Nikoloz Basilashvili, Bastian Knittel advance to the main draw – Morocco Tennis Tour 2012 CH
Nikoloz Basilashvili defeats Gerard Granollers-Pujol 7-6(3), 6-4
World number 589, Nikoloz Basilashvili of Russia, made his way to the main draw, as he upset top seed, Gerard Granollers-Pujol of Spain, in straight sets 7-6(3), 6-4 in the final qualifier at the Morocco Tennis Tour in Marrakech
on Sunday. The Russian needed one hour and 50 minutes to stun the world number 42.
Granollers-Pujol was first to grab lead, as he snatched a break in the third game of the first set but his Russian opponent immediately levelled the score at 2-2. The Spaniard went ahead again in the ninth game but once more he
threw away the lead, squaring off the score at 5-5. Both players held their serve to force a tie-breaker. Basilashvili dropped just three points and captured it 7-6(3).
The Russian got off to a positive start in the second set, claiming a 2-0 lead. Basilashvili made second breakthrough in the seventh game but Granollers-Pujol got one back in the eighth. The Russian served out the set at 5-4.
The 20-year-old prevented Granollers-Pujol from breaking on three of the six occasions and converted four of ten of his own chances in the match.
Basilashvili is pitted against second seed Victor Hanescu of Romania in the first round of the main draw.
Bastian Knittel beats Gianni Mina 6-3, 6-4
Ranked 325th in the world, Bastian Knittel of Germany, prevailed over world number 488, Gianni Mina of France, in straight sets 6-3, 6-4 to proceed to the main draw.
Knittel hit the first blow in the fifth game and consolidated on it to move up 4-2. Mina was unable to hold his serve again in the tenth game and gifted it to the German 3-6.
The second set went with the serve until the sixth game when Knittel played some aggressive rallies to make a breakthrough, attaining a 4-2 lead. Though, Mina won seventh and eighth to equalise the score at 4-4. The German did
not get de motivated, bagging next couple of games and securing it 6-4.
Knittel banged in four aces and put in 73 percent of the first deliveries. Mina’s second serve was like an amateur’s, as he committed six double faults and succeeded in capturing just 11 of the 33 points on them in the match.
The German defeated Mina after a battle of one hour and 31 minutes.
Knittel is slated to meet world number 256, Victor Crivoi of Romania, in the opening match of the main draw.
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