Lleyton Hewitt goes down against Radek Stepanek in the first round – Shanghai Rolex Masters 2012
Former world number one, Australia’s Lleyton Hewitt, could not clear the first hurdle, as he was beaten by the 41st ranked player from Czech Republic, Radek Stepanek, in the opening round of the Shanghai Rolex Masters
on Tuesday.
The Australian fought for one hour and 25 minutes but failed to make it to the next stage.
Hewitt and Stepanek made a steady start, holding their serves in the first 11 games to take the score to 6-5 in favour of the latter. The Czech star hit a blow to his Australian rival at that moment and claimed the first set 7-5.
Stepanek banged in two aces and committed one double fault, keeping his first serve percentage at 57. The right-hander pocketed 15 of the 17 first and nine of the 13 second delivery points in the opener.
The Czech participant came flying in the second set, snatching opening three games to race to a 3-0 lead. Hewitt opened his account by holding his serve in the fourth but then he threw away the subsequent three to go down 1-6.
Stepanek hit two aces but also made the same number of double faults in the second set. The former world number eight gave his best performance on the first deliveries and second returns, securing 10 of the 11 and seven of the
nine points on them respectively.
Hewitt, who is a two-time Grand Slam champion, has some good memories of Shanghai, as he won Tennis Masters Cup here in 2002.
Recalling that moment, Hewitt said, “It's a long time ago. It was a very special memory for me. I held on to the No. 1 ranking again at that tournament and obviously finished it off by winning the tournament against quality players.”
He added, “For me to come back to Shanghai is fantastic every time. This is only the second time I've played it as an [ATP World Tour] Masters [1000] event. It's one of my favorite tournaments of the year. The organisation is first
class. It's fantastic for the players."
Stepanek will take on the 11th seeded Frenchman, Richard Gasquet, in the second round.
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