Karlovic Saves Match Points To Advance In Antwerp

Ivo Karlovic saved three match points in a two-hour, 13-minute battle to eliminate Guido Pella, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6(10) in the first round of the European Open in Antwerp, Belgium.

The 38 year old saved two break points in the second set at 3-3 to avoid going down a set and a break against the Argentine, before holding off Pella’s three match points in the third-set tie-break. Each opportunity was on Karlovic’s serve, and the Croatian capitalised on his third opportunity to advance to the second round.

In other action, Sergiy Stakhovsky temporarily halted Jared Donaldson’s efforts in the Emirates ATP Race To Milan with a 7-6(4), 6-4 victory over the American. The Ukrainian saved the only break point he faced, and broke the 21 year old at 4-4 in the second set to give himself the advantage he needed to close out the match.

Donaldson sits in fifth place in the Race with 890 points, with his closest competitor, No. 6 Borna Coric, losing in the first round in Moscow Monday. The Top 7 players in the Race automatically qualify for the first Next Gen ATP Finals, with an Italian wild card event deciding the eighth player.

Four seeded singles players will begin their tournaments on Tuesday, with No. 7 Benoit Paire opening the day’s play against Joao Sousa, sixth seed Pablo Cuevas taking on #NextGenATP Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas and No. 8 Alexandr Dolgopolov confronting Henri Laaksonen. Fifth seed David Ferrer will kick off the night session on Center Court against qualifier Stefano Travaglia.