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2/12/09 7:26 AM | Ricky Dimon
Juan Martin Del Potro and James Blake advance to the second round of the SAP Open on Wednesday night. They are joined in the winners circle by John Isner.
Juan Martin Del Potro d. Andrea Stoppini 7-6(5), 7-6(5)
Del Potro struggled with the No. 209 player in the world for the first time in three career head-to-head encounters. Stoppini even had plenty of chances to pull off what would have been a shocking upset. Both men held serve the whole way until a tiebreaker was needed to decide the first, although Stoppini had to save two break points in the early going. Serving at 4-5, it was Del Potro's turn to fend off a break chance--which was also a set point for the underdog. Del Potro saved it and eventually prevailed in the 'breaker seven points to five. The second-seeded Argentine never came close to losing his serve in the second, dropping just seven points in six service games. Stoppini, in turn, ensured that there would not be a single break of serve in the entire match, as he saved one more break point en route to a second consecutive tiebreaker. Once again, Del Potro's experienced proved to be too much in the end and he closed out the decider by the same scoreline as the previous one with his 10th ace of the night. Del Potro needed one hour and 46 minutes to reach the second round, where he will take on 19-year-old Japanese star Kei Nishikori.
John Isner d. Ramon Delgado 7-6(9), 6-4
Delgado filled in as lucky loser entrant when Guillermo Garcia-Lopez withdrew. Isner had lost to Garcia-Lopez at this very same SAP Open last year in match that lasted over three hours and did not feature a single break of serve. For a while it looked like this one would progress in almost identical fashion. Each player secured one break of serve in the first set en route to tiebreaker, as Delgado fared surprisingly well in the return game even against Isner's big first serve. The Paraguayan had set points on his opponent's serve in the tiebreaker at 6-5 and 8-7 and he had a chance on his own serve at 9-8. Isner, meanwhile, had a set point on Delgado's serve at 7-6. With the pressure on, Delgado dropped both of his service points at 9-8 and 9-9 to give Isner a second set point. The 6'9'' American closed it out 11 points to nine with his 13th ace. Set two seemed destined for a similar fate as both men held serve with ease for 3-3. Suddenly, however, Isner dominated a return game and seized the first break of the afternoon for a 4-3 advantage. Two easy Isner service holds later and the No. 137 player in the world booked his place in the second round after one hour and 27 minutes. Isner, who finished the match with his 22nd ace, will next meet compatriot Mardy Fish, with whom he teamed up in doubles to reach the quarterfinals of the Australian Open.
James Blake d. Vincent Spadea 6-3, 6-4
Blake does not have a good head-to-head history against Spadea, but he prevailed for the third time in nine tries against his 34-year-old compatriot on Wednesday night in San Jose. It was, not unexpectedly, a fairly straightforward victory, although the first set was somewhat competitive. It came down to a single break chance for each man; Blake converted his one break point whereas Spadea missed his one opportunity. Thanks in part to five aces and no double-faults, the single break was enough for Blake to take set one 6-3. With momentum in head, the No. 3 seed got off to fast start in the second. He broke his opponent right away and never looked back. Five more service holds in-a-row, none of which were difficult, secured safe passage into the second round for Blake after an efficient 50 minutes. The American finished with 13 aces and two double-faults while putting in a respectable 65 percent of his first serves. Next up for Blake is veteran Frenchman Florent Serra.
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