Tennis Nordea Open Update: Dominic Thiem beats Roberto Bautista Agut to enter the quarterfinal

Thiem looked like his former self securing the quarterfinal final, which marks his first one since May 2021. He delivered an impressive performance but hit a rough patch early on in the opening set. He struggled to find his rhythm, but once he saw it, he could bounce back. The tiebreaker was a neck-to-neck affair, but Thiem could finally outlast his opponent and win it 7-5. The second set was an easy win for Bautista Agut, who compelled Thiem into making errors. 

Although Thiem dropped the set 3-6, he maintained his focus and continued to attack. His shots put immense pressure on Bautista, and eventually, the Spanish player crumbled and conceded a game-on-serve in the final set. Once he won the break, Thiem capitalised on the pressure he put on his opponent on his serve and won the set 6-4. 

Andrey Rublev secures a narrow win over Federico Coria

Andrey Rublev made a comeback to tennis in Sweden and pulled off a winning start against Coria 7-5 4-6 7-6(2). Andrey Rublev hadn't played tennis in a while, having skipped Wimbledon because of the ban but his return at the Nordea Open in Bastad gave him a chance to rebuild his form. Rublev struggled against his opponent, an expert on clay. He played well, prompting Rublev to play a higher level of tennis. 

The first set slipped out of Rublev's hands even though he is the better player. Coria tried his best but couldn't corner Rublev and win it, although he broke the Russian multiple times. Both displayed an attacking game which is why it was unpredictable and had significant shifts in momentum. The second set was more subdued, and neither player exhibited issues related to their service. There wasn't a single break point until very late in the set, a polar opposite to the first set characterised by multiple breaks of serve. 

Rublev fumbled at 4-5, allowing Coria a couple of chances and the Argentine pocketed it 6-4. The final set was exciting as Rublev struggled with his rhythm but still managed to pull it to a 3-1 lead. He couldn't hold it and lost his serve at 5-4 when he served for the match. However, it went into a tiebreak where Rublev found a breakthrough to complete the tiebreak 7-2.