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Injury forces Davydenko to withdraw from Dubai clash
ESPN staff
February 24, 2010
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Nikolay Davydenko's heavy workload has taken its toll
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Nikolay Davydenko is out of the Dubai Tennis Championships after he was forced to withdraw from his second round match with Michael Berrer due to a wrist injury.
Davydenko has been in fine form this season, but there are now concerns that he may be forced into an extended lay-off after a recurring injury struck on Wednesday. The Russian dropped the first set 6-3 to Berrer, before calling an end to proceedings on the advice of the trainer.
Berrer deserves credit for the manner in which he played the first set though, after finding some acute angles to keep Davydenko off balance. The German's forehand to the backhand side was particularly dangerous, and he accepted the only break point of the set in order to lead before Davydenko's withdrawal.
"It's disappointing for me because I didn't recover fast enough," said Davydenko on the official ATP Tour website. "I don't know if I'll go to Moscow for Davis Cup."
Marin Cilic could be one of the men to benefit from Davydenko's departure as he battled his way through a tough second round clash with Stefan Koubek, eventually winning 6-2 7-6(6).
Cilic managed to get less than half of his first serves in against Koubek, producing a 48 per cent first-serve success as the Austrian broke on three occasions. Number six seed Cilic has developed into far more than just a big server though, and he used his unpredictable backhand to good effect to convert five break opportunities of his own.
The Croatian now faces Jurgen Melzer in the next round after Melzer beat Tommy Robredo 6-3 7-5. Melzer was made to save four break points in the contest as he clinically despatched Robredo, breaking the Spaniard to claim victory in the 12th game of the second set.
Novak Djokovic endured a disastrous first set against Viktor Troicki
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Jo-Wilfried Tsonga reported feeling unwell ahead of his game with Ivan Ljubicic and he looked extremely out of sorts as the Croat claimed a 7-5 6-3 win.
Novak Djokovic rallied from a set down to narrowly evade a shock exit at the hands of fellow Serbian Viktor Troicki. Djokovic needed all of his resolve to overcome a disastrous opening hour before triumphing 3-6 6-4 6-2.
Things went wrong from the very start for the world No. 2, whose radar was completely off as he dropped his opening service game. A series of over hit forehands played havoc with Djokovic's game, and Troicki ensured there was no let-up as he pinned his opponent behind the baseline, breaking a second time to take the first set 6-3.
"He was a better player for a set and a half," said Djokovic. "I think this is one of the rare tournaments that you really feel [a] big, big difference between the day match and night match. The balls go much faster, and as soon as the shade came on the court, I felt more control over my game."
The second set began in similar manner for Djokovic, although this time Troicki could not clinch a break as the former Australian Open winner began to find some rhythm. The Troicki serve also became a factor as his first serve success rate fell below 50 per cent, allowing Djokovic to break twice to level the match.
All the momentum now rested with Djokovic, who broke twice more to storm into a 4-0 lead in the deciding set, setting up victory in just over two hours.
Marcos Baghdatis was also given a hard time as he needed three sets to overcome Somdev Devvarman 6-3 3-6 6-1. The Cypriot produced a scrappy performance during his 105 minutes on court, mixing six aces with six double faults to set up a meeting with Berrer in the next round.
Mikhail Youzhny confirmed himself as Janko Tipsarevic's opponent in the quarter-finals, after he beat Bjorn Phau of Germany 7-6(2) 6-4. Youzhny shared a break apiece with Phau before edging the first set tie-breaker, and he only needed one further break to close out the contest.
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