Jack Sock shocks Igor Kunitsyn in the round of 32 – Hall of Fame Tennis Championships 2012
USA’s 345th ranked player, Jack Sock, created the biggest upset of the day by edging past the world number 126, Igor Kunitsyn of Russia, in three sets 7-5, 1-6, 6-4 in the opening round at the Campbell’s Hall of Fame
Tennis Championships in Newport, USA on Monday.
The American required two hours and seven minutes to topple Kunitsyn in a hard fought match.
Kunitsyn was first to take lead, as he broke the American in the opening game and won his subsequent serve to attain a 2-0 advantage. However, Sock struck back in the sixth game to draw level at 3-3. The next four games went with
serve to take the score to 5-5. Sock snatched a break again in the 11th and capitalised on it to win 7-5.
The American dictated his opponent with the help of his huge first serves, bombarding six aces and winning 15 of the 19 points. The 19-year-old gave an above average performance on the second deliveries and returns, as he clinched
six of the 10 and 12 of the 26 points on them respectively.
Kunitsyn started the second set in the same manner as he did in the opener, hitting a blow to the American in the very first game and consolidated on it to go up 2-0. The Russian continued to dominate until the end this time, breaking
Sock two more times to close it 6-1.
In the third set, both players exchanged a breakthrough in the opening six games to take the score to 3-3. Sock drew the final blood, claiming a serve break in the seventh and capitalising on it to triumph 6-4.
The youngster was playing his first competitive match after the BNP Paribas Open in March, as he was forced to stay away from the tennis court due to abdominal injury.
Talking to the reporters after the contest, Sock said, “Last Thursday was my first time hitting on grass in my life, so it was a new experience. But I think it suits my game well. I really enjoyed it out there.”
He added, “It’s a different strategy and there’s different tactics you have to use out there. The ball’s not going to bounce as high. People come in a lot more. I feel like I adjust pretty well when I go to new surfaces or climates.
I still have to get used to how many bad bounces there’s going to be.”
Sock will meet the eighth seed, Gilles Muller, or Izak Van der Merwe in the second round.
Tags: