Juan Monaco slays Andy Roddick to enter the quarters – Sony Ericsson Open 2012
Seeded 21st in this Masters 1000 event, Monaco devastated the former world number one, Andy Roddick, with a bagel at the Sony Ericsson Open 2012 on Tuesday night. He joggled up a 7-5, 6-0 victory over the local star to charge into the final eight
at this hard court tournament taking place in Miami, Florida.
Coming off from stunning third seeded Roger Federer in the previous round, Roddick stepped off steam in the second set and ultimately bowed out to the Argentinean number two in their second meeting. Monaco on the other end not only avenged his defeat at
the Winston-Salem ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) event last season but also levelled the head-to-head series by 1-1 against Roddick.
Currently ranked 34th in the South African Airways ATP World Tour Rankings, Roddick stormed into the opening set and after drawing the first blood in the third game, he jumped to a 3-1 lead.
The 27-year-old rebounded after that and grabbed his break back in the eighth game, levelling the scores at 4-4. He remained focused in the remaining games and pulled out the opener with a 7-5 win after converting another break chance to his advantage in
the last game.
The world number 21 went berserk in the proceeding set. He blasted massive forehands and backhands to seal the set with a bagel. Monaco brushed off both breakpoints he came across and cashed in three out of five break chances to earn the fame.
Overall, the Argentinean outshined Roddick in every department of tennis. He formulated a better first serve share of 73 per cent as opposed to the American’s 61 per cent and amazingly marked 31 out of 46 points on it.
Next challenge for Monaco is the world number eight, Mardy Fish. The top local star outlasted the 12th seed, Nicolas Almagro, in a three set nail-biter to set-up this battle. Fish hammered 16 aces and broke the Spaniard’s serve three times to
manipulate a 6-3, 6-7(2), 6-3 score line in two hours and 35 minutes. The American also showed superb defensive skills as he blocked seven out of eight breakpoints he faced.
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