Alessio Di Mauro outplayed Pere Riba in the first round of the Barletta Open
33-year-old Italian veteran Alessio Di Mauro stood victorious against the second seeded Spaniard, Pere Riba at the Barletta Open in Italy on Tuesday night. Di Mauro strained hard to conclude the three-set thriller at 1-6, 6-2, 7-6(5), taking two hours and thirty two minutes to advance to the second of the ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) Challenger Tour event.
It remained an evenly poised contest as momentum kept oscillating throughout the game. The Italian had a poor start to the game and was completely blown away by his opponent in the first set. He made a tremendous comeback into the game to clinch the following two sets and eventually come out as the winner.
Although the two contestants delivered their first serve around 55 per cent mark, Di Mauro’s proficiency of bagging crucial points in the game was the differentiating factor. He collected 35 out of 53 first serve points and almost 50 per cent of total return points in the game. The Italian crafted 11 chances to break the opponent’s serve but converted just five of them en route to victory.
Riba had an aggressive start to the opener with his attacking moves, including frequent forays to the net. He clinched 12 of 15 first serve points in the first set and didn’t drop his serve once. Riba kept the set short and professional, racing through the games and breaking the Italian serve twice to reach an impassable lead of 5-1. The Spaniard then served out of the opening set assertively at 6-1 after Di Mauro thumped a forehand into the net.
The agonised Italian turned the tables on his opponent in the next set with his brilliant power game. Di Mauro had seven break chances and he cashed in four of them while his Spanish rival converted two out of six break points. An early exchange of serve breaks took the scores to 3-2, with the Italian in the lead. Di Mauro shifted his gears to race past Riba, stinging two more serve breaks to seal the second set at 6-2 and bring the contest on even terms.
With one set a piece, the two competitors threw their best at each other in the decider to nab the victory. Di Mauro fired four aces and collected 14 out of 17 first serve points in the third set to get the upper hand in the contest. He broke the opponent’s serve once and eventually sealed victory at 7-6(5) in the third set tie breaker.
Di Mauro will square off against his fellow compatriot Andrea Arnaboldi in the second round of the Open Barletta Trofeo Dimiccoli & Boraccino. Arnaboldi won his opening round match 6-1, 7-6(3) against the other Spanish, Guillermo Olaso earlier on Tuesday night.
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