Martin Klizan overcomes Dominic Thiem in the first round – Bet-at-home Cup 2012
Slovakia’s fifth seeded contestant, Martin Klizan, scored a tough victory against the world number 442, Dominic Thiem of Austria, in the opener at the Bet-at-home Cup on Monday.
Klizan won the first set easily, lost the second one and then fought closely in the decider to capture the match 6-1, 3-6, 7-5 in two hours and nine minutes. This is an ATP World Tour 250 event, being held in the Austrian city
of Kitzbuhel.
The Slovakian got off to a flying start, grabbing opening three games to go up 3-0. Thiem saved a couple of break points to hold his serve in the fourth but that was all for him, as Klizan secured three more back to back games
after that to seal it 6-1.
The left-hander banged in two aces and did not make any double fault, hitting 75 percent of the first serves in the opening set. Klizan’s conversion rate was stunning, as he did not lose even a single point on his deliveries throughout
the set, clinching the entire 12 first and four second serve points.
In the second set, Thiem responded in exactly the same manner, as he won first three games to take a 3-0 lead. The Austrian did not lose his serve till the end, capitalising on his early advantage to capture it 6-3.
Thiem was lucky to win despite committing four double faults compared to two by the Slovakian in the second set. The Austrian had a below par first serve percentage of 48, pocketing 14 of the 16 points on them. The 18-year-old
evaded the two break threats he came across and availed one of the two opportunities he created.
In opposition to the first two sets, Thiem and Klizan made a stable start in the decider, holding their serve in the first seven games to take the score to 4-3 in favour of the latter. The Slovakian struck in the eighth to move
ahead 5-3 but he failed to serve out the set in the following one, levelling the score at 5-5. Klizan hit the final blow to Thiem in the 12th game, winning it 7-5.
The Slovakian contender hit one ace and committed the same number of double fault. The 23-year-old inflicted most damage on Thiem with the help of his first serves and second returns, bagging 17 of the 22 and 10 of the 17 points
on them respectively.
Klizan will either face his countryman, Pavol Cervenak, or Spain’s Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo in the round of 16.
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