Ryan Harrison edges past Rajeev Ram to reach the semis – Atlanta Tennis Championships 2011
In an all-American clash that followed on Friday afternoon, 19-year-old Ryan Harrison defeated his fellow compatriot, Rajeev Ram, in the quarter-finals of Atlanta Tennis Championships, being played on the hard courts of Atlanta,
the United States.
The unseeded American contestant wrapped up a hard-fought victory in three sets, 4-6, 6-1, 7-6(5), taking two hours and seventeen minutes of play to qualify for the semi-final round of the ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals)
World Tour 250 tournament.
The thrilling contest featured a great game of pro tennis, with the two men battling it out extremely hard to come out as the winner. Momentum kept oscillating throughout the contest and the game had a nail biting end in the third
set tie breaker.
Ram made a huge upset in the second round of the tournament by defeating the former world number one, Lleyton Hewitt of Australia, but failed to replicate the similar performance with the racquet this time round. The American qualifier
hung in the game till the last point and posed some serious resistance to Harrison before finally losing the matchup.
Harrison’s big serve proved extremely lethal for Ram in the contest, as he banged in 10 thudding aces and secured 41 out of 57 first serve points in the matchup. Harrison took hold of the game in the opening set with his aggressive
strategy. His opponent equally met his fury in the opener, moving along on even terms until a break point conversion from Harrison proved decisive in the set. The first set fell to Ram’s name at 6-4 but a strong comeback from Harrison in the next set stunned
everyone present at the court.
Harrison cracked in two successive serve breaks to bag the second set at 6-1, enforcing a third set into play. The final set went to the wire and after a trade of serve breaks from both players, a tie breaker was imposed at 6-6.
Harrison got the better of his opponent in the tie breaker round a sealed victory at 7-6(5), to book a date with the world number nine, Mardy Fish of the United States, in the semi-finals of Atlanta Tennis Championships.
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