Robert Farah stuns Pablo Andujar to reach round three – Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell 2012
Colombian qualifier, Robert Farah, shocked the 16th seeded local star, Pablo Andujar, in a three-set thriller at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell 2012 on Wednesday. He summed up a 7-6(8), 4-6, 7-5 victory against the
world number 38 to secure a place in the round of 16 at this ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) World Tour 500 series event taking place in Barcelona, Spain.
The Canadian-born Farah played his best tennis to outmuscle Andujar in their first meeting. As a result, the underdog not only remained on track to bid for his maiden ATP career title but also took lead in the FedEx ATP Head 2
Head series by 1-0 against Andujar.
Both contestants displayed brilliant skills in the opening set. Andujar sought three break chances but squandered them. The Colombian on the other end failed to seek any break opportunity, subsequently dragging the set to a tie-breaker.
He edged past the seed in it before sealing the opener with a 7-6(8) success.
The frustrated seed bounced back in the following set and after drawing the first blood in the sixth game, he leaped to a 5-2 lead. Regardless of losing her edge in the ninth game, Andujar cashed in another break chance in the
last game and registered the equaliser by winning six games to four.
The final set saw both stars playing their best tennis again. The qualifier was broken down three times but he remained focused, eventually carving out the victory with a 7-5 win. Farah brushed off four one out of seven breakpoints
he came across and converted four out of five break opportunities to his advantage.
Next challenge for Farah is the top seed, Rafael Nadal, who is unbeaten at this tournament for the last 30 matches. The Spanish number one crushed his compatriot, Guillermo Garcia-Lopez with a breadstick in one hour and 21 minutes
in their fifth outing.
The third seeded local star, David Ferrer, will also accompany Farah into the third round. He devastated the Serbian challenger, Filip Krajinovic, with a bagel in just under an hour. The Spanish veteran also cashed in all five
break chances to earn the glory.
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