Jeremy Chardy battles past Edouard Roger-Vasselin into the second round – Citi Open 2012
Sixth seed, Jeremy Chardy of France, scored a tough win over his countryman, Edouard Roger-Vasselin, in the first round of the Citi Open in Washington, USA on Monday.
Chardy lost the opener but bounced back to capture the following two sets, winning the contest 3-6, 7-6(3), 6-4 in two hours and 11 minutes.
Roger-Vasselin claimed the initial breakthrough, hitting a blow to Chardy in the fourth game and winning his next serve to build a 4-1 lead. The 28-year-old sustained his advantage throughout the set, bagging it 6-3.
The 6ft 2in tall won most of the points on his first serves, pounding five aces and capturing 18 of the 19 points on them. Though, he gave a lacklustre performance on the second ones, committing three double faults and losing six
of the nine points.
Roger-Vasselin and Chardy put on an outstanding serving display in the second set, as they did not lose even a single serve till the end, squaring off the score at 6-6 and forcing a tie-breaker. Chardy got off to a flying start,
as he snatched five of the opening six points to race to a 5-1 lead. The French player allowed Roger-Vasselin to clinch just two more points, sealing it 7-6(3).
Chardy banged in seven aces but also made a couple of double faults in the second set. The Frenchman had a first serve percentage of 62 and claimed 25 of the 31 points on them. The Liege, Belgium resident failed to convert the
only break point he faced but balanced by saving all the five he received in the second set.
In the decider, Chardy and Roger-Vasselin held their serve in the first four games to level the score at 2-2. Ranked 47th in the world, Chardy struck in the fifth and consolidated on it to take a 4-2 advantage. The 25-year-old
did not lose any of his serves till the end, clinching it 6-4.
The French contestant served unbelievably well, bombarding 11 aces and grabbing 15 of the 17 points on them in the final set.
Chardy will take on either Xavier Malisse or Paul-Henri Mathieu in the round of 16.
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