'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Fifth seed Alexander Zverev of Germany beat Sebastian Ofner of Austria 6-4 6-1 in the first round of the Vienna Open last Monday, October 23. The match lasted for around one and a half hours, as Zverev marched towards the second round quite easily.
The 26-year-old German will take on Cameron Norrie of Great Britain on Wednesday. It should be an interesting battle, but Zverev should be the favourite to win the match. The German has won a couple of titles this year already and will look to add to his tally in Vienna.
However, the job against Norrie might not prove to be very easy, as the Brit is a better player than Ofner. It remains to be seen how Zverev responds to the upcoming challenge.
On that note, let us take a look at two things that stood out in the match:
#1. An absorbing baseline slugfest in the first set:
Both players exhibited exceptional ballstriking in the first set, with Ofner holding his own with his powerful serve and forehand. However, neither of the players managed to hit through each other frequently, as the conditions were not very fast.
The Austrian kept going around his backhand to dispatch the short balls for winners. However, his tendency to hit the net often hurt him. Ofner was able to save a couple of break points in the seventh game, but Zverev broke him ultimately and then held his serve to take a 5-3 lead.
The German then served out the first set to take a vital 1-0 lead in the match, which Ofner was always going to find difficult to overturn.
#2. Ofner became more error-prone in the second set, as Zverev raced through it:
Ofner struggled to keep up with Zverev's accuracy in the second set and often hit the ball long or wide to make the latter's job easier. Zverev often made Ofner play off his backhand and, therefore, the Austrian overpressed with his forehand when he had the opportunity to play off it.
The Austrian's return of serve was also pretty ordinary, as he was not able to get a single break point opportunity in the match. Zverev, meanwhile, broke him thrice in the second set alone to romp home quite easily.
The German won 88% of the points on his first serve, while Ofner managed only 59%. Zverev also won 64% of the points on his second delivery, while the Austrian managed 45%.
