Top-seeded Alexander Zverev toughed out two tie-breaks to beat Alexander Bublik 7-6 (8/6), 4-6, 7-6 (7/1) at the Shanghai Masters on Tuesday, winning his first match since being guaranteed the year-end world number one ranking.
The 29-year-old German will play Alex de Minaur in the quarter-finals.
“Really difficult match,” Zverev said.
“I had some physical issues so, you know, I was maybe slower,” he told the crowd.
“My ankle was acting up unfortunately again,” Zverev elaborated in an on-court interview, without giving specifics.
“I’m starting to feel my body more, but happy to be through.”
Zverev, the current world number two, was guaranteed the year-end number one spot after third-ranked Carlos Alcaraz lost to Zizou Bergs in Shanghai on Monday.
On Tuesday, Zverev called the honour “special”, saying it was a different feeling to winning tournaments, adding he was “looking forward” to the responsibility of owning that status.
Neither player could create much trouble for his opponent in the first set as they traded aces to hold serve.
But Zverev found himself under pressure when he was forced to save a set point before making it into a tie-break.
He kept his composure as Bublik squandered three set points in a row, taking the first set with a commanding forehand at the net.
That momentum was cut short when Bublik broke the German’s serve in the fifth game of the second set. Despite a few clutch backhands a sombre-looking Zverev was unable to avoid tumbling into a deciding third.
The players soon found themselves staring down another tie-break, but this time Zverev raced to a 6-1 lead and closed out the match with an ace.
Gea goes on
Earlier, 56th-ranked Arthur Gea put on a convincing show to beat Jakub Mensik 7-6 (7/4), 6-4 in their fourth-round encounter.
Mensik, ranked 15th, hit the ground trying to convert a crucial break point in the final minutes of the second set, but Gea got past his opponent with a cross-court backhand and won on his first match point.
“I’m enjoying how I’m playing. I feel I’m improving all the time,” said Gea, the lowest-ranked player left in the draw.
Asked if he might recreate last year’s “miracle” that saw Valentin Vacherot claim the title as world number 204, Gea said he would “see what happens”.
“I don’t think it’s miracle when you work hard every day, but I hope to do the same,” he said.
Two days earlier the 21-year-old Frenchman beat US Open finalist Ben Shelton, the third seed, 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (7/3) in the third round for the biggest victory of his career.