BENGALURU: Albert Ramos-Vinolos, the fifth-seeded Spaniard, ended Sumit Nagal‘s five-match winning streak in the quarterfinals of the Argentina Open, an ATP 250 Series event in Buenos Aires.
Ramos-Vinolos, ranked 46, started slowly against the 23-year-old qualifier, but rallied to score a 4-6, 6-2, 7-5 win in a roller-coaster affair.
Nagal enjoyed the first strike, breaking Ramos-Vinolos in the fifth game of the opening set. The 33-year-old struggled with his serves in his first two service games, coming from behind to hold. Nagal rose to the challenge in the tenth game, turning around a 0-30 deficit to seal an early advantage.
The momentum shifted in the second set, Ramos-Vinolos stepped in, making Nagal play more from the backhand side. He broke in the sixth game and again in the eighth to level set-scores.
The Spaniard then had a chance to break in the second game of the decider, but it wasn’t until the sixth that he was able to get ahead. He set up the breakpoint with a drop shot and on the next point the Indian came up short.
Ramos-Vinolos’ nerve shook when serving for a place in the semifinals and Nagal stood firm to get back on serve, winning three successive games to level at five-all. The fifth seed broke for the match in the 12th game.