Canadian Steven Diez failed in his bid to advance to the main draw at the Houston Tennis Tournament on Sunday in Texas.
The 31-year-old fell in three sets 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 by Dutchman Gijs Brouwer. It’s a bit of a surprise, considering the Torontonian was seeded seventh in qualifying, while his opponent was unseeded for pre-tournament competition.
The 356th player in the world managed to get out of trouble several times in the third and final set. Indeed, Brouwer saved three of the four break points offered by Diez. The winner also took his rival’s serve three times in that fateful round.
Diez, 289th in the world rankings, finished his clash with a success rate of 77% with his first service attempts, but won only 53% of rallies played in this situation.
Carol Zhao dominated
In the second qualifying round of the tennis tournament in Charleston, South Carolina, Canadian Carol Zhao was defeated 6-3, 6-1 by American Robin Anderson.
The representative of the maple leaf won only 37% of disputed rallies on her first serve. Zhao was also smashed eight times and she kicked her rival four times in eight occasions.
The 292nd player on the world board was the 16th seed in the qualifying event of the Charleston competition. The winner of this duel was ranked as the fourth favorite and ranks 172nd in the WTA rankings.