Italy's Paolo Lorenzi extended his FedEx ATP Head2Head advantage to 3-1 against Albert Ramos-Vinolas of Spain, knocking out the top seed 6-3, 7-5 on Wednesday at the Sydney International. Lorenzi had an immaculate day serving, capturing 90 per cent of his first-serve points and saving both break points.
Ramos-Vinolas has been the top seed two times in his career, and he's lost in the first round both times. The Spaniard also fell in the first round of the German Tennis Championships 2017 to eventual champion Leonardo Mayer of Argentina. The 36-year-old Lorenzi will next face Russian qualifier Daniil Medvedev, who beat American Jared Donaldson 6-3, 4-6, 7-5 in two hours and six minutes. Medvedev also beat Donaldson in four shortened sets in November 2017 at the inaugural Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan.
View Thursday Schedule: Fognini, Lopez Seek Semi-final Berths
Fourth seed Fabio Fognini, Lorenzi's countryman, achieved his best showing in Sydney, advancing to the quarter-finals with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory against Ukraine's Alexandr Dolgopolov. Fognini had been 0-3 in Sydney second-round matches (2012, 2013, 2015).
The Italian will next play fifth-seeded Frenchman Adrian Mannarino, who didn't face a break point in his 6-2, 6-1 win against Ricardas Berankis of Lithuania, who was a finalist in at the VTB Kremlin Cup in Moscow last October.
