Lewis Burton defeats Pierre-Ludovic Duclos in second round qualifiers – Istanbul Challenger 2012 CH
World number 426, Pierre-Ludovic Duclos, received a straight set surprise at the hands of the British, Lewis Burton, in the second qualifying round of the Istanbul Challenger 2012, held at the hard courts of
Turkey. The British contestant bomb shelled his higher-ranked rival, 6-3, 7-6(5), on the eve of Sunday.
The 26-year-old Canadian tennis professional displayed a relatively weaker game plan since the start of the opener and was unable to clamp away the opening game. As the game proceeded, he gradually picked impetus
and struggled hard to even out the score line twice, in the fourth game to 2-all and then 3-all in the sixth game respectively. Alarmed by his rival’s performance, Burton immediately broke his serve in the seventh and ninth games, clamping a 6-3 score.
The 20-year-old British professional had a higher initial serve accuracy of 76 percent, converting 12 of 16 points offered to him. On the other hand, Duclos secured 66 percent serve accuracy, capitalizing 12
of 19 point and clinched two of four serve breaks.
The next set was a tough encounter between the two players, as they fought hard to secure to winning spot. The scores squared five times and eventually ended the round in a tie-break. Both players were unable
to break each other’s serves the entire time and smoothly made their way to the end.
The tie-breaker round also went to the wire and the two contenders kept on ticking the score board on even terms. Towards the end, the British participant emerged as the surprising winner with a 7-6(5) score
line.
Burton bombarded five aces on his rival and double faulted once, his first serve accuracy improved to 74 percent with 21 of 28 points. The Canadian right-hander had a lower serve precision of 66 percent, capitalizing
19 of 25 points.
The right-hander British professional needs to adopt a more aggressive plan in order to continue his pace at the tournament and he needs to be more vigilant against his rivals. He will next encounter the Italian,
Lorenzo Giustino, in the final qualifier and step on to the hard courts for the main rounds of the Challenger tournament.
Tags: