Miami (AFP)

Ugo Humbert saved the honor of the French at the Masters 1000 in Miami on Saturday, reaching the third round quite easily, unlike Benoît Paire, once again eliminated from the start of the tournament, on a day that smiled on the favorites Stefanos Tsitsipas and Ashleigh Barty.

Seeded N.20, Humbert was solid to get rid of Portugal's Joao Sousa 6-1, 6-4, one he faced for the first time.

The 30th in the world got off to a strong start.

Very efficient in the first ball (4 aces, 92% of points gained in the 1st set) he managed to break Sousa twice in three attempts to break away.

The second round was slightly more hooked.

But Humbert, who had to erase two break points against him, managed to take the opposing service, at the best time, to lead 5-4, before finishing in 1:13.

Le Messin, who remains in a semi-final in Marseille two weeks ago, will face the big Canadian server Milos Raonic (N.12) in the next round.

Before Adrian Mannarino's entry into contention against Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic, he remains the only Frenchman involved in the tournament, since Benoît Paire was taken out by Italian Lorenzo Musetti (6-3, 6-4).

- Reversed dynamics -

To say that the latter is having a very difficult start to the season is an understatement.

Under the windy Florida heat, he appeared cottony, if not resigned, against the Italian Lorenzo Musetti (6-3, 6-4), carried by a completely different momentum, after his excellent run in Acapulco where he was stopped in semi-final by Stefanos Tsitsipas.

These are therefore two players with reversed dynamics who were opposed on court N.4, where the French, 33rd in the world, nevertheless entered the match well, taking the opposing commitment.

Thereupon, the Italian recovered, taking advantage of the first defective ball (49% success) of Pair who could still have broken him if he had not made direct errors at that time.

He then chained two double faults synonymous with loss of the first set.

In the second, his game was even more unraveled, showing that he did not feel better in his tennis, which he often dragged.

The Frenchman, who has expressed his blues and has sometimes been at the limit in his behavior on the courts at the start of the year, has this time shown irony.

First by the gesture, by spreading his arms as a sign of liberating victory, after his last setback out of bounds.

- "I played really well" -

Then with the words to the media: "I played really well against a very good player. It's very positive, I'm very happy with my level of play, and happy with what I produced on the court. I'm going to build on this game. I was very calm, with a very good mentality. I hung on until the end. "

This setback is his 4th in a row entering the tournament, after Buenos Aires, Santiago and Acapulco.

In 2021, he won only one match, in seven tournaments.

Musetti, 19, who has just joined the world top 100 (94th), will face Croatian Marin Cilic in the next round.

Stefanos Tsitsipas perfectly held his rank of seed N.2 for his debut.

He dismissed Bosnian Damir Dzumhur 6-1, 6-4, who regularly gives him problems, having won three of their previous four encounters.

In the next round, the 22-year-old Greek will face the Japanese Kei Nishikori (N.28).

In the ladies' category, the Australian Ashleigh Barty, world No. 1 and title holder, advanced to the round of 16, defeating with determination, 6-3, 6-2, the Latvian Jelena Ostapenko.

She will pass a bigger test in the next round, against the Belarusian Victoria Azarenka (N.14) who beat the German Angelique Kerber (N.24) 7-5, 6-2.

And she can, if successful, be delighted to see her part of the table emerge a little more with the package of Simona Halep, injured in the right shoulder.

© 2021 AFP