Seppi/Troicki upset Mirnyi/Nestor in the second round – Western & Southern Open 2012
Italian-Serbian duo of Andreas Seppi and Viktor Troicki fought back after losing the opener to stun the top seeds, Max Mirnyi and Daniel Nestor, 4-6, 6-4, 10-8 in the second round of the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati on
Thursday. The Italian-Serbian tandem needed one hour and 16 minutes to post win over the world number one pair.
Both teams made a stable start, as none of the two managed to claim a break in the first nine games, taking the score to 5-4 in the favour of Mirnyi and Nestor. The Belarusian-Canadian combination hit a blow to its opponents at
that moment to seal it 6-4.
The start of second set was almost similar to the first, as both pairs held their serve in the opening eight games to square off the proceedings at 4-4. This time, it was the Italian-Serbian duo which struck in the ninth and capitalised
on it to win 6-4.
Seppi and Troicki grabbed a 4-2 lead at the beginning but Mirnyi and Nestor came back to equalise the points at 4-4. They went on equal terms till 6-6 but then the Italian-Serbian duo snatched four of the subsequent six to close
it 10-8.
The right-handers, Seppi and Troicki, banged in six aces and committed three double faults. The Italian-Serbian tandem had a low first serve percentage of 54 but they managed to win 28 of the 34 points on them. On the other hand,
Mirnyi and Nestor pounded four aces but they lost the advantage, as they made five double faults.
It was a disappointing performance from the number one team in the world. Mirnyi is fresh from winning Gold Medal at the London Olympics. The Belarusian partnered his countrywoman, Victoria Azarenka, to win the mixed doubles event.
Just few days back, Nestor was praising Mirnyi for his commitment for the sport. The Canadian said, "Honestly, I was worried after he won the gold medal that he was going to send me a note saying, 'Listen, I have to go back to
Belarus and celebrate or do some event.' I'm happy he came. He's a very motivated guy, too, one of the ultimate professionals on the tour.”
He added, "He's a great player and I'm very fortunate to have him as my partner. He's playing well and hopefully we can have a good week here."
Seppi and Troicki will play the Croatian-Brazilian pair of Ivan Dodig and Marcelo Melo in the quarter-finals.
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