French Open 2024: Ninth-seed Tsitsipas battles past Altmaier to reach third round

Former runner-up Stefanos Tsitsipas survived a mid-match wobble before carving out a 6-3, 6-2, 6-7(2) and 6-4 win over Germany’s Daniel Altmaier on Wednesday to book his spot in the French Open third round.

The Greek ninth-seed, winner at Monte Carlo last month, looked to be cruising to an easy win on his favourite clay as he raced through the first two sets in less than an hour.

Tsitsipas, a French Open finalist in 2021, pummelled his 83rd-ranked opponent with his powerful forehand before Altmaier upped his game and became more aggressive.

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The German, who needed five sets to get through the first round, refused to buckle in the third set, dominating the tiebreak to cut the deficit.

His first break on Tsitsipas’ serve put him 4-3 up in the fourth with Altmaier pumping his fists before the Greek recovered quickly, breaking straight back and seeing out the match a little later on his opponent’s serve.