In a gripping bid to secure a spot in the prestigious main draw of the Masters-level Madrid Open, Montreal’s Gabriel Diallo fell short against Croatian stalwart Borna Coric, suffering a close 6-3, 7-6 (6) defeat during the final round of qualifying on Tuesday.
Coric demonstrated impressive resilience, successfully saving all nine break points he encountered and capitalizing on Diallo’s vulnerabilities by breaking serve twice out of three opportunities.
Diallo showed promise by gaining a 6-5 lead in the second-set tiebreak; however, he could not maintain his momentum, conceding three consecutive points, which included a double fault on match point.
Seeded third in the qualifying draw, Diallo had a glimmer of hope for progression as a “lucky loser.” This would grant him entry into the main draw should any already qualified player withdraw from the tournament, allowing the highest-ranked losing player from the last qualifying round to take their place.
Meanwhile, Britain’s Jacob Fearnley, the second seed in the qualifying bracket, triumphed in his match, while the top seed, Germany’s Daniel Altmaier, has yet to compete.
Currently ranked 78th in the world, Diallo reached the main draws of two consecutive Masters events last month in Indian Wells and Miami, where he was defeated by France’s Arthur Fils in the second round on both occasions.
In the men’s main draw of Madrid, Montreal’s Felix Auger-Aliassime (ranked 18th) and Ontario’s Denis Shapovalov (ranked 29th) each received first-round byes as seeded players.
On the women’s side, 25th-seed Leylah Fernandez from Laval, Quebec, also has a first-round bye, while 2019 U.S. Open champion Bianca Andreescu of Mississauga, Ontario, continues her impressive comeback from injury, slated to face American contender McCartney Kessler in her first-round match on Wednesday.
