Australia's Ebden upsets second seed Millman at Singapore Open
Last updated on: 26 February,2021 06:48 am
Matthew Ebden beat John Millman 6-4, 6-1 to advance to the quarter-finals at the Singapore Open.
SINGAPORE (AFP) - Australian wildcard Matthew Ebden upset compatriot and second seed John Millman in straight sets, 6-4, 6-1, Thursday to advance to the quarter-finals at the Singapore Open.
Fresh off his first round victory over India s Yuki Bhambri, Ebden continued his winning ways by taking down the world number 39 in 72 minutes.
Ebden got off to a flying start after breaking Millman s serve in the third game. He then served for the set at 5-4 and held his nerve to deny Millman the opportunity to break back by closing out the first set 6-4 in 41 minutes.
The world number 316 again broke Millman s serve in the first game of the second set before racing to a 4-0 lead.
He put pressure on Millman s serve at 5-1 and completed the tournament s upset after a back-to-back double fault by his compatriot ended the contest.
"It s never easy to play each other but I m really glad I executed a good game plan. May the best man win and I m really happy that man was me today," said Ebden.
France s Adrian Mannarino lived up to his top seed billing and looks forward to seeing the return of fans after defeating Italy s Roberto Marcora 6-3, 7-5.
"It s just a little bit sad to play in an empty court like this. It feels like you are playing a practice match at 7am ... and everyone s sleeping," said Mannarino.
"So it s very nice to know that the fans are coming back this weekend."
Moldova s Radu Albot beat Germany s Yannick Hanfmann 6-7 (2/7), 7-6 (9/7), 6-3 while South Korea s Soonwoo Kwon also advanced after a 6-3, 6-4 win over Japan s Yasutaka Uchiyama in the day s other singles matches.
The players have been playing to an empty gallery during the week because of coronavirus restrictions, but organisers said that up to 250 fans a day will be allowed to watch the weekend s semi-finals and finals in person.
All spectators must take a mandatory Covid-19 test and will only be allowed into the venue if their result is negative. They must wear masks at all times and will not be allowed to mingle between groups.