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4/14/11 3:17 AM | Ricky Dimon
Nicolas Almagro survives four match points before taking out Maximo Gonzalez in three wild sets on Wednesday in Monte-Carlo. Almagro is through to a third-round encounter with Jurgen Melzer.
It does not seem to matter what happens when Nicolas Almagro steps on a clay court. He almost always finds a way to win.
Almagro did it the hard way on Wednesday at the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, outlasting Maximo Gonzalez 6-7(6), 7-5, 7-6(10) in exactly three hours. The Spaniard fought off four match points to set up a third-round clash against Jurgen Melzer.
This was a baseline battle right from the start, as a total of four service breaks occurred during the first set. That set the stage for an intense tiebreaker, which Gonzalez took eight points to six.
Almagro served horribly in the second, but Gonzalez could not capitalize on the opportunity to clinch a straight-set victory. The Argentine donated his serve twice and found himself trailing 5-4 on his opponent's serve. Almagro failed to close it out, but Monte-Carlo's No. 9 seed broke right back for 6-5 and this time managed to force a decisive third set.
As if the match had not already been wild enough, set three produced even more drama than the previous two frames. After eight straight holds without a break point, Almagro seized a 0-40 lead at 4-4. Nonetheless, the world No. 12 squandered all three chances and blew another break point later in the game as he saw Gonzalez hold for 5-4. Almagro promptly fell behind 0-40, triple match point while serving to stay in it in the 10th game.
Gonzalez even got a look at two second serves on his three opportunities, but he still could not take advantage. Almagro finally held serve and eventually forced a dramatic tiebreaker. The two-time 2011 title winner had a lead most of the way, but he had to save one more match point--Gonzalez's fourth of the day--late in the 'breaker in order to stay alive. Almagro finally clinched it 12 points to 10, bringing an end to the exhausting thriller.
Almagro finished with 10 aces and five double-faults as he improved to 21-5 for his 2011 campaign, including 15-1 on clay.
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