Nicolas Meister upsets Rik De Voest in qualifiers – Farmers Classic 2012
Local challenger, Nicolas Meister, shocked the eighth seed, Rik De Voest from South Africa, in a three-set nail-biter at the Farmers Classic 2012 on Sunday. He hit back to manipulate a 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 victory against the 32-year-old to book a spot in the final
round of the qualifying competition taking place on the hard courts of Los Angeles, California.
The American youngster remained focused throughout the match and apart from losing the opening set, he carved out the victory in their first battle against each other. After earning the limelight in two hours and 18 minutes, Meister comfortably progressed
into the final qualifying round at this ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) World Tour 250 series event.
The world number 177 high-spiritedly entered the Los Angeles Tennis Center after warding off the lone breakpoint he came across, De Voest plucked his entire serves. He cashed in the lone break chance in the fourth game and jumped to a 4-1 lead. The South
African kept his remaining serves and clicked the opener with a 6-3 win.
Meister carried his poor ways in the follow-up set and endured the initial loss in the third game to trail at 1-3. However, he remained focused and snatched his break back in the eighth game. The American held remaining serves and got the breakthrough in
the last game, eventually sealing the equaliser by winning seven games to five.
Ranked 625th in the South African Airways ATP World Tour Rankings, Meister maintained his intensity in the final set and capitalised on one out of four break chances in the fourth game to leap to a 4-1 lead. He swiped his entire serves without
facing any breakpoint and clinched the decider with a 6-3 score line.
All in all, the 23-year-old manifested a lower first serve share of 70 per cent as opposed to his rival’s 75 per cent and tremendously marked 43 out of 60 points on it. He also smacked three aces and finished the match with 95 points.
Next up for the American is Taiwan’s Jimmy Wang who stunned third seeded Marco Chiudinelli in three sets to set up this meeting.
Elsewhere, the seventh seeded Tim Smyczek also endured a similar fate. He was edged out by his compatriot, Bradley Klahn, in gruelling three sets. Smyczek capitalised on two out of nine break opportunities but was broken four times, subsequently suffering
a 0-6, 6-2, 3-6 loss in one hour and 48 minutes.
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