Bemelmans/Malisse oust Lorenzi/Paire to reach quarters – Farmers Classic 2012
Belgian tandem, Ruben Bemelmans and Xavier Malisse, dumped the Italian-French pair, Paolo Lorenzi and Benoit Paire, in straight sets at the Farmers Classic 2012 on Wednesday, They clobbered a 6-2, 7-6(7) victory against their opponents to secure a spot in
the final eight at this Emirates Airline US Open series event taking place in the UCLA Campus in Los Angeles.
The Belgian collaboration showed brilliant defensive skills, eventually pulling out the victory in one hour and 14 minutes. Encountering each other for the first time, Bemelmans and Malisse assertively secured a spot in the last eight at this ATP (Association
of Tennis Professionals) World Tour 250 series event.
Bemelmans and Malisse high-spiritedly entered the Los Angeles Tennis Center. They drew the first blood in the opening game and jumped to a 2-0 lead. The Belgians swiped their entire serves without encountering any barriers and cashed in their second break
chance in the seventh game, subsequently sealing the opener with a 6-2 win.
The in-form Belgians kept momentum running towards the second set and after getting the coveted break in the third game, they quickly took a 3-1 lead. Apart from squandering their edge in the 10th game, Bemelmans and Malisse broke their rivals’
serve once again and took a 6-5 lead. They wasted their opportunity to serve out the set and went 1-4 down in the tie-breaker. However, the Belgians remained focused and subsequently carved out the victory with a 7-6(7) score line.
All in all, the Belgians clobbered a slightly higher first serve share of 56 per cent in contrast with their opponents’ 53 per cent and superbly clicked 29 out of 36 points on it. They also withstood five aces and sealed the match with 71 points.
Next challenge for the Belgians is the top seeded duo, Mexico’s Santiago Gonzalez and America’s Scott Lipsky. The Mexican-American junction failed to block the lone breakpoint they came across but cashed in three out of four break chances to formulate a
6-4, 6-4 score line.
The local junction, Rajeev Ram and Michael Russell, also earned the glory later that day. They stomped over their fellow countrymen, Marcos Giron and Nicolas Meister, in straight sets to progress at this event.
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