Michael Russell crushes Bobby Reynolds to capture title – Knoxville Challenger 2012 CH
In an all-American clash, Michael Russell trashed his sixth seeded compatriot, Bobby Reynolds, in straight sets at the Knoxville Challenger 2012 on Sunday. He nudged up a 6-3, 6-2 victory against the world number 157 to capture the title at this ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) Challenger Tour event taking place in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States.
Russell displayed awe-inspiring skills throughout the tournament and maintained consistency in his game in the final round. He dusted away four out of five breakpoints he came across and marked four out of five break chances to overpower his fellow citizen in their eighth meeting in challenger event. After outshining his rival in one hour and 20 minutes, the higher ranked American comfortably bagged the title and gained confidence boost.
Seeded third in this tournament, Russell assertively entered this hard court tournament taking place from 6th to 11th November. He displayed brilliant defensive skills to keep his entire serves. The higher seeded American got the breakthrough in the eighth game and clicked the opener with a 6-3 win. He dusted away all four breakpoints he faced and cashed the lone break chance to inch towards glory.
Ranked 103rd in the South African Airways ATP World Tour Rankings, Russell went berserk towards the following set. He blasted powerful forehands to reel off the opening five games in a row. Despite wasting his chance of serving out the set, the American veteran kept his serve one more and nudged up a 6-2 score line. He failed to block the only breakpoint he faced and converted three out of four break chances to his advantage.
The 34-year-old smashed six aces and clobbered a better first serve share of 64 per cent as compared to his rival’s 54 per cent. He amazingly clicked 26 out of 38 points on it and ended the match with 61 points.
Russell lost a single set en route to the final showdown at the Goodfriend Indoor Tennis Center. In his semi-final clash against the Australian contender Samuel Groth, the American seed ruled in two sets’ tie-breaker and ultimately registered a 7-6(3), 7-6(1) score line.
Tags: