Erste Bank Open: sensational finalist Lorenzo Sonego

Lorenzo Sonego is the surprise man at the Erste Bank Open. As a lucky loser, the Italian reached the final, in which he played today Andrey Rublev Satisfies.

By Michael Rothschädl of the Wiener Stadthalle

In fact, Lorenzo Sonego could have already packed his things last Sunday to leave for the next stop on the ATP circuit, the Masters 1000 in Paris-Bercy. However, as the tournament at the Wiener Stadthalle had to see some last minute cancellations, Sonego sneaked onto the main field despite his loss to Aljaz Bedene, where a sensational run of success should now begin.

This should culminate in the preliminary climax of the 25-year-old Italian’s career on Friday night, when he “shot” a weak Novak Djokovic with an impressive performance, as he was supposed to admit after the match. Lorenzo Sonego is now the player who knew how to inflict the clearest two-set defeat of Novak Djokovic in his career, and that in a season in which the Serb had only suffered two defeats until then.

Sonego becomes a crowd favorite

This is seen in the young man from Turin. Since then, Sonego has attended his press appointments with a smile on his face, in which it can be seen by the 25-year-old that his experience is limited. It was amazing, if Sonego announced it after reaching the final. He has already lost in qualifying and is now in the final. “I had no expectations, but now I am going to the final with confidence,” said the 42nd world ranking.

With his carefree playing style, clever saves, powerful forehand whip, and above all a great service performance, Sonego also found his way into the hearts of the audience at the Wiener Stadthalle. In his semi-final against Dan Evans, the Italian always had the support of the stands and, after his success, he was literally thrown off the pitch with loud chants. “Today was incredible,” Sonego paid tribute to the backdrop.

“It’s not easy” after Djokovic’s victory

“This week I have improved my tennis, the return, the service. I work very hard on my weaknesses, now I have the confidence and the experience to win these types of matches,” explained the Italian. After defeating Djokovic, it was not easy to fully focus on the next task. “I tried to focus on tennis,” said the 25-year-old.

The successful run at the Erste Bank Open is just the beginning for Sonego. “I want to win the big titles, I want to climb higher in the rankings, but it was also a dream to win against the number one in the world,” Sonego explained at his press conference. In Vienna he could now at least partially fulfill the other two goals. In the event of a win over Andrey Rublev in today’s final, he would not only have won a “great title” but would also advance to 27th place on the ATP charts.