U.S. Open | Carballes Baena hands Rune shock first-round exit
The Hindu
Roberto Carballes Baena shocked 4th seed Holger Rune, winning 6-3 4-6 6-3 6-2 in the US Open 1st round. Carballes Baena was lethal from the baseline, firing off 7 aces as Rune struggled to make an impact. Rune had early exits from tune-up events & had no break points in the 1st set.
Spain's Roberto Carballes Baena battled past an error-riddled Holger Rune 6-3 4-6 6-3 6-2 in the first round of the U.S. Open on Monday, handing the fourth seed a shock early exit from the year's final major.
Carballes Baena was lethal from the baseline and fired off seven aces as his Danish rival struggled to make any form of impact on a muggy afternoon match at Flushing Meadows.
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Rune suffered early exits from tune-up events in Toronto and Cincinnati and there were early signs of trouble on Monday as he failed to earn a break point in the first set.
Carballes Baena converted on break point chances in the fifth and ninth games but his serve lost its firepower in the second set, where Rune finally broke in the third game.
The Spaniard, who won in Marrakech earlier this year, cleaned up his act in the third set, where he broke Rune to love in the eighth game, and had clear control over the affair in the fourth set, where he only dropped a single first-serve point.
Carballes Baena broke his opponent's serve in the third and seventh games and beamed widely after Rune surrendered the match with an unforced forehand error.
Asian Games champion Avinash Sable opened his season in the 3000m steeple chase with a silver in the Portland Track Festival, a World Athletics Continental Tour bronze event, in Oregon on Saturday. He clocked 8:21.85s. Asian champion Parul Chaudhary took the bronze in the women’s 3000m steeple chase in a season-best 9:31.38s. Former Asian bronze medallist Sanjivani Jadhav struck gold in the women’s 10,000m in 32:22.77s, a time which was a second off her personal best, while Seema was sixth in 32:55.91s.