Marcos Baghdatis downs Carlos Berlocq in the first round – Rogers Cup 2012
World number 45, Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus, pulled off an easy victory over the 37th ranked Argentinean player, Carlos Berlocq, in the opening round of the Rogers Cup in Toronto on Monday.
Baghdatis took an hour and 37 minutes to oust the Argentinean in straight sets 6-4, 6-3.
In the first set, Baghdatis and Berlocq did not lose their serve in the opening four games to even out the score at 2-2. The Argentinean contestant grabbed initial breakthrough, striking in the fifth and holding his next serve to attain a 4-2 lead. However, Baghdatis completely turned around the situation afterwards, as he snatched four games in a row to win 6-4.
The Cypriot star could not do well on his serves, as he managed to hit only one ace and committed two double faults, maintaining a first serve percentage of just 62. The 27-year-old had a low conversion rate, winning just 13 of the 21 first and nine of the 13 second delivery points. On the other hand, Berlocq’s performance was even below, as he hit just 36 percent of the first serves and won eight of the 13 points on them.
Baghdatis and Berlocq won their serve in the first three games of the second set to take the score to 2-1 in the former’s favour. The Cypriot contender hit a blow to his Argentinean opponent in the fourth one and consolidated on it to move ahead 4-1. Baghdatis did not let away his lead till the end, capturing it 6-3.
The 6ft tall banged in a couple of aces this time but also committed the same number of double faults. The right-hander’s first serve percentage was again poor at 45, however, he converted 10 of the 13 of them into points on this occasion. The Limassol, Cyprus resident also gave a reasonable performance on the second deliveries and returns, as he grabbed 10 of the 16 and eight of the 15 points on them respectively. Baghdatis utilised one the four break opportunities he created in the second set.
The Cypriot player will take on the 10th seed, Marin Cilic of Croatia, in the second round.
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