Two out of three for Italy on the first day of the “Mallorca Championships”, tournament ATP 250 which is being held on the lawns of the Balearic island, in Spain, the last event before Wimbledon.
Fognini-Brouwer 7-6, 7-6
Good first on the grass for Fabio Fognini. The n.97 in the ranking, on the scoreboard thanks to a wild cards and fresh from the new platinum blonde look, he surpassed the Dutchman in authority Gijs Brouwer, n.190 in the ranking, fished back into the scoreboard as lucky loser. The 37 year old from Arma di Taggia won with a double 7-6, dominating both tie-breaks won 7-4 and 7-5. Now for him in the round of 16 there will be one between Eubanks (8) and Mensik.
Darderi-Martinez 7-5, 7-5
Another great test of character for Luciano Darderi. The ATP No. 37 and fifth seed of the tournament won the derby of the ‘terraioli’ against the Spaniard Pedro Martínezn.48 in the ranking. 7-5, 7-5 the scores for the Italian in about two hours of play, with Luciano doing well in making a comeback in the second set where he was down by a break and 4-5. Darderi, who already demonstrated in Halle that he can also play very well on grass, awaits Munar-Ofner’s winner.
Hijikata-Nardi 6-2, 2-6, 7-5
He leaves the stage on his debut Luca Nardi. The ATP n.73 lost in three sets against the Australian Rinky Hijikata, n.75 in the ranking and fresh from the quarterfinals at Queen’s. In the first comparison between the two, the Aussie with the partial wins was the winner 6-2, 2-6, 7-5 after more than two hours of playing. It’s a shame for Nardi, who found himself up by a break in the third set. Hijikata will therefore be the debut opponent for the American Ben Sheltonn.14 in the ranking and first seeding favorite.
