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Brian Swartz · 09-15-2016, 09:31 PM

Shanghai Masters

Usually the last hardcourt masters event of the year is relatively predictable given the swing of events that leads into the US Open just a month prior. In this case though, there were some interesting surprises in store.

Shyam Senepathy, again, exited stage right in the first round of qualifying. There were a number of interesting first-round matches, but the only one that resulted in a seeded player losing was Federer going down to Lars Kroese, 6-3, 7-6(10). Remember Kroese's name; he's young and on the rise. I think I'll be talking more about him in the years to come. Bjorn Benda had a tough one in the first round against countryman Moicevic but came through, and A. Herrera was pushed the three sets by US qualifier Robert Jerrold. Other than that, pretty straightforward.

With the quality of play picking up, there were some good matches to watch in the second round. Agustin Herrera couldn't dodge a second bullet, becoming the first Top-10 scalp of Luc Janin, who continues to force himself into the headlines. 6-1, 6-7(8), 7-6(5) was the final, as even when Herrera got going after the slow start he couldn't quite get past the 20-year-old Canadian. Poilblan was pushed to three by a German qualifier, and a couple of tense encounters saw McCuskey just barely survive Andronikov, and Ujjaval sneak past Cirakovic. Those could have gone either way, ending in three long sets. Meanwhile, qualifier Milan Farkas, a blast from the past, outplayed Benda but the German vet still prevailed 6-3, 5-7, 6-4. I've had him dead and buried most of the year, but Benda still manages to find his way through his share of the time.

In the third round, Tiosav Srbulovic continued his late-season hardcourt push by rallying from the loss of a set to oust no. 6 Theodore Bourdet. Then, Prakash Mooljee found himself up against Gustavo Caratti. Both on paper and on the court, it had the look a match that could go either way. Mooljee is the better player on this surface by now, but how many nearly-won matches has he lost this year? It nearly happened again before he recorded a 5-7, 6-3, 7-6(5) victory. A rare appearance by his serve helped immensely as he notched 21 aces. Khasan Zakirov, who has not been heard from much lately, took out Gaskell in a pair of tiebreaks to reach his first quarterfinal in a Masters or better, and Janin did so as well by eliminating Poilblan in a close match.

So both of the French players were gone, and three unseeded players reached the last eight here. Not exactly the usual way of things. An impressive start by Girsh saw him lose just two games against Srbulovic, while Mooljee was equally stunning in a 6-4, 6-2 demolition of Mugur Kinczllers, winning all seven break points against the world no. 5 on his best surface. This might be his most impressive display yet, and the opposite of his trend this year of not taking the opportunities presented. Iglar flattened Zakirov in quick fashion, and Anil Mehul was nearly a third consecutive upset victim of Janin before rallying, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3. The Canadian upstart appears to be progressing faster than I would have though possible.

The fourth meeting between Girish Girsh and Mooljee went as the first three have; Girsh in straight sets, and this one wasn't even close. It seems Prakash left all of his best tennis behind in the past couple of rounds, but a pair of Top-5 wins and a second Masters semi for the year came at a much-needed time for him, providing a huge boost. Antonin Iglar figured to once again be the final opponent, but Mehul surprisingly snapped a six-match losing streak lasting over a year against him, 6-3, 2-6, 6-4!

That left a chance for history to be made. If Anil Mehul won, he would break Gorritepe's record for the oldest man to win a Masters event by nearly half a year. When Girsh came out flat, it looked like it would happen. He came back to even the match, and the third set was in doubt until the end. Mehul's bid came up short, 2-6, 6-3, 7-5, but it was still a whale of a run and his first final in a big event this year.

09-15-2016, 09:31 PM	#494
Brian Swartz Grizzled Veteran Join Date: May 2006	Shanghai Masters Usually the last hardcourt masters event of the year is relatively predictable given the swing of events that leads into the US Open just a month prior. In this case though, there were some interesting surprises in store. Shyam Senepathy, again, exited stage right in the first round of qualifying. There were a number of interesting first-round matches, but the only one that resulted in a seeded player losing was Federer going down to Lars Kroese, 6-3, 7-6(10). Remember Kroese's name; he's young and on the rise. I think I'll be talking more about him in the years to come. Bjorn Benda had a tough one in the first round against countryman Moicevic but came through, and A. Herrera was pushed the three sets by US qualifier Robert Jerrold. Other than that, pretty straightforward. With the quality of play picking up, there were some good matches to watch in the second round. Agustin Herrera couldn't dodge a second bullet, becoming the first Top-10 scalp of Luc Janin, who continues to force himself into the headlines. 6-1, 6-7(8), 7-6(5) was the final, as even when Herrera got going after the slow start he couldn't quite get past the 20-year-old Canadian. Poilblan was pushed to three by a German qualifier, and a couple of tense encounters saw McCuskey just barely survive Andronikov, and Ujjaval sneak past Cirakovic. Those could have gone either way, ending in three long sets. Meanwhile, qualifier Milan Farkas, a blast from the past, outplayed Benda but the German vet still prevailed 6-3, 5-7, 6-4. I've had him dead and buried most of the year, but Benda still manages to find his way through his share of the time. In the third round, Tiosav Srbulovic continued his late-season hardcourt push by rallying from the loss of a set to oust no. 6 Theodore Bourdet. Then, Prakash Mooljee found himself up against Gustavo Caratti. Both on paper and on the court, it had the look a match that could go either way. Mooljee is the better player on this surface by now, but how many nearly-won matches has he lost this year? It nearly happened again before he recorded a 5-7, 6-3, 7-6(5) victory. A rare appearance by his serve helped immensely as he notched 21 aces. Khasan Zakirov, who has not been heard from much lately, took out Gaskell in a pair of tiebreaks to reach his first quarterfinal in a Masters or better, and Janin did so as well by eliminating Poilblan in a close match. So both of the French players were gone, and three unseeded players reached the last eight here. Not exactly the usual way of things. An impressive start by Girsh saw him lose just two games against Srbulovic, while Mooljee was equally stunning in a 6-4, 6-2 demolition of Mugur Kinczllers, winning all seven break points against the world no. 5 on his best surface. This might be his most impressive display yet, and the opposite of his trend this year of not taking the opportunities presented. Iglar flattened Zakirov in quick fashion, and Anil Mehul was nearly a third consecutive upset victim of Janin before rallying, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3. The Canadian upstart appears to be progressing faster than I would have though possible. The fourth meeting between Girish Girsh and Mooljee went as the first three have; Girsh in straight sets, and this one wasn't even close. It seems Prakash left all of his best tennis behind in the past couple of rounds, but a pair of Top-5 wins and a second Masters semi for the year came at a much-needed time for him, providing a huge boost. Antonin Iglar figured to once again be the final opponent, but Mehul surprisingly snapped a six-match losing streak lasting over a year against him, 6-3, 2-6, 6-4! That left a chance for history to be made. If Anil Mehul won, he would break Gorritepe's record for the oldest man to win a Masters event by nearly half a year. When Girsh came out flat, it looked like it would happen. He came back to even the match, and the third set was in doubt until the end. Mehul's bid came up short, 2-6, 6-3, 7-5, but it was still a whale of a run and his first final in a big event this year.