Mathieu Rodrigues battles past Pierre-Hugues Herbert into last eight – Orleans Challenger 2011
Two French players, Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Mathieu Rodrigues, squared-off in the second round of the Orleans Challenger Tournament, hosted in France, on Thursday October 20th. It was a perfect revenge for the elder
French, Rodrigues, who levelled the head-to-head tally. He won the match after a hard fought battle of two hours and seven minutes with a cumulative score of 6-3, 3-6, 6-4. Crowd were cheering every exciting rally and every point won as both were home players.
The first set was all about the power play from the youngster, Herbert, and calmness with which Rodrigues held on to his nerves and sealed the first set victory. Six aces were scored by the 20-year-old, Herbert, but he ruined the
advantage with seven double faults.
26-year-old, Rodrigues, was impressive with 73% first serve success rate and followed it up with a respectful 57% second serve rate. He saved all the three breakpoints and won the record 14 opportunities to break; out of which
he capitalized on three and clinched the first set with ease.
The comeback from the youngster was inspiring and he scored another four aces in the second set but this time reduced his double faults to just 2 which helped him put pressure on his opponent and push the match into the third set;
won three breakpoints and sealed the set win with 28 total points compared to just 19 of his opponent.
It was a tamed effort from an experienced contender who was really impressive in the first set. He ran out of ideas during the most crucial rallies and was totally outplayed in every aspect. The stunning comeback brought life to
the spectators and they were eagerly waiting for a cracking third set. The match was beautifully poised at that stage and both players had showed their class and now required a calm and composed play to place a berth in the semi quarter-finals.
Herbert struck three aces in the third set as well but was not impressive with his temperament. The guile of his opponent was much more fascinating to watch and made a greater impact at the pitch. Rodrigues registered an inspiring
81% first serve success rate and coupled it with an ace and a break point to knock-out his opponent after a good fight in the third set.
An experienced player won 31 points and with a difference of just 6 points, he stole his way to the quarter-finals. Herbert tried his best and won four games in the last set but fell for guile of his opponent at the crucial stages
of the match.
Mathieu Rodrigues is now all set to face-off against the second seeded Michael Llodra in the quarter-final of the tournament.
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