Robin Haase overpowers Matthias Bachinger to reach the quarters – PBZ Zagreb Indoors 2012
Dutch number one, Robin Haase, stayed firm throughout his match against the German challenger, Matthias Bachinger, and ultimately registered a three setter success at the PBZ Zagreb Indoors 2012 on Wednesday. He registered a 7-6(4), 3-6, 6-3 score line over the world number 93 to advance into the quarter-finals at this hard court tournament.
Facing each other for the first time, Haase showed brilliant skills at Dom Sportova and eventually got the best of the German in their first meeting. As a result, the Dutch inched closer to his second ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) career title and $416,000 prize money.
Ranked 62nd in the South African Airways ATP World Rankings, Haase stormed into the Croatian hard courts and drew the first blood in the opening game. However, he lost his intensity afterwards and gifted away his serve in the very next game. Later, the Dutch held his remaining serves and took the set to a tie-breaker where he prevailed and finished the set with a 7-6(4) success.
The 24-year-old German redeployed his strategy in the following set and earned the desiderated break in the fourth game. Regardless of losing his following two serves, Bachinger cashed in another break chance in the last game and sealed the equaliser by winning six games to three.
The seventh seed sought his rhythm again in the final set. He blocked the only breakpoint he came across and capitalised on both break opportunities to bag the decider with a 6-3 win.
Adding up the Dutch’s performance in this one hour and 56 minutes-long marathon, Haase spilled more double faults and clobbered a lower first serve share of 61 percent as opposed to the German’s 67 percent. However, he impressively jolted down 42 out of 60 points on it and converted four out of seven break chances to his advantage.
Next in line for Haase is the winner of the match between the second seed, Alex Bogomolov Jr., and the Slovakian challenger, Lukas Lacko.
On another court, Michael Berrer stunned the local top, Ivan Ljubicic, in straight sets in their first face-to-face. World number 105, Berrer, took almost one and half hour to oust the Croat in order to advance in this tournament.
Ljubicic suffered the first blow in the fifth game and lost the opener with a 4-6 defeat. He carried his losing ways in the following set and gifted away his serve in the opening game. The top seed recovered in the eighth game but lost his serve again in the following game, subsequently suffering a 4-6 shock again.
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