Fuente : Wimbledon
http://www.wimbledon.org

WIMBLEDON: Stepanek Too Strong for Ginepri

/noticias.info/ Tuesday, June 21, 2005

The first set between 14th seed Radek Stepanek of Czech Republic and unseeded American Robby Ginepri, who last year reached the fourth round here, was about as even as tennis comes. The fact that Ginepri had beaten Stepanek in their only previous encounter, on a hard court in Cincinnati, also promised a tight encounter. But despite losing the opener in a tie-break Stepanek managed to step up his game to prevail in four sets, 6-7 (5-7), 6-3, 6-4, 6-2.

When the Czech, whose drop-shots attracted much applause from the audience - one actually bounced back to his own side of the court - finally broke Ginepri to go 6-5 up, the 22-year-old American hit back immediately to force the tie-break.

In the third game of the second set Ginepri, whose shots teased the sidelines and the baseline at times, still managed to break Stepanek's opening serve but Stepanek broke back and there was no return to the match for the American afterwards.

The more experienced Stepanek took the second set 6-3, as well as the third set 6-4. In the fourth set the Czech's experience - he ranks 60 positions above Ginepri - really started to tell. He closed the match 6-2.

But it was the first set that pampered the crowd, offering a constant supply of twists and turns. After Ginepri kept his first serve, the following six games went to deuce with both men going within a whisker breaking the other. It was Stepanek who had three game points at 3-3 but his shout of "Yes!" at 40-0 did not convince the American. Ginepri, who at times punished the lanky 6'1'' Stepanek by lobbing him when he came to the net, won the next five balls and thus kept his serve.

Despite his current ranking of 13, Stepanek has never been past the third round at a Grand Slam. He plays Britain's Andrew Murray in the second round.

Written by Jukka VIskari


Court 5 - Gentlemen's Singles - 1st Round
Radek Stepanek CZE (14) 6(5) 6 6 6
Robby Ginepri USA 7(7) 3 4 2 notas_de_prensa_archivo