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Johannesburg - There was drama aplenty on the third day of the Soweto Open men’s tennis tournament at the Arthur Ashe Tennis Complex in Jabavu, Soweto on Wednesday.
Two thrilling second-round matches that went down to the wire in nerve-wracking tiebreaks were interspersed with a stunningly easy victory by a wild card from South Africa over a giant-killer, and then the disappointment of a player who saw his possible entry into the quarter-finals derailed by a foot injury.
First up, Israel's Harel Levy and Austria's Stefan Koubek slugged it out on centre court for two-and-half hours before a 22-point tiebreak decided matters in a third set fraught with tension as it drew to a controversial close. Not only did chair umpire Adel Nour have his hands full with inexperienced ball boys, his linesmen stoked already-flaring tempers under a blazing Highveld sun, and the man from Egypt had to make a series of critical calls that went against both players.
Levy was first to let rip, and his agonised howls of frustration in that seesaw tiebreaker saw a vital call go his way a few points later, leading to his eventual 7-5, 5-7, 7-6 (12/10) victory and a spot in the last eight. Straight after Levy's match-winning point, it was Koubek's turn to vent his fury on Nour, his outrage provoking a finger-wagging rebuke from the beleaguered man in the hot seat.
Showered, lunched and a little calmer an hour later at the press conference, the combative Koubek – his persona reeks of caged lion - was diplomacy personified, but a hint of anger eventually bubbled to the surface. "Harel is good, but I felt I was the better player," Koubek said. "He was very lucky to win today, but in a match like that you need luck. The chair umpire had a tough job as the linesmen were not very good, but I was the one who ended up on the wrong side of the calls."
Levy was understandably relieved at the win. "Stefan is tough, he forces you to fight for every point and I was a bit lucky to get through, the match points [five] were going either way in that tiebreak," he said.
For local fans it was on-fire SA qualifier Fritz Wolmarans who provided the most cheer. Out for the last year through a serious knee injury, the 23-year-old with the flashing continental good looks hammered pale Spaniard Fernando Vicente – the upset winner over second seed Gilles Muller of Luxembourg on Monday. Wolmarans's 6-1, 6-4 victory was built on a solid platform. "I served well with a high percentage of first serves, and then put pressure on his service games and I was able to maintain that throughout," the dark-haired Wolmarans said.
The other two-and-a-half hour marathon eventually went the way of Australia's Joseph Sirianni over Switzerland's Marco Chiudinelli, while a visibly disappointed Edouard Roger-Vasselin of France limped off court trailing fourth seed Thiago Alves of Brazil 3-1 in the first set.
The Soweto Open is sponsored by the City of Johannesburg. Play on Thursday starts at 11:00. Entrance is free to the public.
Results:
Singles: Second round:
Harel Levy (ISR) bt Stefan Koubek (AUT) 7-5, 7-5, 7-6 (12/10)
Joseph Sirianni (AUS) bt Marco Chiudinelli (SUI) 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (12/10)
4-Thiago Alves (BRA) bt Edouard Roger-Vaselin (FRA) 3-1 (retired injured)
WC-Fritz Wolmarans (RSA) bt Fernando Vicente (ESP) 6-1, 6-4
Doubles: First round:
1-Rik de Voest (RSA)/Scott Lipsky (USA) bt Michel Koning (NED)/Denys Molchanov (UKR) 7-6 (7/3), 4-6, 10-8
3-Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (PAK)/Joseph Sirianni (AUS) bt Jean Andersen/Hendrik Koertzen (RSA) 6-3, 6-4
Thiago Alves (BRA)/Fernando Vicente (ESP) bt Marco Chiudinelli (SUI)/Fabrice Santoro (FRA) 6-2, 6-4
Two thrilling second-round matches that went down to the wire in nerve-wracking tiebreaks were interspersed with a stunningly easy victory by a wild card from South Africa over a giant-killer, and then the disappointment of a player who saw his possible entry into the quarter-finals derailed by a foot injury.
First up, Israel's Harel Levy and Austria's Stefan Koubek slugged it out on centre court for two-and-half hours before a 22-point tiebreak decided matters in a third set fraught with tension as it drew to a controversial close. Not only did chair umpire Adel Nour have his hands full with inexperienced ball boys, his linesmen stoked already-flaring tempers under a blazing Highveld sun, and the man from Egypt had to make a series of critical calls that went against both players.
Levy was first to let rip, and his agonised howls of frustration in that seesaw tiebreaker saw a vital call go his way a few points later, leading to his eventual 7-5, 5-7, 7-6 (12/10) victory and a spot in the last eight. Straight after Levy's match-winning point, it was Koubek's turn to vent his fury on Nour, his outrage provoking a finger-wagging rebuke from the beleaguered man in the hot seat.
Showered, lunched and a little calmer an hour later at the press conference, the combative Koubek – his persona reeks of caged lion - was diplomacy personified, but a hint of anger eventually bubbled to the surface. "Harel is good, but I felt I was the better player," Koubek said. "He was very lucky to win today, but in a match like that you need luck. The chair umpire had a tough job as the linesmen were not very good, but I was the one who ended up on the wrong side of the calls."
Levy was understandably relieved at the win. "Stefan is tough, he forces you to fight for every point and I was a bit lucky to get through, the match points [five] were going either way in that tiebreak," he said.
For local fans it was on-fire SA qualifier Fritz Wolmarans who provided the most cheer. Out for the last year through a serious knee injury, the 23-year-old with the flashing continental good looks hammered pale Spaniard Fernando Vicente – the upset winner over second seed Gilles Muller of Luxembourg on Monday. Wolmarans's 6-1, 6-4 victory was built on a solid platform. "I served well with a high percentage of first serves, and then put pressure on his service games and I was able to maintain that throughout," the dark-haired Wolmarans said.
The other two-and-a-half hour marathon eventually went the way of Australia's Joseph Sirianni over Switzerland's Marco Chiudinelli, while a visibly disappointed Edouard Roger-Vasselin of France limped off court trailing fourth seed Thiago Alves of Brazil 3-1 in the first set.
The Soweto Open is sponsored by the City of Johannesburg. Play on Thursday starts at 11:00. Entrance is free to the public.
Results:
Singles: Second round:
Harel Levy (ISR) bt Stefan Koubek (AUT) 7-5, 7-5, 7-6 (12/10)
Joseph Sirianni (AUS) bt Marco Chiudinelli (SUI) 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (12/10)
4-Thiago Alves (BRA) bt Edouard Roger-Vaselin (FRA) 3-1 (retired injured)
WC-Fritz Wolmarans (RSA) bt Fernando Vicente (ESP) 6-1, 6-4
Doubles: First round:
1-Rik de Voest (RSA)/Scott Lipsky (USA) bt Michel Koning (NED)/Denys Molchanov (UKR) 7-6 (7/3), 4-6, 10-8
3-Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (PAK)/Joseph Sirianni (AUS) bt Jean Andersen/Hendrik Koertzen (RSA) 6-3, 6-4
Thiago Alves (BRA)/Fernando Vicente (ESP) bt Marco Chiudinelli (SUI)/Fabrice Santoro (FRA) 6-2, 6-4
