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Old 05-28-2015, 03:23 AM   #18
Brian Swartz
Grizzled Veteran
 
Join Date: May 2006
I decided to combine both Masters events into one report, since they are back-to-back and there wasn't a whole lot else going on.

Canada Masters

First up for our hero was dynamic Argentinian qualifier Robert Garcia. After surviving a first-set tiebreak, it was a quick finish. Then awaited the greatest of them all, Eric Gorritepe. At this point in his career he's still more than Mehul's equal, probably the only player in the world that is better from the baselilne. A little surprisingly, Mehul saved 11 of 13 break points in scoring his first top ten win in a very tight struggle, 7-6(8), 7-6(7). It could have gone either way, and any time you beat the GOAT, even at 32, it's a huge feather to put in your cap. Topoloski was up next, and it was the same story: close, but not close enough. The Russian won it 6-4, 6-4, going on to win the tournament with only Mick Elder able to give him a tougher match. With the victory, his first masters title, Topoloski crashes the party now at #9 in the rankings.

With back-to-back showings in the round of 16 and the win over Gorritepe, Mehul is seriously starting to move up in the world.

Cincinatti Masters

31-year-old Arnaldo Barranco(PER, 29th) is the kind of player that has become almost routine, and while he slipped in the second set Mehul was clearly the better player and advanced in three to face world no. 3 Mick Elder for the second time. The last meeting was the French Open over a year ago, when Elder surrendered just three games in as many sets. Time to see how far he's come. It was closer this time, but the titans of the sport are beyond Mehul's grasp yet, and he lost in the second round here 6-3, 6-4. With probably the best serve in the game and a partisan crowd behind him, the result was virtually foregone for Elder but it was a competitive match at least. Total points were 66-56; Mehul belongs on the court with the top guys now, but still has work to do in order to catch them.

Our hero is set to go into the US Open around 40th in the world, still a little bit out of the seeded positions. After that, the WTC picks up again with Sri Lanka looking to extend their win streak and continue to move up in the pecking order.
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