Robin Haase's highlight of the season: retaining Kitzbuhel title – Tennis Special
Dutch number one, Robin Haase, displayed top notch performance to defend his title at the Bet-at-home Cup in Kitzbuhel and reach his career best rank at number 33 in the South African Airways ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals)
World Tour Rankings after it.
Haase made a drastic start this season and after bowing out to the former world number one Andy Roddick in the opening round of Australian Open, he fell at 62nd rank. He managed to secure quarter-final berths at the
PBZ Zagreb Indoors, Monte Carlo Rolex Masters and the Estoril Open. However, the Dutch exited from opening or early rounds from the remaining tournaments he played.
The Hague native, Haase, was standing on a five match losing streak before he snapped out at the Bet-at-home Open in Hamburg. However, he crashed out to seventh seeded Florian Mayer in the second round and exited the tournament
with disappointment.
However, the Dutch re-focused his strategy before entering the Bet-at-home Cup, which is held on the clay courts in Kitzbuhel, late July. He recreated his last year magic and re-lived his dream.
Entering the tournament as world number 42, Haase faced some difficulty triumphing over the local qualifier, Philipp Oswald, in his opening match in the second round. However, he remaining focused and registered a three setter
victory in two hours and 11 minutes.
In the quarter-finals, the Dutch sought his momentum and eased past America’s Wayne Odesnik in straight sets. He smashed nine aces and broke his rival’s serve four times to formulate a 6-2, 6-4 score line in 78 minutes.
Haase maintained his intensity in the final four and stomped over the fifth seed, Martin Klizan, in straight sets in one hour and 22 minutes. He spilled more double faults against the Slovak and lost his serve twice. However, the
Dutch cashed in five out of eight break chances to record a 6-3, 6-3 success.
In the final round, Haase made a sloppy start against top seeded Philipp Kohlschreiber and lost the opening set. However, he capitalised on four out of 11 break chances to clobber a 6-7(2), 6-3, 6-2 score line in two hours and
eight minutes.
The delighted Dutch stated after clinching his second career title at this ATP World Tour 250 series event held in Austria:
“I didn't feel too much pressure even if I was the defending champion. I was a bit nervous in the first match against [Philipp] Oswald. From the quarter-finals on, I started a bit nervously before calming down and winning. I'm
happy I won here again. I don't think many players have won here twice. It doesn't happen too often nowadays. I'm very proud of that."
He improved to a 9-0 lifetime at this tournament and climbed nine spots at the ATP rankings. The Dutch also pocketed €64,700 in prize money and gained confidence boost for the Olympics held in the following week. He is representing
his nation at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club.
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