Article

  • Lucky streak continues for lucky loser Levine

    8/21/08 4:47 AM | Ricky Dimon
    - Jesse Levine is through to the quarterfinals in New Haven despite losing in qualifying and playing just over two sets in the main draw. He is joined by Marin Cilic and Igor Andreev.

    Jesse Levine d. Steve Darcis 2-0, ret.

    Jesse Levine is putting a new meaning to the term “lucky loser.” The 5'9'' American lost in the final round of Pilot Pen qualifying to compatriot Alex Bogomolov Jr., but then replaced Juan Martin Del Potro in the main draw. Since Del Potro, winner of four straight tournaments, was seeded and received a bye, Levine went straight into the second round. He then routed Guillermo Garcia-Lopez before getting lucky again on Wednesday. Darcis retired after just two games with an apparent lower back injury. The 5'10'' Belgian won just three points, including none in his lone service game. Levine will play either Marc Gicquel or Mardy Fish in the quarterfinals.

    Marin Cilic d. Jurgen Melzer 5-7, 6-4, 7-5

    Cilic survived a sub-par serving game to outlast Melzer in three tough sets. The 6''6'' Croat needed two hours and 38 minutes to advance to the Pilot Pen quarterfinals. It could have been easier, but Melzer saved all three of the break points he faced in set one and that allowed his one break of serve late in the set to hold up. Cilic returned the favor in the second frame of play by converting his one break chance while saving the two he faced. In the final set Cilic's all-court game proved to be too much for the Austrian, and that helped the No. 6 seed overcome a great disparity in third-set service percentage (47 percent to Melzer's 76 percent). Cilic will face Igor Andreev for a spot in the semifinals.

    Igor Andreev d. Victor Hanescu 6-4, 7-5

    Andreev evened his head-to-head series against Hanescu with a straight-set victory, booking his place in the New Haven quarterfinals.A baseline battle in the first set allowed for five total breaks of serve, and not surprisingly the slight edge went to Andreev since the proceedings favored his style of play. The 6'6'' Romanian, however, started taking better care of his serve in set two and there were no breaks of serve as it progressed to 5-5. But Andreev also cleaned up his serving act to the tune of dropping just four points in his last six service games. That meant one break of serve would almost certainly prove to be enough, and it was Andreev who got it.

Tell a friend »

Comments


Write comment

You have to be logged in to comment. If you do not have an account, click here to register. It only takes a minute and you'll be redirected back to this page.
Username:

Password: