Rodionov upsets Baez at Astana Open and Korda edges Popyrin in big serving contest

Ravi Ubha

Dominic Thiem might be the best known Austrian at this week’s Astana Open but his compatriot Jurij Rodionov is having another week to remember in Kazakhstan.

After saving two match points against Gregoire Barrere in the first round on Thursday — with two aces — the qualifier upset second-seed Sebastian Baez 6-2, 7-5 on Friday on the indoor hard courts at the National Tennis Center.

The world No. 107 is set to eclipse his career-high ranking of 100 with the victory, putting the 24-year-old in a good position to play at January’s Australian Open for the first time.

He reached a second tour-level quarterfinal after Stuttgart on grass in 2021 and achieved his second best win by ranking over the No. 27 Baez.

Rodionov’s flat hitting game gave the Argentine — competing in his first indoor match of the season after an opening bye — little time to manoeuvre in the opening set.

And when the left-hander broke for 2-0 in the second — authoring a drop shot, passing shot combination — things became bleaker for Baez.

Baez is only 22 but he is already known for his competitiveness — and quality. His three titles in 2023 prove it.

He broke back for 1-2, then saved a break point in the longest rally of the match. 

The scoreboard pressure built on Baez, though, and he lost serve at 4-5.

Rodionov lost a mere 15 points in his nine service games.

«I think I was just very aggressive,» said Rodionov. «I tried to force him to play my game. There was a couple of games or moments where mentally I wasn’t able to keep everything together but luckily for me I was able to win the big points.»

Kazakhstan continues to be a fruitful stop for him.

Rodionov won the Almaty Challenger in 2018, made the semifinals of the Astana Challenger a month later and reached the final of the Astana Challenger in 2021.

The fans seem to remember him, given the support he received.

«I’m very grateful for the support,» he said. «I don’t think this happens every day, an Austrian guy comes to Kazakhstan and suddenly the whole stadium supports him.»

19 aces for Korda

Thursday’s last match on center court produced a rare three-tiebreak thriller as Marcos Giron upset Stan Wawrinka.

The first match on Friday almost went the same way, with Sebastian Korda edging Alexei Popyrin 7-6 (5), 6-7 (4), 6-4 in a battle of former junior stars excelling in the senior ranks.

The fifth-seeded Korda hit 19 aces and Popyrin produced 12.

The only breaks of the nearly three-hour duel resulted in the final set. Korda broke for 2-1 and managed to save break points in his ensuing two service games before buckling for 4-4.

But leading 40-15 in the next game, Popyrin waned — missing three consecutive first serves to end the game.

The 28th-ranked Korda took his opportunity and clinched proceedings with an ace out wide.

«He was serving incredibly well and I was trying to do everything to get any chance on his serve and nothing was coming,» Korda, now 2-0 against the 45th-ranked Popyrin, said. «So, very happy with the way I stayed with it in the third set. Really great ending to the match for me.»

The American, who next challenges Portugal’s Nuno Borges, is targeting a top-20 finish in a season that began in style — holding a match point on Novak Djokovic in the Adelaide final and making the quarterfinals at the Australian Open.

A wrist injury at Melbourne Park, however, severely halted his momentum.

Lehecka avoids Baez fate

The Australian Open was also where Astana’s fourth-seed Jiri Lehecka made the last eight, knocking out the impressive quartet of Borna Coric, Chris Eubanks, Cam Norrie and Felix Auger-Aliassime.

More recently, the Czech reached the final in Winston Salem — losing to Baez — and led his nation to the Davis Cup quarterfinals.

Like Baez, he met a qualifier after a bye, Egor Gerasimov, and did advance, 6-2, 7-6 (3).

Lehecka appeared well on top when leading by a set and break at 4-3, but Gerasimov — on the comeback from yet more back troubles — leveled for 4-4.

The fourth seed was later forced to save two set points serving at 5-6 — on the second one, he defended off a return prior to crunching a backhand down the line — and his big-serving opponent couldn’t recover.

«Today I knew it was going to be tough because Egor already played three matches,» said Lehecka. «He knew the conditions but I managed to go through.»

NextGen star Hamad Medjedovic, 20, awaits Lehecka.

The Serbian — mentored by Djokovic — reached a second tour-level quarterfinal by downing fellow wildcard and good friend Alexander Shevchenko 6-4, 6-4.

He thumped nine aces, won 84 percent of his first-serve points and saved the lone break point he faced.

Adrian Mannarino made it three quarterfinals in Astana in as many visits by ending the fine week of qualifier Alibek Kachmazov.

The 2020 finalist edged the 21-year-old ranked 315th, 6-2, 5-7, 6-3.

He recovered after missing out on a match point in the second set to earn a 34th win this season, a personal best for the Frenchman.