STO Dbls 4th seeds Ebden and Smith set up clash against top-ranked Belgians in final!
By Dillon Lim
Spectators were allowed to attend the Singapore Tennis Open for the very first time at the OCBC Arena today. A maximum of 250 fans under strict safety measures, managed to catch the 2nd Doubles semi-final clash between 4th seeds Matthew Ebden and John-Patrick Smith and the pairing of David Vega Hernandez and Luis David Martinez.
The unseeded duo started strong despite losing the first two points in the opening game. Vega Hernandez showed some good reaction at the net, while Martinez hit a beautiful passing shot to win the first game. The Aussie duo responded with some well played points of their own. And their opponents then held to love in no time to move ahead 2-1. They produced two return winners in the next game, but Ebden stood his ground to get the hold.
The 4th seeds drew first blood in the next game, after a missed overhead from their opponents handed them the break for a 3-2 lead. They quickly backed up the break after Smith held to love. The next two games flew by quickly and Martinez had to serve to stay in the set, trailing 3-5. A great dig from Martinez to keep the point alive followed by a volley winner from his team-mate, set them up for a quick hold before converting. This put Smith up to the task of serving for the set at 5-4. But a missed volley by Ebden brought up the first 40-40 deciding point of the match and a chance for the unseeded pair to break back. Smith though, put away an overhead smash to close the set 6-4 in 33 minutes. The 4th seeds had a high first serve percentage of 85% and won 78% of points behind their first serve.
The 2nd set started with a 40-40 deciding point in the first game, but an unreturned first serve on the crucial point put the Venezuelan-Spanish pair ahead 1-0. Two consecutive return winners from Vega Hernandez helped to break Ebden’s serve and the unseeded pair lead 2-0. Martinez then backed up the break with a few strong serves to move ahead 3-0. In addition, a quick service hold each from both pairs saw Martinez and Vega Hernandez race ahead 4-1, and move closer to bringing the match to a deciding tiebreak.
The 4th seeds showed no signs of backing down and broke back to trail 3-4. The Aussie duo jumped at the chance to get back on level at 4-4. In the next game, Smith hit a delicate drop volley to put Vega Hernandez’s serve in trouble, before the 4th seeds found themselves with 3 break points. On the third time of asking, an unforced error from Vega Hernandez gave his opponents the break. After winning 4 straight games in a row, 33 year old Ebden was serving for the match at 5-4. The game quickly moved to 30-30 and a backhand unforced error from the Spaniard gave the Aussie pair two match points. And Ebden hit an unreturned serve to seal the match in an hour and 14 minutes, 6-4 6-4. Ebden and Smith converted 3/6 break points and won 77% of points behind their first serve, with a first serve percentage of 79%.
The 4th seeds will move on to the grand final and face top seeds, Jordan Vliegen and Sander Gillé, for the title.
(Edited by Raj Kumar)
Dillon Lim is in his final year of university. He enjoys playing tennis and has been in love with the game since he was a kid. The 23 year old used to play competitively for Raffles Institution and was in the junior national training squad before leaving to study in the UK. And he still plays for his current university. Off the court, Dillon enjoys watching tennis matches and always keeps up with the very latest tournaments.
For live streams, schedules and more stories from the Singapore Tennis Open 2021, visit hub.tennis
For the latest Singapore Tennis Open updates on the go, follow us on Telegram
Related Articles
Related Topics
Related Events & Programmes
Related Articles
Related Topics
Related Articles
View AllRelated Topics
[BlogPost 164438712123 NSG 2024 Badminton: Senior Div Girls Quarter-Finals, BlogPost 164238055490 Evergreen Aleksandar Duric Still Making Headlines at 53, BlogPost 164170080646 NSG 2024 Rope Skipping: Junior Div Girls Freestyle Team Finals, BlogPost 162884973666 Move and Rest Better With Data From Your Own Body, BlogPost 163393049482 Life Comes Full Circle For Serangoon Garden Secondary School's Fahrish Khan, BlogPost 163258797651 Making Golf a Sport for All, BlogPost 162512222328 NSG 2024 Sepaktakraw: Senior Div Yuhua Primary School vs Qihua Primary School, BlogPost 162233592997 Gritty Lions Suffer Loss to China, BlogPost 162089384371 On Your Mark, Get Ready, Go Running, BlogPost 161670652697 Lions' Excellent Showing Against China, BlogPost 161435270031 Ogura Optimistic for Exciting Clash against China, BlogPost 161127614758 The Future of Basketball in Singapore: Why 3x3 is Here to Stay, BlogPost 161033673012 The Active Lifestyler's Guide to the New ActiveSG Delta Sport Centre, BlogPost 161128356680 Grand New Champions Crowned at WTT Singapore Smash 2024, BlogPost 160844835218 NSG 2024 Table Tennis: C Div Boys Pool Round, BlogPost 160210745115 NSG 2024 Basketball: Senior Div Girls Tampines Primary School vs Frontier Primary School, BlogPost 159881180544 Whirlwind Return to Women's Football, BlogPost 159633541417 Singapore Smash to Elevate a New Legacy, BlogPost 158983580420 NSG 2024 Rugby: B Div Damai Secondary School vs Peirce Secondary School, BlogPost 159003960202 SFA Fiesta: Kicking off 2024 to a Roaring Start, BlogPost 158830735126 NSG 2024 Football: B Div Girls Preliminary Round Meridian Secondary School VS Bowen Secondary School, BlogPost 158536989718 Team Nila Volunteers Recognized At Awards Ceremony, BlogPost 158270107806 NSG 2024 Hockey: B Div Boys Preliminary Round Raffles Institution VS St. Hilda Secondary School, BlogPost 157966862615 NSG 2024 Floorball: B Division Preliminary Rounds Kick Off!, BlogPost 157562433712 What Is Safe Sport?, BlogPost 157559446197 Sengkang Secondary: Cultivating Well-Rounded Footballers, BlogPost 157368261167 New National Training Centre for Cricket at West Coast Ground, BlogPost 155340164987 Active Ageing with Joey Bonifacio, BlogPost 155930815517 Inaugural Singapore Youth League kicks off from 24th February 2024, BlogPost 155340164727 Bukit Canberra : the Coolest Spot in the North, BlogPost 155368905255 How Padang Fandi Inspired Ayden to Chase his Dream, BlogPost 154755572826 Ageing Backwards with Elizabeth Cheang, BlogPost 154094657315 Running For Fitness, BlogPost 153318636178 Excitement Builds for FIBA 3x3 Asia Cup 2024, BlogPost 153198644247 World's Top Four Confirmed for 2024 HSBC Women's World Championship, BlogPost 149413941770 Cultivating Your Kids’ Interest in the Outdoors, BlogPost 149413941163 Making Sport More Appealing for Our Kids, BlogPost 149412549409 Solo Or Team Sport – Choosing the Best for Your Child, BlogPost 151197478798 Former Lions Stalwart Baihakki Khaizan Sheds Light on New Accreditation to Elevate Grassroots Football and Youth Development, BlogPost 80703591291 New Year, Fitter You! Here are the top 3 workouts for the New Year, BlogPost 81171151456 7 Reasons Why Sports are Great for Children’s Mental Health, BlogPost 80542065330 17 Best Yoga Classes & Studios in Singapore [+ Rating & Prices], BlogPost 149404351798 From Brush to Lens: A Student's Journey in the World of Art and Sports Photography, BlogPost 149402825063 The Benefits of Active Parenting, BlogPost 149397832009 Sweden Claim 9th Straight Gold at the Women's World Floorball Championship, BlogPost 149397831449 Lion City Sailors Win 2023 Singapore Cup, BlogPost 148511324266 Pitch Perfect with Jonathan Teo, BlogPost 148511724402 Seniors: Increase your flexibility bit by bit with these stretches, BlogPost 147866574167 A Valuable Experience In Spain for Singapore's National Development Centre U-14 Boys, BlogPost 146915317264 How one magical Kallang night changed the lives of Abirami and Daania forever]