Radek Stepanek beats Bernard Tomic to reach round two – Mutua Madrid Open 2012
World number 26, Radek Stepanek, defeated the 31st ranked Aussie teen, Bernard Tomic, to reach the second round of the Mutua Madrid Open on Tuesday. He won the first set with ease and escaped scare in the second to register
straight sets 6-2, 7-5 triumph.
The 33-year-old Czech started the match in style; won the first breakpoint in the opening game after squandering three opportunities on the trot. It was a dismal start for the Aussie who needed a bit of lift at the start to get
him going. Tomic never found his footing and lost another breakpoint in the fifth game that gifted a resounding lead of 4-1 to his competitor.
Stepanek further stamped his authority by registering a thunderous serve hold featuring four stunning winners down the line that completely sunk the confidence of the youngster. He tamed away to his second serve hold before the
Czech rounded off the opening set proceedings with an easy serve hold.
Tomic was low on confidence and the start to the second set was also poor for him. He dropped the breakpoint in the fourth game and went down to a trail of 1-4. However, he recovered well to win the following three games including
a breakthrough and levelled the scores at 4-4.
It seemed like he was getting back in form and finding the sweet spot of his racquet. However, just a couple of games ended his cameo and he gifted another breakpoint to his competitor at the most critical stage of the match.
The Aussie starlet had to break serve in the following game to keep the match alive. However, he could only win a single point before his counterpart steamed away to another serve hold that ended the match as well.
It took an hour and 25 minutes for the Czech starlet to write-off the Aussie and advance into the next round of the contest where he squares off against the fifth seed Spanish star, David Ferrer, who is in supreme touch at the
moment. It will be an enthralling contest if Stepanek gets going from the start.
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