Feliciano Lopez ousts Lukas Lacko to reach round two – Proton Malaysian Open 2012
Seeded fifth in this event, Feliciano Lopez tumbled the Slovakian contender, Lukas Lacko, in straight sets at the Proton Malaysian Open 2012 on Wednesday. He nudged up a 6-3, 7-6(3) victory against the world number 66 to progress into the second round at
this ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) World Tour 250 Series event held in Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur.
The Spanish seed showed brilliant skills to outsmart Lacko in their first encounter. After earning success in one hour and 40 minutes, Lopez took lead in the FedEx ATP Head 2 Head Series by 1-0 against the 24-year-old and advanced into the round of 16 at
this indoor hard court event.
The former world number 15 made a drastic start at the Putra Indoor Stadium. He suffered the first blow in the second game and fell at 0-3. However, Lopez sought his rhythm afterwards and went on a six-game killing spree. He failed to block the lone breakpoint
he came across but cashed in three out of four break chances, eventually pulling out the opener with a 6-3 success.
Currently ranked 32nd in the South African Airways ATP World Tour Rankings, Lopez carried his momentum in the following set. He superbly brushed off all five breakpoints he encountered to keep his entire serves. Despite squandering the lone break
chance he sought, the Spanish veteran dominated in the tie-breaker and clicked the set with a 7-6(3) score line.
The 31-year-old brought his experience into handy. He spilled more unforced errors and produced a slightly lower first serve share of 56 per cent in contrast with his opponent’s 57 per cent. However, Lopez impressively availed 31 out of 40 points on it and
finished the match with 79 points.
Lopez will face off the Dutch contender, Igor Sijsling, who crushed the local wild card entrant, Ariez Elyaas Deen Heshaam, with a breadstick to reach this spot.
The sixth seed, Pablo Andujar, faced a bitter reality later that day. He exited to Uzbekistan’s Denis Istomin after trailing in brutal straight sets. Andujar suffered a 3-6, 2-6 loss and exited from the tournament in the opening round.
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