De Minaur saves nine break points to beat Navone at China Open

Alex de Minaur reached the China Open's second round on Thursday with a 7-6(4), 6-2 victory over Mariano Navone in Beijing. The Australian fifth seed saved nine of the 10 break points he faced during a match lasting one hour and 55 minutes, according to EFE's report.

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Navone kept the opening set level through 12 service games, with neither player managing a break. The set took 63 minutes and ended with De Minaur's court coverage proving decisive in the tiebreak: he chased down successive short balls before placing the final return beyond the Argentine, EFE reported.

The second set began with Navone breaking serve after creating five opportunities, but he could not hold on to that advantage. De Minaur converted three of his seven break chances in the set. Serving at 5-2, the Australian then saved four more break points before completing the win on his second match point.

The match statistics published by Tennis.com underline the difference in how the two players handled those opportunities. De Minaur won nine of his 10 service games, compared with seven of 10 for Navone. He also won 70% of points behind his first serve and 68% behind his second, while Navone's corresponding figures were 60% and 48%.

Tennis Australia reported that the result extended De Minaur's winning run to four matches. That sequence includes two victories during Australia's Davis Cup win over Poland and his comeback against Alexander Zverev at the Laver Cup. De Minaur said those team competitions had helped restore his energy after New York, with early preparation in Brisbane and time around the Davis Cup squad contributing to the improvement.

A semifinalist in Beijing last year, De Minaur will next face Frenchman Quentin Halys in the last 16 of the ATP 500 tournament, Tennis Australia confirmed. He finished Thursday's opener with 17 winners, including six aces, and said he hoped to build on a performance in which he had found answers during difficult moments.