Michael Russell trounces Igor Sijsling; sets-up Mahut clash – Hall of Fame Tennis Championships 2013
Local star, Michael Russell, stunned the third seed, Igor Sijsling, in a three-set thriller at the Hall of Fame Tennis Championships 2013 on Thursday. He recorded a 7-6(3), 6-7(6), 7-6(5) victory against the Dutchman to power into
the final four at this ATP World Tour 250 series event taking place in Newport, Rhode Islands.
The American veteran outclassed Sijsling in three tie-breakers to secure a place in the semi-finals. Both contestants were battling each other for the first time and after pocketing this match, Russell took lead in the FedEx ATP
Head 2 Head series by 1-0 against the Dutch.
The American stated in a courtside interview after prevailing in the two hours and 40 minutes marathon, "It's not a fitness issue. I just kept fighting and it helped to have the crowd and my wife there encouraging me to keep going.
I knew Igor wouldn't hand it to me. I'm always fighting. I'm never going to give up. I've been saving the best tennis of my career for my twilight years. I hope I can keep getting better."
In the opening set both challengers displayed brilliant tennis. They played carefully and slid their respective serves. The set went to a tie-breaker where Russell prevailed, subsequently bagging the opener with a 7-6(3) win.
Sijsling failed to seek his rhythm in the start of the following set. He suffered the first blow in the second game and fell at 1-3. Despite recovering the 10th game, the Dutch lost his serve in the very next game and
trailed at 5-6. However, Sijsling stayed focused and not only snatched his break back but outclassed the veteran in the tie-breaker. As a result, he grabbed the equaliser with a 7-6(6) victory.
Ranked 95th in the Emirates Airways ATP World Tour Rankings, Russell gifted away his opening serve and fell at 0-2 in the deciding set. He managed to recover in the sixth game but trailed at 0-3 in the tie-breaker. However,
the veteran brought his experience into handy and eventually clinched the decider with a 7-6(5) score line.
Before entering this tournament, Russell was standing on a bad patch. He failed to win any of his grass court matches and his last tour-level victory came in the second round at Memphis ATP.
Next challenge for Russell is the French wild card entrant, Nicolas Mahut, who is in great run of form. The 2007 finalist eased past Poland’s Michal Przysiezny with a 7-6(5), 6-4 victory.
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