2011 Open 13 Preview: Sergiy Stakhovsky takes on Illya Marchenko
In an all Ukrainian clash, Sergiy Stakhovsky takes on compatriot Illya Marchenko as the pair kicks off their run at the 2011 Open 13 in Marseille, France on Monday.
Ranked 43rd in the world, Stakhovsky is the only Ukrainian in the top 50. Starting the year at the 2011 Qatar ExxonMobil Open in Doha, Stakhovsky met with some bad luck when he was ousted in the first round by Viktor Troicki. Improving a little
in the next week, Stakhovsky enjoyed a quarterfinal run at the 2011 Medibank International Sydney, where he moved past Benjamin Becker and Guillermo Garcia-Lopez before being defeated by Ernests Gulbis.
Stakhovsky again enjoyed a three round run in the years first Grand Slam, the Australian Open. Unseeded in the event, Stakhovsky moved past Daniel Brands and Lukasz Kubot to secure a spot for himself in the third round. It was here that he was ousted from
the event following his defeat at the hands of Tommy Robredo.
Continuing on the tour, Stakhovsky played at the 2011 ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam last week, though he failed to make it past the first round as he lost to Croat, Ivan Ljubicic. This will be Stakhovsky’s second straight year at the tournament.
His 2010 run ended in the second round. Although he survived a mid-match lapse against Simone Bolelli, Stakhovsky was ousted in the next round by top Swede, Robin Soderling.
As Stakhovsky gets ready to take on his compatriot, he enjoys a 1-0 lead in their career head to head matches. Their one and only meeting on the tour had come in the first round of the 2010 BNP Paribas Masters, with Stakhovsky humiliating his countryman
in straight sets. The pair had also met at the Challenger event in Mons in 2009. Surviving a mid match lapse, Stakhovsky enjoyed a three set win.
Not only is Marchenko ranked much lower than Stakhovsky, he also suffers from the psychological disadvantage of having never been able to defeat his countryman. Ranked 88th in the world, Marchenko is playing at his third tour level event this
season though he has not met with much success so far. Starting at the Doha event, Marchenko had been defeated in the second round by Garcia-Lopez. Falling to Michael Berrer the following week, Marchenko failed to qualify for the Sydney event.
Another second round exit awaited the Ukrainian as he played in the Australian Open. Moving past Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo in the first round, Marchenko fell in the second round to eventual runner up, Andy Murray. Yet another second round exit met Marchenko
when he lost to Ivan Dodig in the 2011 PBZ Zagreb Indoors.
A veteran at Marseille in comparison, Marchenko debuted here in 2007 though he failed to qualify because he lost to Jeremy Chardy. Returning in 2009, Marchenko managed to successfully qualify for the main draw but was eventually beaten in the first round
by Mischa Zverev. It was only in 2010 that Marcehnko caught a lucky break. Although he failed to qualify for the main draw, Marchenko gained acceptance into the main draw as the lucky loser. This was the Ukrainian’s chance and he managed to move past Ruben
Bemelmans and Oliver Rochus to make it into the quarterfinals before losing to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
Even though Marchenko has more experience at the tournament, the fact that Stakhovsky enjoys the statistical advantage, tips the odds considerably in Stakhovsky’s favour. The higher ranked Ukrainian will probably move ahead in straight sets.
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