Laver Cup: Stefanos Tsitsipas cruises past Diego Schwartzman to put Team Europe into a healthy lead

Stefanos Tsitsipas beat Diego Schwartzman in straight sets to put Team Europe 2-0 up at the Laver Cup in London.

Both men were playing for the first time since their early exits at the US Open and it was Tsitsipas who came out on top by overwhelming Schwartzman for the majority of the match to win 6-2 6-1.

Tsitsipas broke early to take a 3-0 lead in the first set, before Schwartzman found his rhythm as both players held their serve over the next four games.

However, Tsitsipas broke for a second time, which he had been threatening to throughout the set, to take the opener.

Schwartzman came flying out of the blocks at the start of the second set to break his opponent after a long game, only to be broken straight back by the world No. 6.

From there, a series of unforced errors and strong baseline tennis from Tsitsipas saw him win the next five games to seal the match.

“I knew I was dealing with a serious opponent. Diego is someone that gets back to every ball. It was more of a physical challenge than anything else,” said Tsitsipas.

“I’m glad with the way I approached my tactics and I was very patient today which helped. I was not rushing when things didn’t go as well in the second set, but I kept my composure and kept on going.

“It’s important the attitude that I put inside the court in combination with my team-mates that were always fist pumping me and giving me their best energy.

“So that is definitely something that contributed to a good result today and I was able to play with a lot of intensity and never let go.”

A victory is worth one point on Day 1, two points on Day 2, and three points on Day 3.

The evening session, which begins at 19:00 UK time will be a night to remember at the O2 Arena.

It will be Federer’s last ever competitive match before he retires from tennis.

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