Cermak/Knowle down Brown/Hanley to capture title – Bet-at-home Cup 2012
Czech-Austrian duo of Frantisek Cermak and Julian Knowle saved four match points to beat the German-Australian tandem of Dustin Brown and Paul Hanley 7-6(4), 3-6, 12-10 in the Bet-at-home Cup final in Kitzbuhel, Austria on Saturday. The
Czech-Austrian combination took one hour and 41 minutes to win the contest.
Cermak/Knowle and Brown/Hanley started by winning their opening serves and equalising the score at 1-1. The German-Australian pair stuck in the third game and consolidated on it to grab a 3-1 lead. However, Cermak and Knowle broke
back in the eight to square it off at 4-4. The following four games went with the serve to take the score to 6-6, forcing a tie-breaker. The Czech-Austrian duo clinched a couple of mini-breaks and made the most of them to win 7-6(4).
After dropping the opener with the narrowest of margins, Brown and Hanley made the best possible start in the second set, as they secured first three games to gain a 3-0 lead. The German-Australian duo sustained their advantage
till the end, closing it 6-3.
Carrying the winning momentum into the match tie-breaker, Brown and Hanley started with a 3-0 lead. The German-Australian pair kept on increasing its lead, taking the score to 8-3 at one stage. Brown and Hanley gad four match points
at 9-5 but they played miserably later on, losing five points on the trot to go down 9-10. Cermak and Knowle failed to convert their match point at that moment but snatched two straight points after that to triumph 12-10.
Cermak and Knowle were lucky to succeed despite making six pathetic double faults in the match. The Czech-Austrian combination banged in three aces and pocketed 30 of the 40 first delivery points. The top seeds saved six of the
eight break points they faced and converted one of the two they received.
Talking to the reporters after the match, Knowle said, "This is like a dream come true. I still remember playing the first singles match on the opening day of the Center Court here about 20 years ago. I lost [against Christian
Saceanu] after having several match points.
He added, "Today it was the opposite and I’m very happy that we made it. We were the lucky ones in the Match tie-break. One or two points decided the match. I really enjoyed the week. The atmosphere was great, the weather too and
this week is very special to me here in Kitzbuhel."
Cermak and Knowle were appearing their first title match together after the 2002 Croatia Open.
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