Dubai, Feb 23 (Inditop.com) India’s No. 1 Somdev Devvarman pulled off a stunning 6-4, 7-5 victory over a top-100 player Swiss Marco Chiudinelli and moved into the second round of the $1,619,500 Dubai Tennis Championships here Tuesday.
Egged on by a sizeable India audience, Somdev, ranked 143 on the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) charts, knocked out 52nd-ranked Chiudinelli with some consistent serving and solid ground strokes.
Somdev, who qualified for the main draw, won 76 percent of his service points in the 80-minute battle.
The Indian, who will join his country’s Davis Cup squad to play the World Group against Russia in Moscow after this tournament, now plays Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis who overcame eighth-seeded Frenchman Simon Gilles 7-6 (3), 6-4 in the first round.
rounak