Stanislas Wawrinka upsets Kei Nishikori to enter quarters – Western and Southern Open 2012
Swiss star, Stanislas Wawrinka, stunned the 14th seed, Kei Nishikori, in straight sets at the Western and Southern Open 2012 on Thursday. He nudged up a 6-3, 6-3 victory against the Asian number one to power into the final eight at this ATP (Association
of Tennis Professionals) Masters 1000 event taking place from 11th to 19th August in Cincinnati, United States.
Wawrinka, who won gold in doubles event of Beijing Olympics 2008, displayed brilliant abilities to outclass the Japanese top ranked star at this Emirates Airline US Open Series event. The players last fought each other at the Buenos Aires earlier this season
and after bagging this match, the Swiss improved to a 2-0 lifetime in the FedEx ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) Head 2 Head series against Nishikori.
The 27-year-old thundered into the Lindner Family Tennis Center. Wawrinka drew the first blood in the opening game and after capitalising on another break chance, he climbed to a 4-1 lead. The Swiss lost his serve in the sixth game but broke his opponent’s
serve once again, eventually sealing the opener by winning six games to three.
Ranked 26th in the South African Airways ATP World Tour Rankings, Wawrinka kept momentum rolling in the follow-up set. He cruised to a 3-0 lead after getting the coveted break in the second game. The Swiss then swiped his remaining serves with
poise and clicked the set with a 6-3 success.
The Swiss, who is bidding for his fourth career title here, fired nine aces to prevail. He juggled up a lower first serve share of 52 per cent as opposed to his opponent’s 60 per cent but impressively marked 24 out of 26 points on it.
Next in line for Wawrinka is the Canadian number one, Milos Raonic, who stunned fifth seeded Tomas Berdych in a three-set thriller to set up this encounter.
The second seed, Novak Djokovic, also secured a quarter-final spot. He recorded a 6-0 retirement victory against Russia’s Nikolay Davydenko in 32 minute marathon. The Serbian ace cashed in three out of six break chances and was never challenged with any
breakpoint.
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