Philipp Kohlschreiber trounces Michael Llodra to enter round two – US Open 2012
German number one, Philipp Kohlschreiber, got the better of the French star, Michael Llodra, in a four-set thriller at the Flushing Meadows 2012 on Wednesday. He juggled up a 7-6(2), 4-6, 7-6(4), 6-1 success against the left-hander from France to book a
spot in the round of 64 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Corona Park, United States.
Seeded 19th in this event, Kohlschreiber proved his class to oust the French veteran in two hours and 44 minutes. As a result, he not only avenged his loss at the qualifying competition of Miami Masters six years ago but also progressed into the
second round at this final of the four Grand Slam events.
Both stars played brilliant tennis in the opening set at this major hard court event. They kept their respective serves with self-assurance. However, Kohlschreiber cruised to a 5-1 lead in the tie-breaker and eventually clicked the opener with a 7-6(2) win.
The 32-year-old on the other side of net re-focused his strategy. He got the critical break in the opening game to take the initial lead. Llodra lost his serve in the very next game but cashed in another break chance in the seven game, eventually sealing
the deal by winning six games to four.
Ranked 20th in the South African Airways ATP World Tour Rankings, Kohlschreiber re-gained his strength in the third set. He suffered the first blow in the third game and fell at 1-3. The German gifted away his serve in 10th game but
prevailed in the tie-breaker to pocket the set with a 7-6(4) success.
Kohlschreiber went out of control in the fourth set. After Llodra held his serve in the opening game, the German blasted massive forehands to stroke out six games in a row. He dusted away the only breakpoint he faced and cashed in three out of four break
opportunities to clinch the set with a breadstick.
Next up for the higher flying German is another French challenger, Benoit Paire, who hit back to outclass Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov in a four-set thriller to set up this epic encounter.
Tags: