Week 29: Stuttgart; Båstad; Manta CH

[morgieb]

Not a bad effort by Burridge, should become good someday.

 

[morgieb]

Also *rage* at getting Mustard.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Season II MercedesCup
PTA 250 - 1st Round - Stuttgart,

Germany - Clay

• Fourth seed Juan Moreno has made a successful return to the PTA tour with a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 win over Roland Garros quarter finalist Jean-Christophe Genghini. Moreno, now ranked No. 27 in the world, hasn't played since suffering a hip injury shortly after Indian Wells and next meets local Alex Peters.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Antonio Bachunelli [3];
  
  Javier Villaneuva [6];
  
  Becker Haas [7].

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Season II Swedish Open
PTA 250 - 1st Round - Båstad,

Sweden - Clay

• Third seed Jojo Mustard has come through a potentially tricky first round match against compatriot Brett Read comfortably with a straight sets win. Read, a Roland Garros quarter finalist, was roundly expected to cause the World No. 16 difficulties but struggled early as he went down a double break to be 0-3. He fought back well to return the set to service with his second break for 4-4, but was broken for a third time as Mustard attacked his second serve with a big forehand down the line for a 5-4 lead. The third seed served the set out 6-4, and again broke Read's lacklustre serve early in the second. This time he didn't let go of his early lead, and cruised into the second round 6-4, 6-2. The impressive win sets up a meeting with World No. 87 Julian Day after the American came from a set down to beat Christopher Durand 1-6, 6-4, 6-1.

• Second seed Heath Davis was also able to take a victory in his first round match against Emelio Cobos. While clay is his weakest surface, the Wimbledon runner-up was far too good for the World No. 94 as he overcame an indifferent start to storm into the second round. Level at 3-3 having saved two break points, Davis took nine of the next ten games to blow the Argentinian player off the court 6-3, 6-1. After that start he now plays wildcard entrant Henrikk Henrikkson after the Swede beat José Navarro 7-6(8), 3-6, 7-5.

• In a re-match of their Davis Cup clash just days ago, local player Björn Donaldson has snared one of the biggest wins of his career with a three-set win over top seed Radivoj Daneu. Daneu won their previous meeting 6-4, 7-5, 6-1 to help set up Serbia's 3-2 victory over the Swedes, but Donaldson took his revenge on his home soil this time with a 6-7(2), 6-4, 6-3 win.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Radivoj Daneu [1];
  
  Tiago Matías [8].

 

[HeathDavisSpeed]

Whoah. Daneu, what'cha doing?

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Season II Manta Open
PTA CHALLENGER TOUR - 2nd Round - Manta,

Ecuador - Hard

• Top seed Ishan Narang had no trouble advancing through his second round meeting with little known local Michael Chalá after an impressive 6-0, 6-2 win. Chalá was clearly out of his depth against a top hundred ranked opponent and offered little by way of resistance as Narang barely made it out of first in a dominant display. After a disappointing week in Newport last week, Narang has recovered well in South America with his serve returning to where it was during a successful grass swing in June. His straight sets win sets up a meeting with seventh seed David Lebègue of France after he repeated Narang's scoreline 6-0, 6-2 against Alex Rojas.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Haiku Morkel [2];
  
  Oscar Highsmith [4];
  
  Akihiko Veno [8].

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Season II MercedesCup
PTA 250 - 2nd Round - Stuttgart,

Germany - Clay

• Fourth seed Juan Moreno was given confirmation that his return from a hip injury will not be all plain sailing after the Argentinian No. 1 was bested in straight sets by Alex Peters. Despite a gutsy win on Monday, Moreno's movement was limited against the local hope and he obviously hadn't recovered completely from his return victory. Peters was too good in the end and advanced to the quarter finals 6-1, 6-4.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Juan Moreno [4].

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Season II Swedish Open
PTA 250 - 2nd Round - Båstad,

Sweden - Clay

• After coming through with a big win in the second round, Heath Davis will tomorrow face his first real test in Sweden after booking a quarterfinal meeting with sixth seed Carlo Amato. Davis had no troubles beating wildcard entrant Henrikk Henrikkson overnight as the Swede was put to the sword by the second seed who didn't need to play his best tennis. Davis was content to break early in both sets and coast to victory in a drab affair; conserving his energy with a 6-3, 6-2 win before Friday's meeting with Amato. The sixth seed, who made the final of the Swedish Open last year, proved irresistible as he crushed Johan Ortiz 6-1, 6-3.

• Joining Heef in the quarters is doubles partner Jojo Mustard. The third seed also faced a big underdog in his second round match, and Mustard took no prisoners as he dealt Julian Day a comprehensive thrashing. Day managed just three games - all on serve - as a clinical Mustard stamped his authority on a top half where he is the highest ranked player left. His 6-2, 6-1 win sets up a meeting with seventh seed Sergio Joaquín after the Spaniard beat Yves Parmentier in an entertaining 6-4, 6-7(4), 6-1 affair.

• Seeded players out: None.

 

[HeathDavisSpeed]

Hmmm. I think Amato might have too much for me on this surface. Been looking good so far though.

 

[Mister Wright]

Good to see Mustard making a statement after a disappointing Wimbledon.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Season II Manta Open
PTA CHALLENGER TOUR - Quarterfinals - Manta,

Ecuador - Hard

• Top seed Ishan Narang has fallen to a disappointing loss in the quarterfinals of the Manta Open; bowing out in straight sets to seventh seed David Lebègue. The Frenchman played all over Narang who never got going in a disappointing performance. After two good wins this week, Narang's serve fell apart at the seams as he was broken five times during the match. Summing up his day, Narang dumped a surefire winner into the net when down two match points to hand Lebègue a 6-2, 6-2 win.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Ishan Narang [1];
  
  Ninteh Doh [3];
  
  Mark Harmel [5].

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Season II MercedesCup
PTA 250 - Quarterfinals - Stuttgart,

Germany - Clay

• In the day's best match, American Hugh James booked a surprise appearance in tomorrow's semifinals after a come-from-behind win over Marc Carretero. The highly touted Spanish youngster took the first set 6-2, but the doubles star showed tremendous versatility to work him over from there to complete a big 2-6, 7-6(0), 7-6(2) win. He now meets second seed Zoltán Varga after the Hungarian ousted Maarten Berg 6-2, 7-6(4).

• Seeded players out:
  
  Pierre L'Estrange [8].

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Season II Swedish Open
PTA 250 - Quarterfinals - Båstad,

Sweden - Clay

• Season I runner-up Carlo Amato has survived a spirited display from Heath Davis to oust the Wimbledon finalist in three tight sets in their quarterfinal meeting. In a tense affair, both players showed real power on the baseline as they went serve-for-serve in a close first set. Amato got the decisive lead, though, as he played a gutsy tiebreaker to slam home five winners to take it 7-2. Down a set, Davis showed great resilience against a solid clay court hand to take the second set 6-3. With the tide turning against the Italian, a change of racquets was forced as he made an impression in the clay after going down a break early in the third. That seemed to spur him on as he played a very aggressive game against the Davis serve to break back. In the tenth game he got what he came for; two match points as Davis let fly with an errant backhand. The Italian needed just one; booking a semifinal showdown with fourth seed Miroslav Brdar 7-6(2), 3-6, 6-4.

• In the top half, Jojo Mustard was also forced to play three sets in a close match with Sergio Joaquín. It wasn't quite as exciting as the Amato-Davis showdown with both players content to sit back and play out long rallies. That played into the hands of Joaquín for the most part whose great staying power allowed him to take the second set 6-4. Mustard, though, kept his composure during the third and created a swathe of opportunities against the Spaniard's serve. After failing to convert his first seven break points of the set, his eighth gave him match point. This time he cooly deposited a forehand volley into the left-hand corner of the court to secure his place in the semi finals 6-3, 4-6, 6-4. He now meets World No. 84 Miguel Bertolotto after the Argentine player upset local hope Björn Donaldson 6-4, 6-4.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Heath Davis [2];
  
  Oneil Stewart [5];
  
  Sergio Joaquín [7].

 

[HeathDavisSpeed]

You Utter Bastad!

C'mon Jojo, take it out!

 

[morgieb]

Mustard/Amato final IMO.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Season II Manta Open
PTA CHALLENGER TOUR - Semifinals - Manta,

Ecuador - Hard

• Sunday's final will pit unseeded Australian Patrick Hewitt against seventh seed David Lebègue of France.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Rod Bosnar [6].

Season II MercedesCup
PTA 250 - Semifinals - Stuttgart,

Germany - Clay
​

• Tomorrow's final sees an all-Hungarian clash between top seed József Boros and second seed Zoltán Varga. Boros proved too good for Patrick Pascaul in a 6-1, 7-5 win, while Varga eased past Hugh James 6-4, 6-0.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Patrick Pascaul [5].

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Season II Swedish Open
PTA 250 - Semifinals - Båstad,

Sweden - Clay

• Third seed Jojo Mustard was shooting for his third PTA final of the season as he played World No. 84 Miguel Bertolotto of Argentina. Both players had had very successful weeks and had dropped just a set each en route to the semi finals. Bertolotto got the best start as he held to love and held three break points on the Mustard serve. Having dropped the first seven points of the match, Mustard kicked into gear and took the next five to be level at 1-1. In a cagey first set, Mustard again played into his opponent's hands with pushing tennis off the baseline. Still, his class shone through as he made the most of his early chances and took the first set 6-4 despite having five less break points. That seemed to hurt Bertolotto who played rash tennis more consistently after. It worked at some points, but it cost him dearly at 3-3 in the second as he was broken to love. Another service break finished him off; Mustard into the Båstad final 6-4, 6-3.

• Tomorrow he will play fourth seed Miroslav Brdar who made light work of an unimpressive Carlo Amato. The World No. 15, despite a lower seeding, is actually ranked higher than Mustard and was vastly impressive in his 6-0, 6-4 win. Since dropping his first set of the week, Brdar has dropped just sixteen games in eight sets and goes into tomorrow's final a real chance of winning the Båstad title.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Carlo Amato [6].

 

[Mister Wright]

Oh...excellent fight back from Mustard after a very disappointing Wimbledon. Although I don't think Mustard has a great record in finals.

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

BÅSTAD SUNDAY PREVIEW
Båstad, Sweden
The Swedish Open is a CWLand-Croatian match-up between the third and fourth seeds as Jojo Mustard takes on Miroslav Brdar. Last year, Mustard's then compatriot Jefferson Drake beat Carlo Amato in the final.

Mustard is 2-1 lifetime in finals with victories in Memphis and Houston. Brdar, meanwhile, has gone 1-3 this season in finals and looks to register his first title outside of Croatia. So far he has two in Zagreb and one in Umag. Both players have dropped just one set this week.

WHAT'S AT STAKE -
Singles winner: €72,600 and 250 PTA Season II Ranking points
Runner-up: €38,200 and 150 PTA Season II Ranking points

FINALS HISTORY -
Mustard: Appearing in his 4th ATP World Tour final……….He is 2-1 in finals (third in 2010)
Brdar: Appearing in his 8th ATP World Tour final……….He is 3-4 in finals (fourth in 2010)

SUNDAY CHAMPIONSHIP HEAD-TO-HEADS -
(3) Jojo Mustard (FRC) vs (4) Miroslav Brdar (CRO) 0-0

Mustard FastFacts:
Season II Highlights:
W: Memphis (b Charles); Houston (b R. Henson); SF: Monte-Carlo (l Murdoch); Belgrade (l Daneu); Queens Club (l Hall).
YTD W-L: 38-13 (17-6 on hard)
Career W-L: 81-40 (38-21 on hard)
YTD Titles: 2
Career Titles: 2
Date of Birth: 25 July, 1985
Season II PTA Ranking: 16

Brdar FastFacts:
Season II Highlights:
W: Zagreb (b T. Vollan); F: Marseille (l Spidla); Dubai (l Drake); SF: Doha (l Spidla); Barcelona (l Blanco); Halle (l Amato)
YTD W-L: 34-14 (22-6 on hard)
Career W-L: 80-34 (48-19 on hard)
YTD Titles: 1
Career Titles: 3
Date of Birth: 8 February, 1989
Season II PTA Ranking: 15

 

[SirBloody Idiot]

Season II Manta Open
PTA CHALLENGER TOUR - Final - Manta,

Ecuador - Hard

• French seventh seed David Lebègue had no troubles in the final of the Manta Open; romping to the title 6-1, 6-1 against Patrick Hewitt.

• Seeded players out: None.

Season II MercedesCup
PTA 250 - Final - Stuttgart,

Germany - Clay

• In an all-Hungarian final, top seed József Boros picked up his first title of the season in a water-tight final against second seed Zoltán Varga. Despite having a set point in the second set, Varga could not avoid a straight sets defeat as Boros edged a 7-6(7), 7-6(6) victory.

• Seeded players out:
  
  Zoltán Varga [2].