Marcos Baghdatis enters the second round after dumping Jeremy Chardy – BNP Paribas Open 2012
World number 47, Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus, finally broke the three-match losing streak against the 64th ranked French contestant, Jeremy Chardy, in the opening round of the BNP Paribas Open on Friday. He was trailing
0-3 in the all-time head-to-head combat against Chardy but displayed his true tennis skills to dump him in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4, advancing into the second round of the ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) Master Series event in Indian Wells, California,
the United States.
26-year-old Baghdatis faced limited resistance from the Frenchman this time round and cruised through the two sets to register his 13th victory of the 2012 ATP season. He kept his basics right, playing controlled strokes
to avoid unforced errors and building up pressure on Chardy. The French fell in the trap and coughed a number of unforced errors to ease the way for the Cypriot to the second round of the star-studded event.
Baghdatis crafted eight break opportunities in the match but only two conversions proved sufficient for him to close out the contest in his favour. Chardy also had two chances to break his opponent’s serve but it was again the
brilliance of the Cypriot which denied him from cashing in the two vital points in the match. Baghdatis successfully defended the break points he faced from the French and kept his lead in tact to claim a comprehensive victory in the end.
The unseeded Cypriot delivered merely 55 per cent of his first serve on target but secured 25 out of 34 points on it. He dropped just nine of the 34 return points en route to victory. He stung one break point in each set and sustained
the momentum throughout the contest to come out as the winner.
Baghdatis is next slated to play against the Spanish tennis ace, Feliciano Lopez, in the second round of the BNP Paribas Open. Being the 15th seed in the tournament draw, Lopez was awarded a bye to have a direct access
to the second round and will begin his voyage in Indian Wells against Baghdatis on Sunday. The Cypriot leads Lopez 2-1 in their prior singles encounters.
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