Fernando Verdasco comes back from a set down to defeat Flavio Cipolla – China Open 2011
Spanish tennis pro Fernando came back from a set deficit to defeat Flavio Cipolla of Italy 2-6, 6-1, 6-2 on Wednesday to book his place in the quarterfinal of 2011 China Open here at the National Tennis Centre in Beijing, China.
Verdasco, who is unseeded at the Association of Tennis Professionals tournament, showed remarkable determination and fighting spirit in a match that lasted for nearly 1 hour and 45 minutes on the hard courts of Beijing. Trailing
the set score 1-0, Verdasco had to come up with his best to clinch victory in the match.
He did exactly that as he raised the level of his game play to turn the tables. Breaking the serve at regularly in second and third sets of the match, Verdasco dented his opponent’s confidence levels with some high quality tennis.
Ranked 23rd in the world, Verdasco will take a lot of confidence from this victory and if he can maintain his current form for the entire next week, he will be very hard to beat.
World number 95 Cipolla had a dream start to the match as he managed to put a very high class opponent under pressure right from the first game. Breaking the serve three times in the opening set, he looked on course to a comfortable
victory. However, he was unable to control his nerves under pressure, gifting points to the challenger at crucial stages.
Despite having the momentum on his side, Cipolla failed to play his natural game freely in the second set and he suffered two breaks of serve to let his rival take control of the match. Verdasco grabbed opportunities with both
hands and he converted his very first set point to even the set score 1-1.
The Spaniard continued to play aggressively in the following set as well. With two more breaks of serves, he established complete control over the situation. Hitting a big forehand winner down the line, he completed an emphatic
victory to move ahead at the competition.
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