Nikola Milojevic beats Gabriel Friedrich in first round – Boys Singles: Wimbledon Championships 2012
Serbia’s Nikola Milojevic fought back after losing the first set to defeat Gabriel Friedrich of Brazil 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 in the opening round of the Boys’ singles event at the Wimbledon Championships on Monday.
Milojevic needed two hours and six minutes to beat his Brazilian rival in a close contest.
The Serbian and Friedrich did not drop their serve in the first eight games, equalising the score at 4-4. Milojevic struck in the ninth but could not serve it out, levelling the proceedings at 5-5. Friedrich held the 11th
game to move ahead 6-5 and broke the Serbian in the following one to seal it 7-5.
The Brazilian pounded one ace and 61 percent of the first serves, claiming 15 of the 19 points on them in the first set. He played very well at the net, winning three of the four points. Friedrich failed to save the only break
point he faced but converted two of the three he received.
After losing the first set with the closest of margins, Milojevic grabbed a breakthrough in the very first game of the second one and consolidated on it to take a 2-0 lead. Friedrich levelled the score at 3-3 by striking back in
the sixth but lost his serve again in the subsequent one to trail 3-4. The Brazilian could not stage a comeback, going down 4-6.
Milojevic had mixed statistics, as he hit only one ace and committed three double faults. He maintained a first serve percentage of 66 and converted 13 of the 19 of them into points. The Serbian gave a stunning display of serve
and volley game, grabbing 13 of the 14 points at the net. Milojevic banged in 13 winners and also committed the same number of unforced errors in the second set.
Just like the previous one, the Serbian broke Friedrich in the opening game of the decider and won his following serve to attain a 2-0 advantage. The Brazilian hit back in the sixth to square it off at 3-3. Milojevic made the final
blow in the ninth and served it out at 5-4.
The Serbian is slated to meet Matteo Donati of Italy in the second round.
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