Benoit Paire edges past Juan Sebastian Cabal in round one – Abierto Mexicano Telcel 2012
French rising star, Benoit Paire, dominated in two sets’ tie-breaker to oust the Colombian qualifier, Juan Sebastian Cabal, at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel 2012 on Monday. He penned down a 7-6(3), 7-6(6) victory against the world number 257 to advance into
the second round at this clay court tournament taking place in Acapulco, Mexico.
The 22-year-old put up a solid display of tennis to outclass Cabal in their first meeting at this ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) World Tour 500 series event. He not only edged in the head-to-head series by 1-0 against the Colombian but also booked
a spot in the round of 16.
Paire entered the Fairmont Acapulco Princess with conviction and held his serve in the opening game. He drew the first blood in the fourth game and eventually took a 4-1 lead. The French maintained consistency in his game and despite losing his edge in the
ninth game, he dominated in the tie-breaker to pull out the opener with a 7-6(3) win.
Ranked 99th in the South African Airways ATP World Tour Rankings, Paire got the coveted break in the opening game and took the early lead. However, he lost his edge in the very next game and after exchanging two more serve breaks, the French took
the set to another tie-breaker. He outmuscled Cabal in it and clinched the set with a 7-6(6) score line.
Summing up the higher ranked performance at this clay court event, Paire played poorly in this match. He spilled eight double faults and produced a lower first serve share of 52 percent in contrast with the Colombian’s 69 percent. However, the French fired
10 aces and marked 39 out of 46 points on his first serve share to cover it up.
Next challenge for Paire is the conqueror of the match between second seeded Nicolas Almagro and his compatriot, Pere Riba.
Seventh seeded Marcel Granollers trashed the Brazilian ace, Thomaz Bellucci, in straight sets earlier that day. He lost his serve once but broke the Brazilian’s serve four times to manipulate a 6-4, 6-2 success in their second meeting. After earning this
success, he improved to a 2-0 head-to-head record against Bellucci.
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