London (AFP)
Austria's Dominic Thiem (N.5), assured of finishing first in his group at the Masters, was beaten 7-6 (7/3), 6-2 by Italian Matteo Berrettini (N.8), already eliminated , in a match without stake Thursday in London.
In the evening must be the match-cleaver between Serb Novak Djokovic (N.2) and Switzerland's Roger Federer (N.3), whose winner will join Thiem in the semifinals.
Berretini, beaten in two sets by Djokovic and Federer and already out of the race, made it a point of honor to win the first victory of his career in a competition where he is a novice.
Thiem, sparkling with panache and risk-taking to overthrow Djokovic for 2:46 and three sets on Tuesday (6-7, 6-3, 7-6), played much more in the economy.
With only 12 points in the two sets against 30 for his opponent, as much as on the first set against the "Djoker", the Austrian did not seem to force, even if he managed to erase a break at first set.
For his part, the Italian finished a season that saw him enter the ATP Top 10 at the age of 23, concluding the match with a penalty of just 1h16.
The evening, however, will offer a big shock and even a great tennis classic of the last ten years between Djokovic and Federer, with a place in the last square for the winner.
© 2019 AFP