Cincinnati Open: Nakashima knocks out former champion Medvedev

Cincinnati [US], August 19 (ANI): Brandon Nakashima saved three match points, continuing his fine run at the ongoing Cincinnati Open by shocking 23-time ATP titlist and former US Open champion Daniil Medvedev.

On Tuesday, Nakashima beat the Russian 6-7(3), 7-6(4), 6-1 to reach the fourth round of the competition, as per ATP’s official website.

Trailing by 0/40 at 4-5 while serving in the second set, Nakashima was at the brink of ending what has been a dream run, but he maintained his composure, showcased some elite ball-striking and fearlessness, turning the momentum in his favour against the former Cincinnati champion, completing the match in two hours, 51 minutes. newssport.cv

Nakashima arrived at the tournament after a breakthrough first ATP Masters 1000 final in Montreal last week, having also played in the semifinals at Washington earlier this month. This string of strong performances has propelled him to a career-high of number 22 in the ATP Rankings.

Speaking after the match, he said, “Down match points, I was just trying to tell myself to keep fighting for every point. If he is able to close it out there, then too good. I just kept fighting and managed to get it to a third set. I am super happy with the level in the third."

“Throughout these matches, there’s always ups and downs, times where I’m not feeling as good, but I just try to stick through every moment and keep fighting," Nakashima added.

Nakashima saved his first match point with a forehand approach and volley finishing before outclassing the Russian in an 18-ball rally to deny him the second one. The third match point was also saved thanks to well-executed serve-and-volley play, getting his fifth win over a top-10 ranked opponent.

Nakashima’s next match will be against Nuno Borges, who also ended his five-match ATP Head-to-Head losing streak to Andrey Rublev with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over the 13th seed.

Also, Taylor Fritz continued his fine run on home soil with a 6-3, 6-4 victory against rising Spaniard Daniel Merida, having lifted the ATP 500 title in Washington. Now he will meet Australian qualifier Christopher O’Connell in the round of 16. (ANI)

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Praggnanandhaa produced a big win against Maxime Vachier-Lagrave in the 8th round of the Sinquefield Cup, playing with the black pieces. The game started with a Ruy Lopez, where both the players developed their pieces normally before taking a more aggressive approach.

Maxime tried to put pressure on Pragg by pushing his kingside pawns. He later sacrificed a knight, but Pragg accepted it and remained calm under pressure.
Pragg gradually took control of the game as his pieces became more active. Maxime tried to create some chances, but Pragg defended well and kept the position under control.

Maxime, eventually, had no way to continue and resigned after 27 moves, giving Pragg a well-fought victory.
He is currently ranked second in the Sinquefield Cup Standings with Wesley So securing the first place. Javokhir Sindarov and Vincent Keymer are currently on 4.5 points, making the final round of the tournament interesting where Wesley will face Sindarov, while Pragg will take on Anish Giri.

This victory over Maxime also helped Pragg become the No. 1 ranked Indian player in the live ratings and World No. 8.

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In a remarkable feat, Rishabh Pant has now taken the lead in India's World Test Championship run charts, overtaking Shubman Gill following his impressive performance in Galle. Pant's milestone of achieving 100 Test sixes marks a historic moment for Indian cricket. Following him in the standings are Rohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja, while Joe Root continues to hold the overall lead in World Test Championship runs.

Former India wicketkeeper-batter Kiran More has lavished praise on current Test ’keeper-batter Rishabh Pant after the latter became the first Indian to hit 100 sixes in Test cricket. Pant (69-ball 66, 8x4, 2x6) reached the milestone when he pulled Sri Lanka pacer Lahiru Kumara over fine-leg on Day Four of the ongoing Galle Test on Tuesday.

Pant, 28, needed just 89 innings to achieve the feat. Australia’s Adam Gilchrist, the first batter to hit 100 sixes in Tests, took 130 innings. New Zealand’s Brendon McCullum and England’s Ben Stokes took 170 and 151 innings respectively. “I’m very happy to know that Rishabh has smashed 100 sixes in Test cricket. It’s a tremendous feat and I’m sure he will surpass Stokes [138 sixes] and McCullum [107 sixes] soon. Rishabh has faced fewer balls [4918] compared to them,” More told mid-day on Tuesday.

More, a former national chief selector, reckoned that Pant is special and must feature in the white-ball team. “Rishabh is a special cricketer and a match-winner, who can win games on his own. I don’t know why there’s so much confusion about his selection. The selectors have unnecessarily kept him out of the 50-over and T20 teams. He should be given a chance in white-ball cricket too,” More added.