Pablo Andujar trounces Filippo Volandri to reach quarters at Serbia Open 2012: Tennis Special
Top seed, Pablo Andujar, hits back to outclass the Italian contender, Filippo Volandri, in a three set nail-biter at the Serbia Open 2012 on Thursday. He nudged up a 4-6, 7- 5, 6-2 victory against the Italian veteran to labour into the final eight at this
ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) World Tour 250 series event taking place in Belgrade, Serbia.
The Spanish star, Andujar, remained on track to bid for his second year-to-date title after stomping over Volandri in two hours and 20 minutes. He conquered Grand Prix Hassan II in Casablanca after dumping Albert Ramos in the title-round.
Andujar and Volandri were battling each other for the second time and after earning this success, the 26-year-old improved to a 2-0 lifetime in their FedEx ATP Head 2 Head series.
"It was a difficult match for me," Andujar commented in a post-match press conference. "The conditions weren’t easy; the court was very fast and it was hot, which made it a little bit more difficult. Always in your first match you have to try and stay as
focussed as you can; it’s never going to be easy. I was down 6-4, 5-4 and I tried to continue playing my game and finally I made it and I’m really happy for that."
The Livorno native made quick in-roads at the SRPC Milan Gale Muskatirovic. He suffered the first blow in the fifth game but quickly recovered in the very next game. Volandri then held his nerves and cashed in another break chance in the last game to pull
out the opener with a 6-4 score line.
Ranked 38th in the South African Airways ATP World Tour Rankings, Andujar was trailing 0-2 in the second set when he refocused and recovered in the third game. Regardless of losing his serve again in the sixth game and trailing at 2-4, the Spaniard
broke his rival’s serve twice to seal the equaliser with a 7-5 win.
The Spaniard went berserk in the final set and went on a four-game rampage before Volandri could hold on. He then swiped in his remaining serves with self-assurance and clinched the decider with a 6-2 score line.
Overall, Andujar committed several errors and eight double faults. He also clobbered a lower first serve share of 54 per cent in contrast with the Italian’s 71 per cent. However, the Spaniard impressively dusted away 10 out of 14 breakpoints he faced and
cashed in half of the 12 break opportunities to earn the fame.
After bagging this match, Volandri improved to a 13-10 win-loss record this circuit. He is looking forward to inch closer towards his this career title after getting the better of the Czech star, Lukas Rosol.
The high flying Spaniard needs to improve his game and spill fewer errors in order to ease past his rivals. He should also focus on producing a better first serve share and quickly ward off breakpoints he faced.
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