Erste Bank Open Knockouts—Nathans Blog

Written by: Staff on 28th October 2011

Erste Bank Open Knockouts—Nathans Blog |

By: Nathan M. Cuny

Today the 28^th of October 2011, IndoPak Express was scheduled to deliver a knockout blow at the Erste Bank Open quarterfinals. Rohan Bopanna and Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi did not deliver the knockout to their opponents Mariusz Fyrstenberg and Marcin Matkowski. The scores of the match were 6 3 10 Fyrstenberg/Matkowski and 4 6 4 Bopanna/Qureshi.

Bopanna and Qureshi’s knockout from the Erste Bank Open won’t deal a great blow to the teammates. They already hold two ATP 250 titles this season, the Stockholm Open and the Gerry Weber Open—I’m sure they would have enjoyed the pleasure of winning their third in Vienna.

Having knocked Bopanna and Qureshi out of the way, Mariusz Fyrstenberg and Marcin Matkowski move onto the Erste Bank Semifinals. Fyrstenberg and Matkowski have won no titles this season. They go head to head tomorrow against Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan in the semifinals. Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan overcame their quarterfinals opponents Oliver Marach and David Marrero 6-3 7-6².

Fyrstenberg/Matkowski’s impending match against the doubles No.1 team of Bryan/Bryan, may greatly lessen their chances of reaching the Erste Bank Open’s finals. If Matkowski and Marcin do win the tournament their points ranking will boost up to 3,250 bringing them a mere 310 points from Bopanna and Qureshi’s No.7 spot.

Continuing on at the Erste Bank Open would have made great opponent practice for Bopanna and Qureshi. As the BNP Paribas Masters 1000 event looms 8 days from today, perhaps the recent loss was best for Bopanna and Qureshi. The teammates will need some rest to rebuild their strength while also honing their skills a bit further before the final Masters 1000 tournament of the season. Paris will be a strenuous event as many of the top 20 doubles players are expected to participate.

The Erste Bank Open’s schedule for Saturday the 29^th of October is as follows:

CENTRE COURT

Matches Start At: 1:00 pm

Kevin ANDERSON (RSA)

Juan Martin DEL POTRO (ARG)

followed by

Jo-Wilfried TSONGA (FRA) or

Xavier MALISSE (BEL)

Daniel BRANDS (GER)

Not Before 4:00 PM

Juan Martin DEL POTRO (ARG)

Radek STEPANEK (CZE)

Max MIRNYI (BLR)

Daniel NESTOR (CAN)

followed by

Bob BRYAN (USA)

Mike BRYAN (USA)

Mariusz FYRSTENBERG (POL)

Marcin MATKOWSKI (POL)

For the remainder of the weekend the IndoPak Express team will either rest, practice, or watch by the side lines as their closest rivals Fyrstenberg/Matkowski duke it out with Bryan/Bryan for a spot in the Erste Bank Open Finals. This should be an exciting match for fans of the Fyrstenberg/Matkowski team as they take on the doubles No.1 team of Bryan/Bryan. For Bopanna/Qureshi fans this match will be a nail-biter as the doubles No.8 team gets a closer shot at IndoPak Express’ No.7 spot.

Topics: Erste Bank Open