James Blake downs Bobby Reynolds in the semi-finals – Sacramento Challenger 2012 CH
Second seeded, James Blake, successfully battle past his compatriot, Bobby Reynolds, in the semi-finals of the RelyAid Natomas Challenger 2012 held at the hard courts of California. Blake successfully edged out and consolidating
his 6-2, 7-6(3) victory, attaining the maximum advantage of his home ground.
The 6ft 1in tall, Blake, made an average start and sustained his serve in the opener. Initially, he was unable to pick momentum as the score line levelled down to 2-all in the fourth game. Nevertheless, he never ruined his perfect
start and tactic fully swept his entire serves without facing any obstruction. He received a breakthrough in the sixth game, when he broke his rival’s serve and marked his 4-2 lead. Moving towards the end, he received a coveted break in the last game and stole
the initial set with a 6-2 lead.
World number 162, Reynolds displayed a relatively better initial serve of 45 percent with five of the nine first and five of 11 second serve points. In comparison to that, his fellow citizen showed a below average first serve accuracy,
with three of five first and 13 of 16 second delivery points.
Ranked 97th in the ATP World Tour Rankings, Blake, struggled hard to sustain his initial consistency in the subsequent set. The 30-year-old, Reynolds unleashed his skills and surprisingly struck out to square down the
scores repeatedly. Although Blake struggled hard, it was impossible to achieve a breakthrough. This resulted in ending the set with a tiebreaker, the American senior emerged to the front line with a 7-6(3) win.
The right-hander Blake secured 56 percent initial serve precision, converting 17 of 23 first but merely seven of 18 second delivery points. He secured two of the four serve breaks offered to him, whereas his challenger secured
all two. Reynolds double faulted three times in the set, which completely neutralized his attack. He attained 68 percent initial serve bagging away 17 of 32 first and six of 15 second delivery points.
In the final round of the Sacramento Challenger, the wild card entrant will contest against the German, Mischa Zverev.
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