Rajeev Ram outsmarts Ken Skupsky in the second qualifier round – Hall of Fame Championships 2011
American hopes kept high in the qualifying draws of the Campbell’s Hall of Fame Tennis Championships, as the qualifying second seed Rajeev Ram took down the Briton, Ken Skupski in the second round on Sunday.
The exciting contest lasted for one hour and nine minutes before Ram wrapped up victory in the third set, settling the final scores at 2-6, 6-1, 6-1, to reach the final round of qualifying draws of the ATP (Association of Tennis
Professionals) World Tour 250 event.
The contest was played at the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island, United States, with the second seed Ram winning convincingly in front of his home crowd. The American dropped the opening set early to fall
on his back foot but made a tremendous recovery in the next two sets to totally blow away Skupski.
27-year-old Ram made his 57 per cent accurate serve his primary weapon, firing eight thudding aces in the match and securing 26 out of 35 first serve points to come out as the winner in the end. He had 12 chances to break the British
serve in the matchup and he successfully converted five opportunities to turn the tables on Skupski, who was in a commanding position after bagging the opening set.
The matchup took off with some aggressive tennis from Skupski, who stung two quick serve breaks to his opponent’s serve, not allowing him to settle in the contest. Skupski took the opening set in authoritative manner at 6-2 and
it appeared as if the Briton is well on his way to a comprehensive victory. The Briton was led down by his poor serve, which reached merely 49 per cent accuracy and his 12 expensive double faults wore him out in the later parts of the contest.
Tide turned in the second set when Ram came out firing at Skupski, launching a series of attacking moves to transfer pressure upon the Briton. The American made forays to the net on regular occasions and stung two successive serve
breaks to bounce back in the contest by clinching the second set at 6-1.
Skupski appeared totally out of steam in the final set as well, conceding unforced errors generously and assisting Ram to victory. The American struck two more serve breaks before he finally sealed victory for him at 6-1 to move
one step closer to the main draws of the Campbell’s Hall of Fame Tennis Championships.
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