
He broke to take the opening set and secured the result on his second match point in the tie-break against an opponent with two ATP World Tour titles and two runner-up appearances to his name in 2016.
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A four-time ATP World Tour semi-finalist this season, Ferrer has had solid runs in Beijing before, finishing runner-up in 2010 and reaching the semi-finals last year – both times losing in straight sets to Novak Djokovic. He next meets either Italian Fabio Fognini or Serbian Viktor Troicki.
In his first match since clinching his maiden ATP World Tour title in Metz two weeks ago, Lucas Pouille cruised into the second round with a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Yen-Hsun Lu.
The sixth-seeded Frenchman needed just 50 minutes to advance, firing nine aces and converting all four of his break points. The 22-year-old Pouille is at a career-high World No. 16 in the Emirates ATP Rankings after compiling a 31-18 mark this season, also reaching the quarter-finals at Wimbledon (l. to Berdych) and the US Open (l. to Monfils).
Seventh seed Roberto Bautista Agut held off Australian qualifier John Millman to secure a 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 victory in the first round. The Spaniard advanced in two hours and 17 minutes, converting five of his 13 break point chances.
Bautista Agut, whose 43-18 record this season is highlighted by titles in Auckland and Sofia, goes on to face #NextGen talent Kyle Edmund, who cruised to a 6-3, 6-2 victory over Guillermo Garcia-Lopez. The 21-year-old Edmund won 72 per cent of his service points and broke serve three times in the 65-minute win.