Ruben Bemelmans upsets Philipp Petzschner in second round – Eckental Challenger 2011
The 2011 Eckental Challenger featured matches from the second round of its men’s singles competition on November 3, 2011. Philipp Petzschner (Germany) faced Ruben Bemelmans (Belgium).
For the German, this match was a hope to enter the next round of the competition, but his plan was cut short by the Belgian who won the match 1-6, 6-3, 6-4. The 21-year old German was impressive in the first set. He scored points
with four aces while his opponent, the 23-year old Belgian, could not score any.
Petzschner conceded three double faults in the first set but he was able to save all of his four breakpoints, giving him the opportunity to cover up his double faults.
Bemelmans, ranked at the 153rd place in the world, conceded only a single double fault but he had a 53% first serve winning ratio, which was ten percent less than the ratio maintained by the German.
The German was also effective in terms of winning his points on first serves. He was giving all in his effort to win his service games, which is why he won 90% of his points on first serve. His opponent could only win 50% of the
points on first serve. Bemelmans was looking uneasy while playing the first set against his higher ranked opponent, for he could not win more than one game. The German won the first set 6-1.
In the second set, the Belgian made a strong comeback. Petzschner scored two aces while Bemelmans delivered only one. The Belgian also had a lower first serve winning ratio than the German but still he managed to maintain an early
lead in the second set.
This was mainly because he did not let Petzschner break any of his serves. The Belgian was also successful in gaining an advantage by winning 75% points on his first serve.
He also had a higher percentage in terms of winning points on his second serve. This was the factor, which kept the Belgian stay ahead of the German with a commanding lead with three games. Petzschner was confident by winning the
first set six games to one, but his opponent made a forceful comeback as he won the second set 6-3.
The third set began with both players keeping a close eye on their points. The winner of the third set would decide who moves on in the competition. Bemelmans did not provide any room for error not gave his opponent any opportunity
to score in the third set. The Belgian scored four aces while his opponent was successful in delivering only one.
By the time the third set began, Petzschner had lost much of his momentum that he had shown in the early parts of the match. Bemelmans’ recovery in the second set might be the reason the German felt intimidated. The Belgian was
dominant in his serves and was able to break his opponent’s serves twice. Bemelmans won the third set 6-4 and entered the next round of the 2011 Eckental Challenger.
Tags: