Print

Mail

wiki links

Dancevic outlasts Kunitsyn in rain-plagued marathon

Frank Dancevic of Canada returns a shot to Igor Kunitsyn of Russia during the Indianapolis Tennis Championships on Friday in Indianapolis, Indiana. Dancevic won 6-4, 7-6 (3). PHOTO: AFP

Nearly nine hours after he began play, Canada's Frank Dancevic reached his first ATP semi-final by rallying to defeat Russian Igor Kunitsyn 6-4, 7-6 (3) in a rain-plagued match in the Indianapolis Championships on Friday.

His reward is a semi-final date with top-seeded Andy Roddick, seeking his fourth trip to the finals here in four years. Roddick eliminated No. 6 Lee Hyung-taik of South Korea 6-3, 6-7 (7), 6-1.

Dancevic's match was halted by rain three times for nearly eight hours.

Dancevic, who hadn't won consecutive ATP matches this year until he arrived here, quickly broke Kunitsyn and then held, ending the set with one of his five aces in the opening set.

Another shower halted play in the second set with Kunitsyn leading 2-1. Play resumed 23 minutes later and Kunitsyn went up 4-1 before another shower suspended the match for the third time. That delay lasted over three hours and Kunitsyn took a 5-1 advantage before Dancevic rallied.

A huge draw in India, Sania Mirza is becoming nearly as big in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Mirza beat Swiss No. 4 seed Patty Schnyder, 7-6 (2), 6-1 on Friday in the quarter-finals of the Bank of the West Classic in front of a largely Indian crowd. Following match point, she received a standing ovation.

"We're a billion of us," Mirza said. "So I go through a lot more than any 35th-ranked player would normally go through. But I'm used to it and I use it to my advantage."

Schnyder, a finalist here last year, was in charge early in the match but then seemed to fall apart after losing a critical challenge late in the first set.

"I couldn't win hardly a point after that," Schnyder said. "It was a very bad match and it's happening too many times now. I gave her easy shots and she took advantage and found a rhythm."

Mirza fought back from a 5-2 deficit and said the crowd was a factor in her comeback.

"It's you playing and it's you behind 5-2 but knowing all those people are behind you helps," Mirza said.
This story has been viewed 1020 times.