Lamine Ouahab shocks Robin Haase in the opening round – Grand Prix Hassan II 2012
Algerian qualifier, Lamine Ouahab, stunned the sixth seed, Robin Haase, in straight sets at the Grand Prix Hassan II 2012 on Tuesday. He jolted down a 6-3, 6-2 victory against the Dutch number one to cruise into the second round at this ATP (Association
of Tennis Professionals) World Tour 250 series event held in Casablanca, Morocco.
Ouahab displayed his best tennis to outclass the world number 51 in an hour-long marathon at this clay court event. The contestants previously met each other at the Rome Challenger and after earning this success, the Algerian not only maintained his winning
record against the Dutch but also secured a place in the round of 16.
The Algerian veteran thundered into the Complexe Al Amal and wiped out the opening three games successively after drawing the first blood in the second game. Regardless of losing his edge in the fifth game, Ouahab cashed in his second break chance in the
very next game and then held his remaining serves to pull out the opener with a 6-3 win.
Ranked 752nd in the South African Airways ATP World Tour Rankings, Ouahab maintained his intensity in the following set and carved out the desiderated break in the opening game to jump to a 2-0 lead. He then swiped in his following serves and
after breaking the Dutch’s serve again in the seventh game, Ouahab clinched the set with a 6-2 score line.
Overall, the 27-year-old ruled throughout the match. He clobbered a lower first serve share of 54 per cent as opposed to the Dutch’s 60 per cent but impressively availed 19 out of 27 points on it. Ouahab converted all four break chances to his advantage
and ended the deal with 53 points.
Next up for the Algerian is another qualifier, Sergio Gutierrez-Ferrol, who upset Portugal’s Rui Machado with a breadstick to set-up this meeting. The Spaniard lost his serve once but capitalised on five out of six break opportunities to manipulate a 6-2,
6-1 score line. He produced a poor first serve share of 45 per cent in contrast with Machado’s 70 per cent but acceptably clicked 19 out of 28 points on it.
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