James Cerretani/Adil Shamasdin defeat Andrey Golubev/Denis Istomin to reach second round of BMW Open
American/Canadian pair of James Cerretani and Adil Shamasdin defeated Kazakh/Uzbek pair of Andrey Golubev and Denis Istomin in three thrilling sets 7-6(3), 3-6, 10-8 in the opening round at the BMW Open in Munich on Wednesday.
Cerretani and Shamasdin took an hour and 38 minutes to undo their opponents.
The American/Canadian pair took the early lead as they broke their opponents in the fourth game, taking a 3-1 lead. Serving to win the set at 5-3, Cerretani and Shamasdin failed to hold their serve. Both pairs held their serve
in the next three games to level the score at 6-6, forcing a tie-break. The American/Canadian pair dominated the tie-break, winning it 7-3.
Cerretani and Shamasdin hit one ace and the same number of double fault in the first set. They delivered 76 percent of the first serves and converted 81 percent of them into points in the opening set. On the other hand, Golubev
and Istomin hit 68 percent of the first serves, winning 76 percent of the points on them. The Kazakh/Uzbek pair saved two of the three break points they faced in the first set.
After losing a tough opening set, Golubev and Istomin bounced back, breaking their opponents in the eighth game to win the set 6-3.
The Kazakh/Uzbek pair fired a couple of aces and 61 percent of the first serves in the second set. They captured 71 percent of the first service points in the second set. On the other hand, Cerretani and Shamasdin kept their first
serve percentage at 68 percent and won 67 percent of the points on their first serve. The American/Canadian pair saved two of the four break points they faced in the second set.
Cerretani and Shamasdin clinched a single mini-break in the match tie-break, claiming it 10-8. The American/Canadian combination hit 78 percent of the first serves, converting 57 percent of them into points in the match tie-break.
In comparison, Golubev and Istomin fired 67 percent of the first serves and won just 33 percent of the points on them. The Kazakh/Uzbek duo did not return quite well as they claimed just 43 percent of the first return points.
Cerretani and Shamasdin improved their win/loss record to 5-3 this year. The American/Canadian pair lost to Frenchmen Benoit Paire and Edouard Roger-Vasselin in three sets 6-4, 3-6, 2-10 in the first round at the Open 13. Cerretani
and Shamasdin won their first title together at the SA Tennis Open, beating Scott Lipsky and Rajeev Ram 6-3, 3-6, 10-7 in the final.
The American/Canadian partnership will face either Dutch/Polish pair of Robin Haase and Lukasz Kubot or Bulgarian/German duo of Grigor Dimitrov and Philipp Petzschner in the second round.
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