Matthew Ebden bounces over Michael Berrer to reach round two – Farmers Classic 2012
Australian rising star, Matthew Ebden, made an epic comeback from a set down to outrun the former top 50, Michael Berrer, in three sets at the Farmers Classic 2012 on Tuesday. He juggled up a 4-6, 6-2, 7-6(4) score line against the German veteran to secure a spot in the round of 16 at this Emirates Airline US Open series event held in the campus of UCLA, California.
The 24-year-old Aussie made a drastic start but as the match progressed, he found his rhythm. He cashed in three out of 13 break chances to pull out the victory against the left-handed German at this outdoor hard court tournament. The contestants previously battled each other at the qualifying competition of the Australian Open three years and after recording this victory, Ebden not only avenged his loss but inched closer towards his maiden career title.
The world number 125, Berrer, thundered into the Los Angeles Tennis Center. He drew the first blood in the opening game and took the initial lead. The German brushed off all three breakpoints he came across and bagged his entire serves, eventually sealing the opener with a 6-4 win.
Ebden re-focused in the follow-up set and earned the critical break in the second game to leap to a 3-0 lead. He held his remaining serves with conviction and capitalised on another break chance in the last game, consequently pulling out the equaliser with a 6-2 score line. The Aussie blocked all five breakpoints he faced and converted two out of five break chances to his advantage.
Ranked 78th in the South African Airways ATP World Tour Rankings, Ebden lost his path again towards the final set and after enduring the initial loss, he fell at 0-2. However, the Aussie recovered in the fourth game and plucked his remaining serves to drag the set to a tie-breaker. He edged past his opponent in it and clicked the decider with a 7-6(4) score line.
All in all, the Aussie youngster spilled eight double faults and produced a slightly lower first serve share of 61 per cent as opposed to his opponent’s 62 per cent. However, he brilliantly marked 48 out of 62 points on it and finished the deal with 106 points.
Ebden will square off against fifth seeded Xavier Malisse who crushed the local qualifier, Nicolas Meister, with a breadstick to set up this meeting. The Belgian star lost his serve once but broke Meister’s serve five times, eventually registering a 6-4, 6-1 victory.
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