Ivan Sergeyev downs Attila Balazs in round one – Banja Luka 2012 CH
Ukrainian contestant, Ivan Sergeyev, stomped over the Hungarian rising star, Attila Balazs, in straight sets at the Banja Luka Challenger 2012 on Monday. He jolted down a 6-3, 6-2 victory over the 23-year-old to charge into the second round at this outdoor
clay court event taking place in Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Sergeyev showed brilliant skills and agility to outrun the Hungarian in their first encounter. He needed one hour and 12 minutes to overpower the world number 234 and progress into the round of 16 at this ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) Challenger
Tour event.
The 24-year-old high-spiritedly entered the Bosnian dirt. He got the coveted break in the fourth game to take a 3-1 lead. Apart from losing his edge in the very next game, Sergeyev got the breakthrough in the eighth game and clinched the opener with a 6-3
score line. He brushed off one out of two breakpoints he came across and converted two out of five break chances to his advantage.
Ranked 196th in the South African Airways ATP World Tour Rankings, Sergeyev kept momentum running in the following set. He broke the Hungarian’s serve in the third game and jumped to a 3-1 lead. The Ukrainian maintained consistency in his game
and after bagging the last three games, he sealed the set with a 6-2 win. He again sought five break chances and availed two of them. Sergeyev also amazingly dusted away the lone breakpoint he faced.
Overall, the Dniepropetrovsk native fired five aces and spilled fewer unforced errors. He clobbered a lower first serve share of 54 per cent in contrast with his opponent’s 64 per cent but impressively marked 25 out of 32 points on it.
Up next for Sergeyev is the conqueror of the match between fifth seed Dusan Lajovic and the Austrian wild card entrant, Bastian Trinker.
The Croatian underdog, Franco Skugor, also earned the limelight later that day. He needed almost two hours to record a 7-6(4), 6-2 victory against Serbia’s Marko Djokovic. The Croat lost his serve five times but capitalised on seven out of 23 break opportunities
to pocket the match.
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