Fritz Claims Dallas Opener for Season's First Home Victory
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Synopsis
American tennis star Taylor Fritz secured his first home victory of the 2025 ATP Tour season by defeating Arthur Rinderknech at the Dallas Open. With impressive serving stats, Fritz looks forward to facing Denis Shapovalov next in the tournament.
Key Takeaways
- Taylor Fritz won his first home match of the 2025 ATP Tour season.
- He defeated Arthur Rinderknech 6-4, 6-2 at the Dallas Open.
- Fritz's serving stats were outstanding, hitting 11 aces.
- He will face Denis Shapovalov in the next round.
- Michael Mmoh and Reilly Opelka also advanced in the tournament.
Dallas, Feb 6 (NationPress) American No. 1 Taylor Fritz achieved his inaugural home victory of the 2025 ATP Tour season, triumphing over Arthur Rinderknech with a score of 6-4, 6-2 at the Dallas Open on Thursday (IST), marking the start of his journey in the newly enhanced ATP 500 event.
Fritz surrendered only six points on serve against Rinderknech and sped through to victory after securing a break in the final game of the first set. The American delivered an impressive 11 aces and won 93 percent (27/29) of his first-serve points, demonstrating relentless aggression on short balls, as reported by ATP Stats.
"It's great to go out and manage my serve effectively, find a couple of breaks, and win four and two. I believe I served at a solid percentage of first serves (67 percent)... and they were of high quality. I was hitting close to the lines, mixing it up well, and not really allowing him a chance to anticipate my serves or strike effectively on the returns. That was crucial to the match," Fritz stated on the tournament website.
Next, Fritz will go up against Denis Shapovalov, who defeated Miomir Kecmanovic with a score of 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-3, extending his flawless record to 5-0 in their ATP Head-to-Head.
Earlier in the day, wildcard Reilly Opelka progressed with a 7-6(3), 6-4 victory over Alexander Shevchenko. Qualifier Michael Mmoh also advanced, winning 6-1, 3-6, 6-4 against Roberto Carballes Baena. This marked Mmoh's first tour-level win since last April in Houston.
The 27-year-old had missed the latter half of the 2024 season due to an elbow injury and is making his return to ATP Tour action this week, having opened his 2025 campaign at an ATP Challenger Tour event in Cleveland.
Additionally, sixth seed Tomas Machac commenced his tournament with a convincing win, defeating Kei Nishikori 6-2, 6-2. Aiming to reach the quarterfinals or better for the third consecutive time at an ATP 500, the 24-year-old Czech saved all four break points he faced against the Japanese player.
