Adrian Mannarino upsets Adrian Menendez-Maceiras in the quarter-finals – Istanbul Challenger 2012 CH
World number 189, Adrian Mannarino, defeated the Spanish Adrian Menendez-Maceiras in the quarter-final of the Istanbul Challenger 2012, held at the hard courts of Turkey. The French professional summed up his
7-6(3), 4-6, 7-6(4) triumph after a tough battle on Friday.
The 24-year-old was unable to hold his initial serve in the opener and commenced a sloppy start. The Spanish took hold of the opportunity and secured the initial three games, attaining a 3-love lead in the series.
Mannarino broke his opponent’s serve in the sixth game and evened out the score line to 3-3. However, both player battled hard to the level out the scores three times and eventually ended the set in a tie-break. The French professional dominated the major
part of it and emerged it surface as a surprising winner by a 7-6(3) score.
The second set reversed the scenario, as the 26-year-old Spanish contender secured the initial lead, marking a 2-love lead. The French man struggled hard to regain his lost momentum and squared the score line
three times but he failed to sustain his lead. Maceiras broke his opponents serve twice and immediately nudged his rival, marking a 6-4 lead.
Ranked 184th in the ATP World Tour rankings, Spanish confidently drew blood by the end of the third game, the score line mounted to 2-1. However, the deciding set proved to be tough challenge
for the participants. None of the players was able to rupture each other’s serve the entire time in the set but squared the scores a couple of times and completed it in a tiebreaker. The Left-hander French man dominated the major portion and therefore peacefully
concluded the match with his 7-6(4) win.
Mannarino smashed nine aces on his rival and double faulted three in the match. He also had a higher initial serve accuracy of 60 percent, capitalizing 48 of 65 points. On the contrary, the Spanish professional
managed to strike four aces and double faulted twice. He had an average serve accuracy of 57 percent and converted 39 of 64 points.
For the next round, Mannarino will contest against Grega Zemlja in the semi-final of the Challenger.
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