MATCH REPORT: Defending champs Aces edge Warriors, despite Sharapova wins for hosts
DEFENDING CHAMPIONS INDIAN ACES managed to edge hosts Japan Warriors by the narrowest of margins (25-24) in the second match of the International Premier Tennis League (IPTL) in Kobe, today.
The home team got off to a flying start after winning the first two sets and led the visitors (12-9). However, Indian Aces' captain Fabrice Santoro turned their fortunes around by dominating his counterpart Marat Safin in the legends tie to put the Aces in front.
In the fourth set, the doubles pair of Rohan Bopanna/Gael Monfils further extended the Aces' lead and despite losing the final set against home favourite Kei Nishikori, the visitors prevailed by the tiniest of margins.
First up, it was Indian Aces’ Sania Mirza/Bopanna taking on Japan Warriors’ Maria Sharapova/Pierre Herbert. After both teams held serve in the first two games, the Warriors drew first blood and broke Mirza’s serve to go 2-1 up. However, that lead was short-lived as the Indian pair hit back immediately and broke Sharapova’s serve for 2-2.
Both teams held serve in the following games but in the eighth game, the Indian Aces used their Power Point and broke Sharapova’s serve again to lead 5-3. That said, it was now the Warriors’ turn to use their power point to break and get back to level terms.
In the end, the set had to be decided by a shoot-out and the pair of Sharapova/Pierre Herbert breezed through the breaker to nail a hard fought set 6-5. The Frenchman Herbert put on an exhibition of serve and volleys in the mixed doubles.
Sharapova stayed on for her singles set against Indian Aces’ Samantha Stosur. Both women had little issues on their serve and till the sixth game there was no break of serve.
However, a few uncharacteristic errors from the Russian helped the Aussie move in front with a break at 4-3, but Sharapova leveled the match immediately by breaking the Aussie. At the business end of the set, the former World no.1 used the power point smartly to seal the set 6-4.
It was then time for the legends to take the court. Aces’ Fabrice Santoro and Marat Warriors’ Safin engaged in some exciting, long rallies from the back, but it was the Frenchman, who had the better of the Russian after the first four games. Safin was visibly unsettled and perturbed by Santoro’s vicious slice and variety and struggled to win games easily. In the end, the Indian Aces captain won the set in convincing fashion 6-2.
After three sets of play, the overall tally of game read Japan Warriors: 14 and Indian Aces: 15
In the men’s doubles, Bopanna/Monfils exuded some brilliant shot-making against the pair of Herbert/Kei Nishikori. Meanwhile, Herbert too pulled out some magical strokes to entertain the crowd. However, the Indian Aces pair kept producing gems at the net to obtain a break in the closing stages of the set. In the end, Bopanna/Monfils served out to grab the set 6-4.
Now, the visitors had their noses in front 21-18.
Going into the fifth and final set of the evening, Nishikori had a daunting task on his hands but served poorly to lose his serve early in the set. That said, Nishikori immediately broke Monfils to get back to level terms.
The match didn't turn out to be a thriller and the quality of tennis certainly wasn't out of the top draw. Both men showed flashes of brilliance but kept shanking balls at regular intervals. In the end, Nishikori broke the Frenchman to seal the set 6-4.
The Indian Aces will be a satisfied unit after getting their campaign off to a winning start and will play the Singapore Slammers on Friday. Meanwhile, the Japan Warriors will take on the UAE Royals tomorrow at the same venue.
