Igor Andreev tramples Andre Ghem to enter the final qualifying round – Brasil Open 2012
Sixth seeded Russian, Igor Andreev, eased past the Brazilian contestant, Andre Ghem, in the second qualifying round of the Brasil Open. Both players squared-off for the first time in their careers, with Andreev registering
a comprehensive straight sets triumph, 6-1, 6-2, within an hour.
The contest was played on the clay courts of Sao Paulo for the prize money of $475,300. Winner of the tournament will also bag 250 points that will help him climb several spots in the world rankings. It is crucial for everyone
to inch closer to that Top-64 list of players to be able to qualify for London Olympics, later this year.
Andreev commenced the proceedings of the match. He was under a bit of strain in the opening game but managed to hold on to his opening serve. Ghem also bagged a comfortable hold taking the scores to one game apiece. The Russian
again struggled a bit but didn’t panic; he held his serve to further push the scores at 2-1.
The Brazilian looked confident on his opening serve but was completed ousted in the fourth game that registered the first breakthrough of the match. A couple of cracking winners down the line were coupled with some delicate
drop shots from the Russian to dismantle the confidence of his opponent and bag the vital breakpoint.
Trailing a break down, Ghem failed to fight back and Andreev cruised past him with a lead of three games in no time; scores were 4-1 at that stage. The local participant was already under a huge psychological pressure and
the onslaught from the visitor further jumbled up his whole game plan.
Ghem couldn’t revitalize his game plan to counter the situation, rather, lost another serve game that further eased the situation for his opponent. The visitor gobbled up the first set win with a successful hold. Crowd was
extremely disappointed at the display put forth by their local player. They were expecting a bit of fight from their tennis ace.
The second set was started with a successful breakthrough for the visitor that further drowned his opponent. Ghem was trying to fight back with some improvisation but his situation was getting worse with every point played.
Andreev broke serve for the second time to register an unassailable lead of 4-1. Both players held their respective serves in the following three games that confirmed the final qualifying berth for the visitor.
Igor Andreev contests against the Argentine participant, Guido Pella, for the place in the main round of the tournament.
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