Martin Alund bounces over Ivan Navarro in the semi-finals – San Juan Challenger 2012 CH
Eighth seeded Argentinean native, Martin Alund, tumbled over the Spanish veteran, Ivan Navarro, in the semi-finals of the San Juan Challenger 2012 on Saturday. He penned down his straight sets triumph 6-3, 6-2 against his rival
and confidently marched in the final of the ATP Challenger Tour 250 Tournament held at the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club, Argentina.
Displaying his greater experience, 30-year-old Navarro began the opener aggressively but was unable to sustain his lead for long. The local challenger broke his rival’s serve in the fifth game and engraved a 3-2 lead. Navarro struggled
hard to compete but all his efforts were fruitless and he was unable to handle his rival’s pressure. On the other hand, Alund kept flying with his massive forehand strokes and stole the initial set with a 6-3 lead.
World number 230, Navarro, fired two aces and had a lower initial serve accuracy of 46 percent, pocketing away eight of 11 first and six of 13 second serve points. The higher ranked Argentine had an average initial serve of 54
percent, securing 11 of 13 first and seven of 11 second delivery points. He secured his lead by grabbing all the two serve breaks, where his competitor was unable to secure even one.
The 26-year-old local severed the second set and initially he faced a little resistance, levelling down the score line to 2-all in the fourth game. He stamped his lead by dissolving his rival’s serve twice towards the end and that
gave him the upper hand in the contest. He nudged forward to clinch the opportunity, attaining the win at his home ground.
The right-hander Argentine had slightly better initial serve precision of 75 percent, bagging away 14 of 15 first but just two of five second delivery points. He secured the lead by snatching two of three serve breaks. In comparison
to that, the 30-year-old Spanish senior had 61 percent first serve precision with six of 11 first and four of seven second serve points.
For the final round, the local contender will face the Dutch player, Thiemo de Bakker.
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