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4/16/08 1:08 AM | Cheryl Murray
Day two was not kind to Finland's Jarkko Nieminen, who went down in flames or the injured Ivo Karlovic. Nikolay Davydenko sailed through in two easy sets.
Denis Gremelmayr def. Jarkko Nieminen (4) 3-6, 6-1, 6-2
In one of the bigger upsets of the day, Jarkko Nieminen was ousted by German Denis Gremelmayr. Nieminen has been in a slump since making the quarterfinals at the Australian Open, but most expected him to scrape his game together enough to beat the 104 ranked Gremelmayr. It was not to be. Nieminen took the first set, but this was due less to Nieminen's good play and more to Gremelmayr's poor play. Gremelmayr came storming back in the second set, however. Both the serve and return of the Finn completely fell apart. Gremelmayr took the second set serving at 32%. Nieminen had no break chances in the third set. The German broke for a second time at 4-2, and was able to serve that match out with ease. Gremelmayr will play Teimuraz Gabashvili in the second round.
Rui Machado def. Ivo Karlovic (3) 6-4, 1-0 (ret.)
Portugal is have a successful home tournament; counting Rui Machado's big win over Croatia's Ivo Karlovic, they have three countrymen in the second round. Karlovic, while perhaps not the heavy favorite, due to his serve and volley playing style, was still favored to win this match. Unfortunately for Karlovic, he re-injured his right knee right at the beginning of the match, and it hampered his movement noticeably. The knee injury has plagued Karlovic before. All credit to the Portuguese wild card for keeping his head and taking the first set, though. After Machado broke in the first game of the second set, Karlovic retired. Machado will play Florent Serra in the second round.
Nikolay Davydenko (2) def. Jurgen Melzer 6-3, 6-1
Perhaps the most impressive display of the day was Russian Nikolay Davydenko's utter steam-rolling of Jurgen Melzer. So dominant was Davydenko on his own serve that he faced just a single breakpoint in the match, which he saved. The Austrian never had a chance to get into the match at all. The Russian has long been known for his precision ground strokes (though admittedly overlooked in favor of more charismatic players), but since his win in Miami a week ago he seems even better than usual. He will take on Ivo Minar next.
Joao Sousa def. Oliver Marach 6-1, 6-3
Another Portuguese first round success story for Estoril is the young qualifier Joao Sousa. He was in the news over the weekend because he practiced with Roger Federer before the tournament started. He is ranked 744 in the world and came all the way through qualifying for a spot in the main draw. His opponent Oliver Marach, also a qualifier, is ranked 164. Sousa's victory was surprisingly easy, given the disparity in ranking places between he and Marach. Sousa's next opponent will be countryman Frederico Gil.
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