VIC, May 15, 2024
The clay-court swing on the ITF World Tennis Tour in Catalonia continues this week with the 20th edition of the ITF M25 Vic, being held at the Club Tennis Vic 1948. The historic town with about 45,000 inhabitants is renowned for its rich cultural heritage, picturesque old town, and vibrant atmosphere. The city boasts a mix of ancient Roman and medieval architecture, including the impressive Cathedral of Vic, which dates back to the 11th century and features stunning Gothic elements.
Hola, 🇪🇸 Vic! 👋#TravelTheTour #Vic pic.twitter.com/BLFtoXeVQ2
— Florian Heer (@Florian_Heer) May 15, 2024
De Krom knocks off Sanchez Izquierdo
Singles main draw action got underway on Wednesday with the top two seeds falling in the opening round. Dutch qualifier Michiel de Krom knocked out No. 1 seed Nikolas Sanchez Izquierdo of Spain 6-3, 6-7, 7-5. The World No. 755 capitalized on seven of his 17 break-point chances to secure victory in three hours and 30 minutes.
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“It was very close but I stayed calm. That was important,” De Krom told Tennis TourTalk afterwards.
“I have a Spanish coach and often practice in Madrid. I love the language, the weather and food,” said the winner of 15 ITF doubles titles, who is still seeking his maiden crown in singles.
“Sometimes I play good in doubles, which seems to be easier as you are often more relaxed. But the focus is on singles.” De Krom will next take on Bulgarian qualifier Anthony Genov, who defeated British wild card entry Zach Stephens 6-3, 6-3.
Later on Court 1, Raphael Collignon of Belgium upset No. 2 seed Thai-Son Kwiatkoski from the United States 7-6, 6-4. The 22-year-old won 81 per cent of his first-service points to prevail after almost two hours of play. Collignon will next play local wild card entry Rafael Jodar, who was a 6-4, 6-4 winner over Milan Markovits from Hungary.
Mixed feelings for German players
The highest-seeded player left in the singles draw is Marvin Moeller. The 308th-ranked German outlasted Adria Soriano Barrera of Colombia 3-6, 7-6, 6-3 in a topsy-turvy encounter, which lasted three hours and three minutes and ended just before sunset.
“I had a good start into the match, took an early 4-1 lead and secured the first set. However, he serves very well and doesn’t give you any rhythm,” said Moeller, who arrived from a final at an ITF event in Värnamo, Sweden. “The courts are different here. I lost my serve in the second set, came back but lost the tie-break. I am happy that I could close it out in the end.”
The 25-year-old from Hamburg will next be challenged by Spanish wild card John Echeverria, who fought past 16-year-old Briton Oliver Bonding 3-6, 7-6, 6-2 in two hours and 33 minutes. The teenager, who clinched this year’s UK National Junior Champions title was bidding for his first win on the Pro Circuit in his only second match.
Elsewhere, Nicola Kuhn was forced to retire in his match against Spaniard Miguel Damas due to injury. The 24-year-old German, who resides in Spain, finished runner-up to Martin Klizan at last week’s ITF M25 event in Valldoreix. Kuhn struggled physically right from the beginning of the encounter, lost the opening set 6-1 and decided to stop playing after the first game of the second set.
