Dusan Lajovic rallies past Ivan Sergeyev into the quarter-finals – Samarkand Challenger 2012
Third seeded Serb, Dusan Lajovic, bounced back after the drubbing in the second set to outlast the world number 232, Ivan Sergeyev of Ukraine, in the second round of the Samarkand Challenger in Uzbekistan on Thursday. The Serbian
participant took one hour and 45 minutes to claim victory in a closely contested match.
Lajovic and Sergeyev made a stable start, as they won their serve in the first nine games to take the score to 5-4 in the formers favour. Serving to stay in the set at that time, the Ukrainian could not manage to hold and lost
the first set 4-6.
The Serbian smacked two aces and committed one double fault in the opener. The 22-year-old had a low first serve percentage of 47 and sealed 11 of the 14 points on them. The right-hander did pretty well on the second ones, as he
converted 10 of the 16 of them into points.
Sergeyev made a fine start in the second set, stinging a break in the opening game and consolidating on it to go up 2-0. The Ukrainian contestant struck again in the fifth and held his next serve to stretch his lead to 5-1. Lajovic
managed to win one more game but then went down 2-6.
The Ukrainian player hit a single ace and committed the same number of double fault, maintaining a first serve percentage of 52 and pocketing nine of the 11 points on them. The 24-year-old did not provide any break opportunity
to his Serbian rival and availed two of the four chances he received in the second set.
Sergeyev and Lajovic exchanged a strike in the first six games of the decider to even out the proceedings at 3-3. The Serbian broke Sergeyev in the eighth to move ahead 5-3 but he lost his following serve to take the score to 5-4.
Lajovic hit the final blow at that moment to seal it 6-4.
The Serbian claimed most of the points on his first serves and second returns, winning eight of the 13 and 10 of the 15 points on them respectively in the final set.
Lajovic will play Gerald Melzer of Austria or Ukraine’s Oleksandr Nedovyesov in the quarters.
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