Purav Raja ousts Masato Hatanaka in the qualifiers – Shimadzu Kyoto Challenger 2012
In an all-wild card clash, India’s Purav Raja tumbled over the local challenger, Masato Hatanaka, in straight sets at the Shimadzu Kyoto Challenger 2012 on Sunday. He clobbered a 7-5, 6-3 victory over the world number 1715 to secure a place in the main draw at this event which is a part of the ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) Challenger Tour 2012 series.
Raja showed excellent skills and abilities to outclass the Japanese in straight sets in an hour and 17-minute long battle. He broke Hatanaka’s serve five times to earn the limelight and enter the main draw at this synthetic court tournament.
The 26-year-old assertively entered the opening set and after exchanging a serve break early on, he tied the set at 5-5. However, Raja converted another break chance in the end and bagged the opener with a 7-5 score line. He manipulated a lower first serve share of 60 per cent as opposed to the Japanese’s 67 per cent but incredibly clicked 20 out of 28 points on it.
The Indian carried his momentum from the first set into the second set and held his opening serve with poise. He lost his serve once but cashed in all three break opportunities to pull out the set with a 6-3 win. Raja produced a slightly lower first serve share this time but again impressively marked 13 out of 17 points on it.
Next challenge for Raja is the highest ranked player of the tournament, Go Soeda, in the first round. The local star came off after becoming a runner-up at the Singapore ATP Challenger last week (lost to Yen-Hsun Lu in the title-round).
Qualifier’s fourth seed, Brydan Klein will accompany Raja in the main draw. He went the distance to defeat Japan’s Toshihide Matsui in three hours and four minutes.
Ranked 387th in the South African Airways ATP World Tour Rankings, Klein made quick in-roads as he bagged the opener with a 6-3 win by cashing in the only break chance to his advantage.
The second set saw a series of serve breaks but the local contestant was the one to steal the glory. Matsui outclassed the Aussie in the tie-breaker and sealed the equaliser with a 7-6(5) score.
Klein got back in action in the final set and after exchanging a serve break, he took the set to a tie-breaker. He dominated in it and subsequently clicked the set with a 7-6(4) score line.
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