Richard Berankis outmuscles Kevin Kim in the qualifiers – SAP Open 2012
Qualifying second seed, Richard Berankis, rallied past the local contestant, Kevin Kim, in three sets nail-biter at the SAP Open 2012 on Sunday. He manifested a 6-2, 6-7(5), 6-4 success against the 33-year-old to book a spot in the final round of the qualifying
competition in San Jose, United States.
The Lithuanian rising star required almost two hours to outlast Kim in their second duel with each other. He lost the second set in the tie-breaker but overcame the American by breaking his serve’s five times. Both competitors previously met each other in
the qualifying competition at the US Open two years ago and after earning this success, Berankis maintained his winning record against the veteran.
The world number 158 thundered into the HP Pavilion and drew the first blood in the opening game of the match. He then maintained consistency in his game and after converting another break opportunity in the seventh game, the Lithuanian bagged the opener
with a 6-2 score line.
Kim raised the level of his game in the following set and held his opening serve with conviction. The American then fended off both breakpoints he encountered and swiped in entire serves. However, he failed to find any break opportunity and took the set
to a tiebreaker. Kim displayed his skills in it and eventually sealed the equaliser with a 7-6(5) win.
The 21-year-old sought his momentum again when the match was stuck. He earned the coveted break in the fourth game and took a 3-1 lead. Regardless of losing his serve in the follow-up game and exchanging a serve break, he remained focused in the decider.
Berankis then got the breakthrough in the final game and conquered the set with a 6-4 score line.
Up next for the Lithuanian is the eighth seed, Tim Smyczek, who crushed Australian contestant, Carsten Ball, with a breadstick to set-up this battle. The American seed saved all four breakpoints he faced and converted half of the ten break opportunities
to his advantage, ultimately sealing the deal with a 6-1, 6-2 victory.
Fourth seed Denis Kudla will accompany Berankis in the final round of the qualifiers. He overpowered Phillip Simmonds in an all-American duel to secure this spot.
Kudla broke his fellow citizen’s serve for the second time in the last game to pocket the opener with a 7-5 win. He then improved his game in the last set and after cashing in both break opportunities, the 19-year-old clinched the set with a 6-3 score line.
Tags: