Australians Thanasi Kokkinakis and Jordan Thompson progress to the singles quarterfinals at an ATP 250 tournament in Mexico.
Los Cabos, Mexico, 22 February 2024 | Leigh Rogers
Thanasi Kokkinakis has scored back-to-back top-60 victories to secure a quarterfinal spot at an ATP 250 tournament in Los Cabos.
The 27-year-old Australian posted a 6-4 6-2 win against world No.42 Dan Evans in second-round action today at the hard-court event.
It is Kokkinakis’ second consecutive triumph against a British opponent, having eliminated world No.53 Jack Draper earlier this week, and propels him into his first tour-level quarterfinal since January 2023.
World No.6 Alexander Zverev, the tournament’s top seed, awaits in the next round.
Kokkinakis, who is currently ranked No.103, lost his only previous career meeting against the 26-year-old German in 2022.
Meanwhile, Jordan Thompson’s red-hot start season has continued, progressing to his fourth quarterfinal of the year.
The world No.40 scored a 7-6(5) 6-3 victory against American qualifier Emilio Nava in the second round.
This is the 29-year-old Australian’s 10th win from his 15 matches so far in 2024, which marks the earliest he has notched this many ATP-level victories in a calendar year.
| Thompson’s ATP main-draw wins | ||
| Year | Month recorded 10th win | Total wins |
| 2016 | – | 3 |
| 2017 | May | 13 |
| 2018 | – | 1 |
| 2019 | March | 26 |
| 2020 | November | 11 |
| 2021 | June | 21 |
| 2022 | August | 11 |
| 2023 | July | 19 |
| 2024 | February | 10* |
Thompson’s quarterfinal opponent is teen sensation Alex Michelsen, who stunned third-seeded Aussie Alex de Minaur 6-4 6-1 in the second round.
This was the 19-year-old American’s first top-10 victory.
Thompson won his only previous meeting against world No.74 Michelsen, in an ATP Challenger final in February last year.
De Minaur wasn’t the only Aussie bowing out in the second round, with Max Purcell, Aleksandar Vukic and Rinky Hijikata also exiting.
Aussies in action – Los Cabos
RESULTS
Men’s singles, second round
[8] Jordan Thompson (AUS) d [Q] Emilio Nava (USA) 7-6(5) 6-3
Thanasi Kokkinakis (AUS) d Dan Evans (GBR) 6-4 6-2
[2] Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE) d Aleksandar Vukic (AUS) 6-3 6-0
Alex Michelsen (USA) d [3] Alex de Minaur (AUS) 6-4 6-1
Nuno Borges (POR) d [7] Max Purcell (AUS) 6-3 6-3
Aleksandar Kovacevic (USA) d Rinky Hijikata (AUS) 6-3 4-6 6-4
COMING UP
Men’s singles, quarterfinals
[8] Jordan Thompson (AUS) v Alex Michelsen (USA)
Thanasi Kokkinakis…
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