30th week

A holder of a weak 1-6 record lately, Robin Haase [42] is well adjusted to the hight altitude – in Kitzbuhel (800 m),  as a defending champion,  he won his second career title. Just like a year before, he got matches of the second round and quarterfinal within one day (due to bad weather) – a difference – last year it happened on Friday, this year on Thursday. The tournament was finished on Saturday (also 1-hour rain delay after the 1st set) because the same day started the Olympics, and some players who participated in Kitzbuhel, take part in the London event as well, including Philipp Kohlschreiber whose advancement to the final in Austria is rewarded with a break into the Top 20 for the first time in life. The German squandered all six points in the 3rd set of the final, Haase came back from 15/40 at 1-all and 0/40 at 4:2: “I’m happy I won here again. I don’t think many players have won here twice. It doesn’t happen too often nowadays. I’m very proud of that.” In Kitzbuhel did it Guillermo Vilas (1982-83) and Albert Costa (1998-99).
In Los Angeles this week occurred arguably the weakest tournament in history of the Farmers Classic. Benoit Paire [50] was seeded No. 1 (Kohlschreiber in Kitzbuhel was seeded No. 1 for the first time in his career too). Former junior No.1, Ricardas Berankis had been sidelined for four months last season with a right pelvis stress fracture; last week in Atlanta he won his first main-tour match of the season, this week qualified to the final as a first Lithuanian-born player (one of the best players of the 70’s Vitas Gerulaitis – the Lithuanian descent), but was outplayed there in just 51 minutes by Sam Querrey, who came back to the winners circle after exactly two years. Querrey [57], who missed Los Angeles last year, has now extended his winning streak in L.A. to 13 (won titles in 2009-10). It’s his 7th title.

Finals:

Kitzbuhel (250)
S: (3)Robin Haase d. (1)Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-7(2), 6-3, 6-2
D: (1)F.Cermak/J.Knowle d. (2)D.Brown/P.Hanley 7-6(4), 3-6, [12-10] – 4 m.p.

Los Angeles (250)
S: (2)Sam Querrey d. (q)Ricardas Berankis 6-0, 6-2
D: R.Bemelmans/X.Malisse d. (3)J.Delgado/K.Skupski 7-6(5), 4-6, [10-7]

Choker of the week:

Andreas Haider-Maurer, who led in the Kitzbuhel first round 6-2, 5:2* (30/15) against Ernests Gulbis. Two games afterwards he held a match point – Gulbis fought it off with an ace and won 2-6, 7-5, 6-1.