Jarkko Nieminen dismisses Tobias Kamke to reach the second round – If Stockholm Open 2012
Finland’s Jarkko Nieminen qualified for the last 16 by ousting the world number 68, Tobias Kamke of Germany, in straight sets 6-3, 6-4 in the first round of the If Stockholm Open. This ATP World Tour 250 indoor hard court event
is being held in Sweden.
The Finn is making his 13th appearance at the If Stockholm Open, improving his win/loss record to 23-12 at this event. The left-hander has never won this title but was runners-up in 2001, 2006 and 2011.
Nieminen and Kamke made a stable start, holding their serve with ease in the first five games and taking the score to 3-2 in favour of the former. The Finn contender hit a blow to Kamke in the sixth and consolidated on it to attain
a 5-3 lead. Nieminen did not allow his German opponent to bounce back, sealing it 6-3.
The Finn number one performed impressively on the first serves, hitting a couple of aces and keeping the percentage at 76. The 31-year-old also succeeded in converting 18 of the 22 first deliveries into points. The Masku, Finland
resident could not fare well on the second deliveries and first returns, losing four of the seven and 13 of the 18 points on them.
Start of the second set was pretty similar to the opener, as none of the two players managed to break the other in the first five games, taking the score to 3-2 in favour of Kamke. The German stung a break in the sixth to go up
4-2 but he failed to consolidate on it, losing four in a row to throw it away 4-6.
Nieminen pounded three aces and 66 percent of the first deliveries in the second set, securing 19 of the 27 points on them. In comparison, Kamke succeeded in putting in just 49 percent of the first serves and winning merely 14
of the 21. The 5ft 10in tall could not put away four of the six break threats he came across and failed to avail six of the seven he created.
The Finn contender will take on the winner of Kevin Anderson and Lleyton Hewitt in the second round.
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