Jesse Witten and Luka Gregorc move to second round of BNP Paribas Open qualifiers 2011
Jesse Witten downs Eric Nunez 6-2, 6-2
American Jesse Witten thrashed his compatriot Eric Nunez in straight sets 6-2, 6-2 in the opening round qualifier at the BNP Paribas Open 2011 on Tuesday. The world number 209 took just 55 minutes to undo his opponent.
Witten was in great form, playing aggressive game throughout the match. The American broke his opponent twice in the opening set. The 28-year-old served very well, hitting 3 aces and 65 per cent of the first serves in the first set.
Witten did not face a single break point in the first set. He converted the two break points he received in the opening set and won it 6-2.
Second set’s proceedings were not quite different from the first set. Witten converted one of the three break points he received in the second set, winning it 6-2.
The American hit 5 aces and committed 1 double fault in the second set. In comparison, Nunez hit 3 aces and double faulted twice. Witten won a whopping 84 per cent of the total points on his serve.
Witten will face another compatriot Ryan Sweeting in the next round. Sweeting, a wild card entrant in the qualifying draw, beat Samuel Groth of Australia 6-3, 6-1 in the first round.
Luka Gregorc defeats Julian Reister 6-0, 7-6
In another first round match, world number 446 Luka Gregorc of Slovenia upset world number 126 Julian Reister of Germany in straight sets 6-0, 7-6.
Gregorc simply outclassed his opponent in the opening set, not allowing him to win a single game. The Slovene broke Reister three times in the set, winning it 6-0.
The 27-year-old hit 5 aces and 55 per cent of the first serves in the first set. He saved all the 4 break points he faced in the opening set. On the other hand, his opponent could save only 4 of the 7 break points he faced.
After losing the opening set, Reister fought well in the second set. The German improved his groundstrokes and serve in the second set, hitting 3 aces and 62 per cent of the first serves. He saved the only break point he faced in the set.
Both players held their service games throughout the set, enforcing a tiebreak. However, it was Gregorc who got the mini-breaks in the tiebreak, winning it 7-3. The match lasted for 1 hour and 26 minutes.
The Slovene is slated to meet Flavio Cipolla of Italy in the next round who earlier beat Philip Simmonds 6-2, 6-2 in the first round.
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