Gasquet Sets Rublev Clash In Marseille
Former Top 10 Frenchman Richard Gasquet defeated Mikael Ymer to reach the second round at the Open 13 Provence in Marseille, where he will meet World No. 7 Andrey Rublev.
Ymer’s run to the semi-finals in Montpellier two weeks ago included a win over Gael Monfils, but the young Swede was unable to find that level against Gasquet. The Frenchman broke Ymer three times on his way to a 6-4, 7-5 victory at a tournament where he has reached the semi-finals twice before.
[FOLLOW ACTION]
Fifth seed Ilya Ivashka produced a solid performance to defeat Slovakian Norbert Gombos 7-6(5), 6-3. The Belarusian edged the first set tie-break and then stepped up his level to complete the win over World No. 114 Gombos in one hour, 43 minutes.
The Belarusian will hope to improve on his run in Marseille in 2018, when he made the semi-finals as a qualifier. “This tournament was like a starting point of my ATP career, because it was my first great result,” he said after the match with Gombos. “I really enjoy playing here.”
The World No. 49 will now face Stefano Travaglia in the second round, after the Italian beat Switzerland’s Henri Laaksonen 6-2, 6-7(5), 7-6(1).