Uladzimir Ignatik outlasts Miloslav Mecir to reach round two – Slovak Open 2012 CH
World number 146, Uladzimir Ignatik of Belarus, bounced back after getting down in the opening set to defeat Slovakian qualifier, Miloslav Mecir, 5-7, 6-4, 7-6(3) in the first round of the Slovak Open in Bratislava.
The player from Belarus took two hours and 12 minutes to clinch this tough triumph.
The contest was begun in a stable fashion by Ignatik and Mecir, as they won their serve in the first 10 games to even out the score at 5-5. Backed by the support of his home crowd, the Slovakian player put pressure on Ignatik and grabbed two in a row to
win 7-5.
Mecir hit two aces and made one double fault, delivering 62 percent of the first serves and pocketing 20 of the 26 points on them in the first set. The Slovakian participant gave lacklustre performance on the first returns, losing 15 of the 18 points on
them but somewhat balanced that by claiming six of the 13 on the second ones.
Second set also underwent steadily in the opening nine games, taking the score to 5-4 in favour of Ignatik. The Belarusian player raised the level of his play at that crucial stage, breaking Mecir to capture it 6-4.
Ignatik had a terribly low first serve percentage of 44 but succeeded in converting 11 of the 12 of them into points. The Belarusian contestant banged in three aces and secured nine of the 15 points on the second deliveries. The 6ft tall did not come across
any break threat and availed one of the five chances he received of his own in the second set.
In the decider, Ignatik made a breakthrough in the sixth game to move ahead 4-2 but Mecir hit back immediately to level the proceedings at 4-4. The following four went with serve, taking the score to 6-6 and forcing a tie-breaker. Ignatik grabbed the first
two points to take early advantage but Mecir once again came back to equal terms. The Belarusian national claimed another mini-break later on and this time he made the most of it to win 7-6(3).
Ignatik is drawn to take on Romania’s Marius Copil for a place in the quarter-finals.
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