2011 French Open: Richard Gasquet, Marcos Baghdatis move to the second round
Richard Gasquet beats Radek Stepanek 7-5, 6-3, 6-0
World number 16, home favourite Richard Gasquet prevailed over world number 57 Radek Stepanek of Czech Republic in straight sets 7-5, 6-3, 6-0 in the first round of French Open at Roland Garros on Monday. The match lasted for two
hours and three minutes.
Gasquet and Stepanek held their serve in the first ten games of the opening set to equalize the score at 5-5. Gasquet faced a break point in the eleventh game but saved it with a stunning forehand. Serving to stay in the set at
5-6, Stepanek faltered with a double fault at break point, losing the set 5-7. The Frenchman converted one of the three break points he received and saved all the five break points on his own serve in the first set.
The 24-year-old broke Stepanek in the eighth game of the second set and served out the set at 5-3. Gasquet fired three aces and nine winners in the second set. The right-handed kept his first serve percentage at 62 percent and
grabbed 71 percent of the points on the first serve in the second set.
The thirteenth seed crushed his opponent in the third set as he did not drop any game and won the set 6-0. The French won all the three break points he received in the third set.
Gasquet will meet world number 47 Marcel Granollers of Spain in the second round.
Marcos Baghdatis defeats Frederico Gil 7-6(4), 6-2, 6-2
Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis, ranked 29th in the world, knocked out world number 78 Frederico Gil of Portugal in straight sets 7-6(4), 6-2, 6-2 to advance to the second round. Baghdatis took two hours and 24 minutes to overpower
his Portuguese opponent.
The Cypriot and Gil broke each other once in the first set, taking it to a tie-break. Baghdatis earned a couple of mini-breaks in the tie-break, capturing it 7-4.
The right-handed hit two aces and 56 percent of the first serves, sealing a whopping 83 percent of the points on them in the first set.
Carrying the winning momentum into the second set, Baghdatis dropped just two games and grabbed it 6-2.
The 25-year-old capitalized on both break point opportunities he created on Gil’s serve in the second set. The Cypriot fired eleven winners and committed nine unforced errors in the second set.
Baghdatis did not give Gil any chance to come back in the match as he broke the Portuguese twice in the third set, winning it 6-2 in just 37 minutes. The six feet tall clinched 46 percent of the first return points in the third
set.
The Cypriot will take on world number 217, qualifier Leonardo Mayer of Argentina in the round of 64. The Argentinean beat Dustin Brown of Germany 3-6, 7-6(5), 6-2, 6-2 in the first round.
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