Lukasz Kubot hits back to outshine Ivan Dodig in round one – Credit Agricole Suisse Open 2012
Polish star, Lukasz Kubot, made an epic comeback from a set down to outsmart Croatia’s Ivan Dodig in a three-set nail-biter at the Credit Agricole Suisse Open 2012 on Tuesday. He clobbered a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory against the world number 100 to secure a place in the round of 16 at this outdoor clay court tournament held in Gstaad, Switzerland.
The 30-year-old made a nervy entry at this ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) World Tour 250 series event and lost the opening set after displaying dismal performance. However, he sought his momentum after that and carved out the victory in two hours and 11 minutes.
Dodig lost his serve once but cashed in both break chances to pluck the opener with a 6-3 score line.
The Pole required a single break of serve to pull out the follow-up set with a 6-3 success. He brushed off all three breakpoints he faced to swipe his entire serves and converted one out of three break chances to register this equaliser.
Ranked 80th in the South African Airways ATP World Tour Rankings, Kubot maintained consistency in his game in the final set and ultimately sealed the deal with a 6-4 win. He failed to block both breakpoints he came across but capitalised on three out of four break chances to come out as the winner.
The fifth seeded Spaniard, Feliciano Lopez, earned the limelight on Wednesday. He struck 12 aces and clobbered 98 points to outsmart Hajek in their first meeting on the Swiss dirt.
Lopez drew the first blood but stepped off steam after that, eventually suffering a 6-7(3) loss. However, the world number 30 made a stunning reply in the following set. He unleashed flurry of massive forehands and reeled off the last five games to pocket a breadstick. The Spanaird kept momentum rolling into the final set and bagged his entire serves with conviction. Lopez got the breakthrough in the fifth game and sealed the decider by winning six games to four.
Next challenge for Lopez is the Brazilian star, Thomaz Bellucci, who stunned the fourth seeded Russian, Mikhail Youzhny, in a three-set thriller to set up this battle.
Tags: