Leonardo Tavares bewilders Guido Andreozzi in final qualifying round – Guayaquil Challenger 2011
On Sunday November 20th, final qualifying round match of Guayaquil Challenger was played on Red clay-court in Guayquil, Ecuador. Top seed Argentine Guido Andreozzi was staggered by Leonardo Tavares of Portugal in an
a close three-setter that lasted for an hour and 50 minutes with a score of 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.
Traditional start to the match saw both players cinching their respective serve games upfront and pushed the score to 2-2. Both players were reluctant of taking any sort of chances by paying some classy delicate drop shots and
trying something extraordinary. They played within their limits of game play but one double-fault from the Portuguese left him trailing one break down in the first set.
Top seed completely capitalized on his advantage of one break and clinched the first set with ease. It looked like that match will end up quickly in straight sets but few people had idea of a major upset that followed the first
set.
Second set started off similarly and both players continued to bag their respective serve games but again in the fifth game of the set¸ it was the Portuguese contestant who took the glory by clinching his first breakpoint and capitalizing
on that by sealing the second set win. Score line was carbon copy of the first set but the major difference was that it changed hands.
Third set was eye-startling as both players were trying their level best to keep each other away from taking any sort of advantage and hence as soon as top seed took lead by breaking in the fifth game, his competitor broke back
in the sixth to level the score.
The score was tied at 4-4 and top seed was serving at that moment. To the surprise of the crowd, it was Tavares who broke his opponent’s serve and took lead for the first time in the final set. Everyone could feel an upset coming
because Andreozzi was struggling with his stamina and was not reaching for slightly difficult shots.
Portuguese took full advantage of exhausted stamina of his rival and played shots from one corner to another that frustrated the top seed who ended up playing a wrong return. Final game was easily bagged by the Portuguese who flabbergasted
everyone with his outstanding ability to stay calm at a stage when he was trailing one set down.
Leonardo Tavares moves into the main round of the tournament and is drawn against Andres Molteni.
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