FÜRTH, June 04, 2015
The remaining four second round matches were scheduled on Day 3 of the main draw action at the Franken Challenge in Fürth. A lot of sunshine and temperatures up to 28 degrees provided perfect conditions for players as well as the about 1,200 spectators, who came to the venue of the TV Fürth 1860 on a bank holiday Thursday in Germany.
The tournament’s top-seed Albert Ramos, who is competing in his first ATP Challenger event of the season, advanced to the quarterfinals, winning 7-6, 6-2 against Giovanni Lapentti. The 27-year-old Spaniard won 78% of his first service points to seal victory in one hour and 44 minutes.
Giovanni Lapentti
Albert Ramos
Tennis TourTalk spoke to Fürth’s number one after his second round match:
The world number 63 will take on a fellow countryman in the next round, as Inigo Cervantes has continued his winning streak, extending his consecutive match wins to eleven through a straight sets victory over Frank Dancevic. The 25-year-old Spaniard didn’t have to face a break point, winning 6-3, 6-3 in 64 minutes.
Frank Dancevic
Inigo Cervantes
“My tennis is getting better, in particular within the last month. The first three months of the season, I didn’t win a lot of matches and I didn’t have a lot of confidence. I still practice the same way but a tennis player needs match wins. The last two weeks I won one Challenger and reached another final, so the confidence is back,” told Cervantes, who came to Fürth after claiming the title in Vicenza last Sunday.
“Of course, I feel a bit tired but winning in two sets today is great and I am very happy. Last year was my first time here in Fürth and I made it to the final, so I wanted to come back. I feel good here, people are very nice and I will try to reach the same result as last year or maybe even better,” the world number 164 added.
In an all-leftie-affair second seed Blaz Rola knocked out local hero Maximilian Marterer, winning 6-3, 7-5. The 19-year-old German, who was born in Nuremberg, only ten kilometres away from Fürth, was supported by the spectators on a fully packed centre court, but the Slovenian lost his serve only once and capitalized on three of his seven break points. Rola won 73% of his first service points to seal victory in one hour and 29 minutes.
Maximilian Marterer
Blaz Rola
Tennis TourTalk spoke to Blaz Rola after his second round victory:
Rola will face Lorenzo Giustino in the round of the final eight on Friday. The Italian qualifier defeated Renzo Olivo, winning 6-2, 6-4. Giustino capitalized on five of his ten break point opportunities to advance to his first ATP Challenger quarterfinal of the season after one hour and 35 minutes.
Renzo Olivo
Lorenzo Giustino
“It was a tough match with long rallies. The difference was that I made the important points in the decisive moments. I was patient and on the slower clay court, you do not need to rush and you just have to wait for the right moment. I was just waiting for the correct moment, hitting the ball,” Giustino told after celebrating his second match win on Challenger level this season. “I got injured in my right elbow and also faced some problems in my back. I needed some time to find the rhythm again. Recovery was very tough. I had to change my racket and lots of things for just competing again. But I also had some good results, qualified for some tournaments and beat players on ATP level. At the moment, I just have a bit of pain in my back, but my arm is perfect and I am very happy being able to play tennis again. That’s the most important thing,” the 23-year-old explained.
