Twenty-year-old Karen Khachanov, who won his first career ATP title in Chengdu, beat Andreas Seppi 6-4 6-4 in the first round of the Erste Bank Indoor Tournament in Vienna, a ATP 500 Tournament. The young Russian rising star won 82 percent of his first serve points. He will face either Tomas Berdych or Nikoloz Basilashvili.
The first set went on serve in the first nine games without break points. Seppi made a double fault to face two break points at 15-40 in the 10th game. Seppi saved both set points but dropped her serve on the third opportunity as he hit a forehand long.
Both players held their serve in the first six games until 3-3. Seppi dropped his serve with two forehand unforced errors in the eighth game. The Italian did not convert two break points but broke back on his third opportunity, as he was serving to stay in the match but dropped his serve at love in the final game, as he hit his forehand into the net.
Ivo Karlovic beat last year’s finalist Steve Johnson 7-6 (7-5) 6-3. The first set went on serve without breaks until the tie-break where Karlovic prevailed 7-5. The Croatian player saved six break points and converted his only break of the match in the sixth game for 4-2 to close out the match. The Croatian player fended off all six break point chances and hit 16 aces. He increased his tally to 1019 aces. He will face Bosnian qualifier Damir Dzumhur, who edged Nicolas Almagro 6-3 5-7 6-0.
John Isner came back from one set down to overcome Jan-Lennard Struff 6-7 (1-7) 6-3 6-4. The US player fired 18 aces and saved all seven break points he faced. Struff won the tie-break 7-1 after a first set without breaks. Isner broke twice in the eighth game of the second set and in the ninth game of the decider to take the win.
