Toronto, August 4 (LaPresse) – Flavio Cobolli was eliminated in the round of 16 at the National Bank Open, the sixth ATP Masters 1000 event of the season, with a prize pool of $9,193,540, held on the hard courts of Toronto (which alternates yearly with Montreal), Canada. During the night in Italy, the 23-year-old Roman, ranked No. 17 (his career best) and seeded 13th, lost 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (1) after a battle lasting nearly two and a half hours to left-handed American Ben Shelton, ATP No. 7 and fourth seed. Cobolli failed to convert a 5-3 lead in the final set, but Shelton also missed a match point in the twelfth game. It was a bitter defeat for the Italian, who hit more winners than his opponent (31 to 26) and fewer unforced errors (44 to 46), yet still lost the match, which ended with a heated discussion between the two during the handshake.
On Tuesday in the quarterfinals, Shelton will face Australian Alex De Minaur, ranked No. 8 and seeded 9th, who defeated American Frances Tiafoe 6-2, 4-6, 6-4. Tiafoe is ranked No. 12 and seeded seventh.
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