Alexandr Dolgopolov slays Guillermo Garcia-Lopez in opening round – China Open 2012
Seeded sixth in this event, Alexandr Dolgopolov from Ukraine devastated the Spanish contender, Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, with a bagel at the China Open 2012 on Monday. He jolted down a 6-0, 6-4 success over the Spanish veteran to power into the second round
at this outdoor hard court event held in Beijing, China.
The Ukrainian number one barely sweated in the opening set before carving out the victory in one hour and nine minutes. Battling each other for the first time, Dolgopolov took lead in the FedEx ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) Head 2 Head Series
against the Spaniard and advanced into the round of 16 at the National Tennis Center.
The Kiev native went berserk after entering this ATP World Tour 500 Series event. With his exquisite forehands from his box of tricks, Dolgopolov winded up all six games and inched towards the glory. He blocked the lone breakpoint he faced and cashed in
three out of five break opportunities to pull out the opener with a bagel.
Ranked 20th in the South African Airways ATP World Tour Rankings, Dolgopolov kept momentum rolling in the proceeding set. He swiftly swiped his entire serves without facing any trouble. The Ukrainian got the breakthrough in the last game after
availing one out of six break chances and clinched the set with a 6-4 score line.
On the whole, Dolgopolov juggled up a lower first serve share of 42 per cent as compared to his rival’s 55 per cent but amazingly marked 16 out of 18 points on it. He also smashed two aces and ended the match with 64 points.
Dolgopolov will face off the winner of the match between Spain’s Pablo Andujar and the Austrian number one, Jurgen Melzer.
The fourth seed, Marin Cilic, faced a bitter reality later that day. He made quick in-roads and bagged the opening set with a 6-3 success. However, the Croatian number one stepped off steam and eventually suffered a 6-3, 6-7(0), 4-6 loss at the hands of
the Romanian wild card entrant, Marius Copil. He cashed in four out of 11 break chances but was broken four times, eventually bowing out to the Romanian in almost two and a half hour.
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