2011 Heineken Open Singles review
Although the top ten tennis players are taking a break to practice for the 2011 Australian Open, most of the other top fifty are participating at the twin events, in Auckland and in Sydney, this week.
Being played at Auckland is the 2011 Heineken Open this week, the event is scheduled from 10th to 15th of January.
Kicking off play for the day were the four qualifying final matches being played simultaneously. Playing on the centre court was Spaniard Pere Riba as he took on local Jose Statham. A dejected Riba was recovering from a first round exit at the 2011 Doha event only last week.
However, having been unable to make it to the main draw, he took part in the qualifying round seeded third. Although, his opponent Statham enjoyed much of the crowd’s support, Riba was determined to make it into the main draw. Bouncing back from one set down, Riba managed a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory to reach the main draw.
Other qualifiers into the main draw include Americans, Bobby Reynolds and sixth seed Michael Russell, and fourth seeded French Adrian Mannarino.
Once the finals of the qualifying rounds were rounded up, the event saw the first of its opening clashes. Taking to the courts first were Colombian, Santiago Giraldo, and, Spaniard, Daniel Gimeno-Traver.
Giraldo is coming from a quarterfinal finish at the 2011 Brisbane International having moved past Gilles Simon and Benjamin Becker before falling to Kevin Anderson.
Gimeno-Traver on the other hand wasn’t this lucky. Competing at the 2011 Doha event, he failed to make it past the first round having lost to wildcard entrant Sergey Bubka.
Kicking off the first round clashes today in Auckland, Giraldo and Gimeno-Traver met in an unseeded battle that lasted for approximately seventy-seven minutes. Serving two aces, committing no double faults and losing 21 of 65 points on service, Giraldo was able to secure a 6-2, 6-4 victory to move ahead in the event.
Giraldo moves ahead to meet fourth seed Albert Montanes with the latter receiving a bye into the second round.
Following Giraldo on the courts was the only local in the main draw, Michael Venus. Ranked 330 in the world, Venus had received a wildcard into the main draw, where he drew against Spaniard Tommy Roberdo. Going head-to-head in the first set, Venus succeeded in taking the set to a tiebreaker, winning it 10-8.
However, the local was unable to maintain his form as he lost the second set 3-6 and ultimately the match with a bagel set loss in the decider. Roberdo moves on the event where he will face either qualifier Michael Russell or seventh seed Thomas Bellucci.
Finishing up the singles action for the day was 2008 titlist Philipp Kohlschreiber. Seeded eighth in the event, the German started his title run at the event on Monday facing Carlos Berlocq. His chances of a second title at the event were seriously threatened when he lost the first set 3-6.
However, he managed to reverse the score in the second winning it 6-3. He was able to move ahead into the event after wrapping up the decider with a breadstick win. Kohlschreiber will next play either qualifier Bobby Reynolds or Marcel Granollers.
Tags: