Help
7/11/08 1:28 PM | David Cox
Fabrice Santoro has made a career out of bamboozling big hitters with his dazzling array of shots. Yesterday Aisam Ul-Qureshi became just another to add to Santoro's tally.
The Pakistani's grass court credentials keep him ranked inside the top 200, indeed he excels at this time of the year. However he was powerless to prevent Santoro from gliding into the last 8, 7-6(4), 6-2 in front over over 2000 spectators
Despite rarely attracting the biggest names in the sport, this historic tournament in Rhode Island remains very popular. Its a rare sight to see “old-school” grass court tennis and the event often provides a fascinating mix of new names on the rise and veterans like Santoro
Santoro had to work for the first set, Qureshi's big serve keeping the Frenchman at bay and he had just the 1 break point chance at 3-2. Santoro was briefly in trouble in the tiebreak as Qureshi went up a minibreak but serving at 4-5 the Pakistani pushed a volley just long and then double-faulted to hand Santoro the first set
Qureshi was unhappy with the line call on the volley but for Santoro there was no question it was out “For me, the ball is clearly out. That was the opinion of the umpire also. At that stage of the match, it was a big point.”
The 2nd seed capitalised on Qureshi's frustrations, breaking in the first game of set 2, angling a classic two-handed forehand for a winner. He rammed home his advantage in game 7. Qureshi saved 3 break points but Santoro was not to be denied the second break, driving a backhand pass down the line and taking a 5-2 lead as Qureshi sent another volley long
Afterwards Santoro said ”I knew I had to play well to win this one. He’s a real grass-court player. I thought beforehand, if you want to win this one, you have to play well right away. I think I played a very steady match.”
Tell a friend »
Scan QR code to access Unibet mobile.
Bet on Sports wherever you are and whenever you like, with Unibet's quick and simple mobile client you can place bets, check results and see live odds.
For more info about QR codes & scanners click here.
Contact us
/ About us
/ Cookies
/ Recommended links
/ Advertise
/ Sitemap
Tennistalk v1.5.0
Disclaimer © 2001-2012, Moneytainment Media Ltd - All rights reserved
