Robin Haase beats Martin Klizan in round two - PBZ Zagreb Indoors 2013
Robin Haase of Netherlands registered an emphatic upset against the 33rd ranked Slovak, Martin Klizan, in the second round of the PBZ Zagreb Indoors hosted in Zagreb on Thursday. He dispatched the fifth seed competitor
in an epic three-setter with the final score line of 6-2, 4-6, 6-4.
Ironically, it was the second straight win for the inferior ranked Dutch professional who defeated the 23-year-old Slovak in straight sets during the Bet-at-home Cup in July last year. So, the head-to-head series favours the 58th
ranked Dutch at the moment by the lead of two matches with Klizan yet to register his maiden victory against him.
The opening set witnessed a commanding performance from Haase. He pushed the ball to the corners of the courts at his will and always found the lines which demonstrated that the luck was in his favour as well. He punched the rival
on the back foot with a breakthrough in the third game and compiled a lead of 4-2 in the meantime.
Klizan was under the woods especially when he failed to hold serve in the seventh game and couldn’t win a single point on his rival’s serve that also closed the opening set proceedings against his name. The trailing Slovak started
the second set with a commanding fashion but the reply from the Dutch was equally impressive who lost just one point before holding the first serve.
Both players continued to capitalise on their serves and the see-saw battle stayed intact until the 10th game was served by Haase. Astonishingly, the fifth seed Slovak captured a breakthrough against the run of play
and left no chance for his opponent to fight back and save the set. The match was forced to the final set and the crowd moved towards the edge of their seats.
Haase began the final set with a quick fire whilst his opponent was slow. The Slovak was struggling to hold on to his serve and the most foreseeable breakthrough arrived in the fifth game of the final set when the 58th
ranked Dutch took the lead. No comeback was witnessed that helped the inferior ranked Haase to move ahead in the tournament.
Tags: