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2/21/11 6:11 PM | Ricky Dimon
Ernests Gulbis and Richard Gasquet roll through their Dubai openers on Monday. They defeat Michael Berrer and Grigor Dimitrov, respectively.
(8) Ernests Gulbis d. (WC) Michael Berrer 6-3, 6-4
Gulbis won his first match since Sydney in mid-January by racing past Berrer in the opening round of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Monday. Although this matchup between occasional doubles partners really came down to nothing more than break-point conversions, Gulbis always had the upper hand. The 24th-ranked Latvian saved both of the break points he faced in set one, so a single break of his own allowed him to serve it out at 5-3.
With momentum in hand, Gulbis broke for an immediate 1-0 lead in the second. Berrer took care of his serve the rest of the way, but the 70th-ranked German squandered one more break chance and never could get back on level terms. Gulbis double-faulted seven times, but he somewhat made up for it with 10 aces. The No. 8 seed also won 64 percent of his second-serve return points en route to a second-round meeting with either Sergiy Stakhovsky or Omar Awadhy.
Richard Gasquet d. (Q) Grigor Dimitrov 6-2, 6-4
Dimitrov did well to qualify for the Dubai main draw, but his game fell apart against much tougher competition in the form of Gasquet. The 19-year-old Bulgarian made only 52 percent of his first serves, double-faulted six times, was broken on three occasions, and sprayed unforced errors left and right. Gasquet simply kept the ball in the court and advanced after a mere one hour and four minutes of play.
The 28th-ranked Frenchman served out the first set 5-2 but encountered some resistance in the second. Dimitrov raised his level slightly only to play a dismal service game at 4-4. Gasquet broken then finished off the proceedings one game later. Gasquet, who wrapped up his effort with nine aces and just one double-fault, awaits either Ivan Ljubicic or Sergei Bubka.
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