Week 24: Halle; Queen's; Nottingham

[SirBloody Idiot]

AEGON Nottingham Challenge II - Singles
PTA World Tour 250 - Tuesday (1st Round/2nd Round) - Nottingham, United Kingdom - Grass

• Unseeded West CWLander Pierre Rose has made a winning start to his campaign in Nottingham with a straight sets win over little known local wildcard Leon Skinner. Rose would have fancied his chances against the Brit, and played some confident tennis to pick him apart with a good forehand. Skinner tried to target the Rose backhand but had little success, as the West CWLand nation surged into a second round meeting with veteran sixth seed Thomas Velten 6-0, 6-2.

• In the same area of the draw, fifteenth seed Ishan Narang also made a successful start as he served and volleyed his way to a comfortable win against Srdjan Ivic. The Serbian player was blitzed in the first set 6-0 as Narang produced some easy power and a handy eight aces in a first set that lasted a mere 21 minutes. The second set was much closer as Ivic began to get a better read on the Indian-born player's serve, but it wasn't enough to avoid defeat as Narang moved ahead 6-0, 6-3. He will meet Thai player Adul Doungtong who came from a set down to beat Jason Lawley 3-6, 7-6(0), 7-6(2).

• There was a disappointing exit for youngster Morgan Burridge as he was bullied out of the tournament by South Africa's Oliver Thursfield. In a surprising start, Burridge led by an early break but could probably put that down to match practice as he let a 3-1 lead slip to drop eleven of the next thirteen games. Thursfield was too strong and experienced for Burridge in a 6-4, 6-1 win.

• Elsewhere, top seed Nilikar Midid was outgunned by French-Canadian player Michel Paquette 5-7, 7-6(1), 2-6.

• Seeded players out: David Jones; Nilikar Midid; Akihiko Veno.

[SirBloody Idiot]

Apologies to Cevno. Didn't see you had picked Warsaw earlier, so I had to put you in Nottingham.

[SirBloody Idiot]

AEGON Championships II
PTA World Tour 250 - Tuesday (1st Round) - Queen's Club, London, United Kingdom - Grass

• Heavily favoured ninth seed Heath Davis has survived a scratchy start to move into the third round of the Queen's Club championships with a three-set win over Spaniard Ion Andueza. In a surprising start, Andueza, who dropped a set to a local wildcard in the first round, looked sharp as he broke Davis twice to take the first set 6-4. The West CWLander lifted in the second set as he dominated Andueza to take it 6-1. The Spaniard would not go away, though, and had two break points to move ahead 4-2. He failed to convert as Davis served his way out of trouble; the big man growing in confidence on the grass to advance 4-6, 6-1, 6-4. He now meets fifth seed Rick Henson in a tricky third round clash after the American beat compatriot Julian Day 6-4, 6-2.

• Teenage sensation Marcuss Deane continues to make the most of the LTA's generosity as he came from a set down to upset 15th seed Björn Donaldson. Taking a top fifty scalp, Deane will almost certainly rise into the top 100 for the first time as he showed great steel to break Donaldson twice to secure a 5-7, 6-4, 7-5 win. The youngster probably lacks a big weapon other than a very smart serving game, and was broken in the first set due to a lacklustre second serve. Still, he served at an impressive 80 per cent in the third set and it was enough to hold off the Swede as he won in three.

• He will now meet third seed Jefferson Drake as he continued his pristine form with a 6-2, 6-0 win over Scotland Rivers. The French Open quarter finalist has played down his chances of taking the Wimbledon crown, but the bandwagon is sure to grow after he wiped the court with a solid player. To his credit, Rivers went for his shots but couldn't pass the athletic Drake who had the West CWLander playing a number of feet behind the baseline. It was an imposing sight for young Deane if he was watching as Rivers was shut out of the second set and sent packing.

• In the top section, fourteenth seed Jarkko Maxum set up a third round meeting with the World No. 1 after ousting French Open quarter finalist Jean-Alain Depuis in three sets. Despite an indifferent second set, Maxum looked fantastic against the veteran Frenchman whose baseline style was lacking against a player who was happier to mix it up. Despite doubts over how Maxum would transition to the fastest surface on the tour (other than carpet), he played fine tennis and was not afraid to move to the net where he showed how doubles has greatly enhanced his volleying en route to a 6-1, 3-6, 6-1 win. He meets Jason Hall next who overcame an ordinary start to beat Jason Bradley 3-6, 7-5, 6-3.

• Unseeded Easterner Spas Delev is also through to the third round after a straight sets win over Portugal's Tiago Matías. The twelfth seed was an underdog coming into the match against a more credentialed grass court opponent, and played like the bookies expected as he pushed his way to a 4-6, 3-6 loss. Delev made the play and tried to save a fairly drab affair with a superman dive to collect a volley late in the second set, but it was a promising win for the East CWLander nonetheless. He faces an interesting task of local hope Henry Charles who carries the weight of Britain on his shoulders. The Londoner had no troubles whatsoever against Swede Henrikk Henrikkson in a 6-0, 6-0 win.

• Finally, sixth seed Jojo Mustard came out of his first match unscathed with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Tu Haifeng of Chinese Taipei. The Asian qualifier was game at times, but was clearly overmatched against the highly rated West CWLander who continued a fantastic day for the two CWLand nations with a straight sets win. He was in a bit of trouble at 0-2 and 0-30 in the second set, but he composed himself and claimed the next six games to move into the round of sixteen. He meets Aussie Toby Brookes next after his 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 win over tenth seed Kim Vollan.

• Seeded players out: Björn Donaldson; Kim Vollan.

• Some bizzare scheduling from the LTA meant there was no doubles action on Wednesday.

• Seeded players out: None.

[HeathDavisSpeed]

Well, I'll definitely have to improve on that performance to beat the 5th seed. Didn't even know there were doubles on at this tourney - should be an epic clash against Drake/Delev in the 2nd round. A bit harsh they're unseeded given Drake's doubles pedigree.

[SirBloody Idiot]

More a case of Delev's lack of doubles pedigree.

On another note, oh boy...

Gerry Weber Open II
PTA World Tour 250 - Tuesday (1st Round) - Halle, Germany - Grass

• After two wins in as many matches against Carlo Amato, Brett Read was on the receiving end of a wakeup call in Germany as he fell to the eighth seed in straight sets. With a tough month finally catching up to him, Read was wiped off the court by the Italian who hit winners at will against a lethargic looking West CWLander. Taking the victory inside of an hour, Amato looked in sterling form as he cruised past Read 6-0, 6-1 to set up a quarter final showdown with Argentina's Paolo Mandonna.

• Seeded players out: None.

• There was some redemption for Read in the doubles as he and Sven Oxenstierna made the most of their wildcard entry to beat fourth seeds Marzio Claverini and Dênis Rodrígues. In an entertaining match, Oxenstierna and Read dropped the first set and were forced to save three match points in the second set tiebreaker which they claimed 11-9. In the match tiebreaker, the Westerners needed just one match point to secure a victory 3-6, 7-6(9), [10-8] and set up a quarter final meeting with David Kestenholz and Daniel Zwygart of Germany.

• Seeded players out: Marzio Claverini & Dênis Rodrígues; Artem Krohmal & Merab Shvelidze.

[morgieb]

**** off.

[Mister Wright]

Good to see Mustard getting through early. Should get to the QFs. Anything less will be disappointing.

[Johnners]

Winner!

[Marcuss]

Yeeeeew
Just the small matter of the 3rd seed now

[SirBloody Idiot]

Originally Posted by Marcuss

Yeeeeew
Just the small matter of the 3rd seed now

I guess it is a learning experience...

[Marcuss]

Coming from a set down against the 15th seed, 3rd seed isn't that much of a step up
Quite frankly, just overjoyed to have cracked top 100.

[SirBloody Idiot]

AEGON Nottingham Challenge II - Singles
PTA World Tour 250 - Wednesday (2nd Round) - Nottingham, United Kingdom - Grass

• Third seed Rick Langley has won his first encounter in Nottingham with a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Evgeny Volkoff. The West CWLander looked in complete control of his match with the Russian as he barely got out of second gear in a convincing victory. There were some borderline tricky spots in the first set, but he navigated them well for a straight sets win. He now plays fourteenth seed Roy Daniels after the inconsistent East CWLander picked up a win over the Bahamas' Morton Blundell 6-4, 1-6, 7-6(7).

• Unseeded Westerner Pierre Rose also picked up an impressive win as he knocked out sixth seeded Dutch veteran Thomas Velten. Admittedly Velten doesn't enjoy the grass and will be happy for the exit, but he was met with a clean-hitting Rose who took the most of his opportunities in a 6-1, 6-4 win. He did lead 5-2 in the second set before Velten made the scoreline look a tad more respectable, but it was the Westerner's day as he advanced to a third round meeting with Taiwanese qualifier Hau Li-an after his 6-7(0), 7-5, 6-4 win over Benoît RIo of France.

• Meanwhile, fifteenth seed Ishan Narang set up a third round meeting with Mark Harmel, the second seed, after a come-from-behind win over Thailand's Adul Doungtong. It wasn't the most impressive start from Narang as he dropped the first set 2-6, but it was smooth sailing after as he took early breaks in the second and third sets to put Doungtong away. The serve-and-volley serves Narang well against the these players, but the Belgian retriever may pose different threats after his impressive first up win over disappointing Aussie talent Harry Thompson.

• Seeded players out: Adam Murray; Jeremy Natale; Thomas Velten.

[HeathDavisSpeed]

Great win for Rose there. Daniels to be beaten by Langley in a shockingly inconsistent scoreline. Something like 6 - 2, 0 - 6, 6 - 3

[SirBloody Idiot]

Would make sense. Don't think I've strung three good wins together since like S1.

[SirBloody Idiot]

AEGON Championships II
PTA World Tour 250 - Thursday (3rd Round) - Queen's Club, London, United Kingdom - Grass

• A disappointed Spas Delev failed to convert three opening set points in a straight sets loss to local favourite Henry Charles at Queen's. Down 4-5 and 0-40, Charles fought back with some quality serving to stave Delev off and ultimate take the first in a tiebreaker. While Delev certainly posed a greater threat to Charles than Henrikk Henrikkson did yesterday, he was unable to take full advantage of his chances as he was broken late in the second set as the local player advanced into a quarter final matchup with defending champion Darcy Cowan 7-6(5), 6-4.

• In his biggest test so far, wildcard entrant Marcuss Deane certainly did not disgrace himself against third seed Jefferson Drake of East CWLander. Deane was serving up a storm early, but Drake still created himself enough chances on the Deane serve to bring up seven break points. To Deane's credit, he served particularly well to take the set to a tiebreaker but was overborne by Drake's power as the top ten player took the breaker 7-4. The seams of Deane's game came undone in the second set as he was bagelled in quick time, but Drake was quick to congratulate him at the net following the match as he moved into the quarter finals.

• There Drake will meet Heath Davis who produced his most impressive performance so far in a straight sets win over fifth seed Rick Henson. In yet another case of not being able to get his game together, Henson continues to struggle to break the glass ceiling as he was outplayed by a brazen Davis who spent the first set abusing a linesman. The young Japanese woman was reduced to tears by the normally good-natured Davis who was froffin' at a backhand from Henson he believed was inches wide. The call gave Henson a 3-1 lead, but he threw it away - and later the set - in a tiebreaker 4-7. The second set continued with Davis hurting Henson early with a forehand winner of his own to take a break of serve. That was enough as Henson failed to get a read on his big serve and watched helplessly as Davis stormed into the round of 8 7-6(4), 6-3.

• Davis' doubles partner Jojo Mustard was forced to save a couple of set points in his win over Toby Brookes of Australia. The energetic Aussie led 6-4 in the first set tiebreaker, but flubbed his opportunities as Mustard eventually took it 10-8. While his serve looked shaky in the first set, it was business as usual for the Westerner in the second as he secured a quarter final berth with a convincing 7-6(8), 6-2 win to send the unseeded Australian packing. He continues with a string of unseeded opponents tomorrow as Thailand's Atthaphol Sae-ul moved into the quarter finals with a 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 win over Li Ming-Wang of China.

• In the fourth quarter final, top seed Jason Hall will meet eleventh seed David Champion for the second year running after cruising past an uninspired Jarkko Maxum. A shell-shocked Maxum responded to the big occasion with overly defensive tennis and it wasn't surprising that he failed to secure a single break point against his smooth grass court opponent. In contrast, Hall showed the most confidence he has since the end of the hard court season as he returned assertively and struck the ball cleanly to advance 6-1, 6-1.

• Seeded players out: Rick Henson; Jarkko Maxum; János Varga.

• In the doubles, what promised to be an entertaining match was a one-sided flogging as second seed Heath Davis and Jojo Mustard easily accounted for Spas Delev and Jefferson Drake. Still smarting from their loss at Roland Garros, Davis and Mustard fell back 0-2 before turning on their engines and taking twelve of the next fourteen games in a 6-3, 6-1 win. Admittedly, Drake's heart didn't look in it with a quarter final to play in the singles, but the win gives Davis and Mustard a third round meeting with Henry Charles and Oscar Highsmith who ousted sixth seeds Lee Inmin and Qingdong Tsai.

• Seeded players out: Gai Kai & Lu Xun; Lee Inmin & Qingdong Tsai; János Varga & Zoltán Varga.