What a fight!
Three match points fended off, two missed, finally lost the fourth! Jan-Lennard Struff (33) is in the 2nd round Australian Open eliminated. In a thrilling five-set thriller, the Warsteiner lost to the Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic (24) 4:6, 6:1, 6:7 (5:7), 6:1, 6:7 (9:11).
In the fourth match this year, the tie break decided the game for the fourth time. In both Hong Kong and Melbourne he won overtime in the first round and lost in the second round. Curious!
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Struff: “It was a good match at a high level. He was only better in the first set, otherwise it was my turn. It’s crazy that I’m losing. The performance is right, but the result is not.”
On outside court 7 at Melbourne Park, Struff and Kecmanovic don’t give each other much attention. While the Serb, number 60 in the world, has to fight hard for his two set wins, Germany’s number 2 easily takes both of them 6:1. Struff will ask himself why he has to give two sentences.
The fifth round is tough. Kecmanovic takes the lead early with a break, but Struff, the world number 25, fights back. The spectators experience a heated exchange of blows that leads to the inevitable tie break.
However, with the score at 5:6, Kecmanovic previously had three match points on Struff’s serve. The German fends this off and saves himself in the tie break. Shouts of “Struffi, Struffi” echo across the court. And the battle continues.
At 9:7, Struff now has two match points, which he carelessly misses. “I perhaps had a bit too much time to think on the second match point. The idea was right, the execution was not. I would like to play it again,” says Struff.
Then, seconds later, Kecmanovic used his fourth attempt after 3:21 hours to make it 11:9. Bitter…