Qureshi/Rojer move past Goodall/Ward into the second round – Wimbledon Championships 2012
Pakistani-Dutch combination of Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi and Jean-Julien Rojer made a decent start to their campaign at the All England Club, as they beat local players, Joshua Goodall and James Ward in straight sets 7-6(3), 6-2, 6-4
in the first round of the Wimbledon Championships in London.
Qureshi and Rojer needed just an hour and 46 minutes to undo their opponents in a one sided match.
In the opener, both teams held their serve throughout to level the score at 6-6, forcing a tie-breaker. Qureshi and Rojer captured a 4-2 lead and capitalised on it to win 7-6(3).
The Pakistani-Dutch duo fired four aces and 71 percent of the first serves, claiming 21 of the 24 first and eight of the 10 second serve points in the first set. Such was the dominance on serve by both teams that neither of them
managed to create a break opportunity.
Unlike the opener, the second set was pretty one sided from its beginning, as Qureshi and Rojer struck in the very first game and held their following serve to attain a 2-0 lead. The Pakistani-Dutch tandem snatched a break again
in the seventh and served it out at 5-2.
Qureshi and Rojer improved their performance on serve, as they bombarded six aces and 76 percent of the first deliveries on their opponents. The right-handers were near flawless on their ground strokes, hitting 10 winners and committing
only one unforced error. Qureshi and Rojer put away all the six break threats they came across and utilised two of the four opportunities they created in the second set.
In a similar fashion to the previous set, the Pakistani-Dutch pair claimed breakthrough in the very first game of the decider and consolidated on it to take a 2-0 lead. They maintained their advantage till the end of the proceedings,
sealing it 6-4.
Qureshi was expecting to get a wild card for the doubles event at the Olympics but he was not given one by the ITF.
However, according to ITF’s spokesman, there is a still a chance of him getting an entry into the Olympics. He said, “Aisam Qureshi and Aqeel Khan were considered for an ITF Place by the ITF Olympic Committee, but unfortunately
did not receive one on this occasion. The criteria for ITF Places include combined rankings, regional representation, and in the case of doubles, a maximum quota for the total number of players on site. Aisam and Aqeel are still on an alternate list in case
of any withdrawals.”
In the second round of the Wimbledon Championships, Qureshi and Rojer will play American-South African team of Bobby Reynolds and Izak Van Der Merwe.
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