Erste Bank Open: Sensational finalist Lorenzo Sonego - "I improved my tennis this week"
Lorenzo Sonego is the surprise man at the Erste Bank Open. As a lucky loser, the Italian played until the final, in which he meets Andrey Rublev today.
by Michael Rothschädl
last edit: Nov 01, 2020, 09:46 am
By Michael Rothschädl from the Wiener Stadthalle
Actually, Lorenzo Sonego could already have packed his things last Sunday to set off for the next stop on the ATP tour, the Masters 1000 event in Paris-Bercy. However, since the tournament in the Wiener Stadthalle had to record a few last-minute cancellations, Sonego slipped into the main field despite his defeat against Aljaz Bedene, where a sensational run of success should now begin.
This should culminate in the preliminary climax of the 25-year-old Italian's career on Friday evening, when he "shot off" a weak Novak Djokovic with an impressive performance, as he was supposed to admit after the match . Lorenzo Sonego is now the player who was able to inflict the clearest two-set defeat of Novak Djokovic in his career - and that in a season in which the Serb had only suffered two defeats until then.
Sonego becomes a crowd favorite
You can see that in the young man from Turin. Since then, Sonego has been going to his press appointments with a smile on his face, in which you can see from the 25-year-old that his experience in this regard is limited. It was unbelievable, should Sonego announce after reaching the final. He has already lost in qualifying and is now in the final. "I had no expectations, but now I'm going into the final with self-confidence," said the world number 42.
With his carefree style of play, the clever stops, the powerful forehand whip and above all a strong service performance, Sonego also played his way into the hearts of the audience in the Wiener Stadthalle. In his semi-final against Dan Evans, the Italian could always count on the support of the stands, and after his success he was literally carried off the pitch to loud chants. "Today was unbelievable", Sonego paid tribute to the backdrop.
"Not easy" after Djokovic victory
"This week I have improved my tennis, the return, the service. I work very hard on my weaknesses, now I have the confidence and the experience to win such matches," explained the Italian. After defeating Djokovic, it was anything but easy to concentrate fully on the next task. "I tried to focus on tennis," said the 25-year-old.
Meanwhile, the successful run at the Erste Bank Open is only the beginning for Sonego. "I want to win the big titles, I want to climb further up the ranking - but it was also a dream to win against the number one in the world", Sonego explained in his press conference. In Vienna he could now at least partially meet the other two goals. In the event of a victory over Andrey Rublev in today's final, he would not only have won a "big title", he would also advance to 27th place in the ATP charts.