Tatsuma and Darcis make it to the quarterfinal round at 2011 Guangzhou Challenger
Japanese Tatsuma Ito earned a hard fought 6-7(5), 7-5, 6-4 victory against Antonio Veic of Croatia to make it to the quarterfinal round at the 2011 Guangzhou Challenger Series in China.
The two players exchanged heavy blows in the first set as it went into a tie-breaker. Ito put up a brave show to push his opponent to the limits but despite having two sets points in the tie-breaker he was unable to come up with
the right shot to win the set.
In the second set the Japanese regrouped himself and came up with a better plan to disintegrate his opponent. His defense was rock solid and he managed to save crucial points in the set which allowed him to play his shorts more
freely. He clinched a crucial serve to take the match into a decider.
The 22-year-old continued with the same momentum in the final set as well and smashed excellent shots to complete a deserving victory. Ito was effective in his serve return converting a good percentage of the available points.
He used his strong ground shots to pose problems for the challenger. Ranked 215th in the world, Antonio Veic had considerable weaknesses in his game. He committed a large number of unforced errors in the last two sets and eventually paid the price.
The Japanese has won 57 percent of his matches on the pro-circuit in last 12 months. His ranking of world number 173 doesn’t justify his true potential and talent. He has 2 ATP Challenger Titles to his name both of them coming
at the end of last season. He has gradually moved up the ATP world rankings since he turned professional in 2006. Winner of two ATP Challenger titles will be eyeing a strong appearance in his quarterfinal clash against the Russian Alexander Kudryavtsev. Kudryavtsev
eased past Simon Stadler to confirm a place in the last eight.
Meanwhile Steve Darcis of Belgian survived two closely contested sets 7-5, 7-6(2) against the Croat Nikola Mektic to make it through to the quarterfinals at the Challenger Series. Both players put up an excellent show of mental
strength and temperament during the contest.
The Belgian looked on course right from the start and played excellent tennis throughout. He achieved a break and then held on to his serve to take the first set 7-5. The second set was certainly played on a more competitive note
as it was decided through a tie-breaker. The 27 year old Belgian converted his very first match point to seal the match in two sets. He has set up a quarterfinal clash with Belarusian number one Uladzimir Ignatik with this win.
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