Verdasco Edges Anderson In Houston Opener

Fifth seed Fernando Verdasco remained perfect on clay against Kevin Anderson on Wednesday, edging the South African 7-6(4), 7-6(4) to move into the second round of the Fayez Sarofim & Co. US Men’s Clay Court Championship in Houston.

After taking the first set tie-break, the Spaniard was broken to start the second set but broke right back to even the set at 1-1. Verdasco would win the final two points of the second set tie-break to finish the one-hour and 57-minute contest. The 33-year-old left-hander now leads their FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry 3-2, having won their previous match-ups on clay in 2011 (Estoril) and 2012 (Barcelona).

Anderson, though, had won their past two contests, at the 2013 Australian Open and 2016 Nottingham. Verdasco, who won the Houston title in 2014, will meet Argentine Nicolas Kicker in the second round. “It was a really complicated, tough first round,” Verdasco said. “He has one of the best serves on tour. Even if he’s on clay he’s super tough to return… I feel lucky that I’ve been able to win both tie-breaks.”

Verdasco’s countryman Feliciano Lopez hit 14 aces in a 7-5, 6-4 victory against American wild card Bjorn Fratangelo. Lopez, the sixth seed, will face #NextGenATP player Hyeon Chung of South Korea in the second round. The 20-year-old Chung grinded out a 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 win against three-time Quito champion Victor Estrella Burgos, who was going for his first Houston win in his third attempt.

Eighth seed Thomaz Bellucci made a successful Houston debut, outlasting #NextGenATP player Frances Tiafoe 7-5, 1-6, 6-2. The Brazilian broke the 19 year old three times in the decider. “I couldn’t play much better in the third set,” Bellucci said.

The left-hander will meet Argentine wild card Maximo Gonzalez, who prevailed past #NextGenATP American Jared Donaldson 6-4, 5-7, 6-3. Donaldson’s countryman 20-year-old Ernesto Escobedo was more fortunate: The #NextGenATP player earned his first ATP World Tour win on clay by beating compatriot Tennys Sandgren 6-3, 6-3.

“I feel comfortable on the surface. I’ve been practising a lot on clay recently because I feel like with my game style I could do pretty good on the clay, just because I play super aggressive with a lot of spin. So I just have to adapt to it,” said Escobedo, who received a wild card into the main draw. “It’s an awesome opportunity for me here. It’s a great chance for me to do well at an ATP [World Tour] tournament.”

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