2019 AO Play-off: James Duckworth topples Luke Saville to secure AO trip
Lingering in the top-200 for almost two years, James Duckworth had finally made the next big step in his career in 2015 when he cracked the top-100 for the first time, finishing the year outside the elite group but hoping to establish himself among the best players in the world in the next year. Instead of that, the Sydney native started to struggle with injuries and he had numerous setbacks in the last three seasons, forced to undergo two right foot surgeries and one on the right shoulder in 2017, playing just one match and losing all of his points.
A right foot and right elbow surgeries followed in the first half of 2018 and James even feared he will not be able to make a comeback after spending more time on his rehab than on the court. The positive signs were there when he won Challenger in Cary in September as a qualifier and James made another huge step on the comeback trail, winning the Australian Open Wild Card Play-off at Melbourne Park to secure the place in the main draw of the upcoming Australian Open, making his seventh appearance in Melbourne in the last eight years. In the title match, James took down Luke Saville 6-3 5-7 7-5 7-6 to win this tournament for the second time and complete the year in the best possible way.
He was off to a better start, creating four break points in the second game and converting the last one following a well-constructed attack that gave him an early advantage. Luke saved a set point on serve at 2-5 but he couldn't do anything on the return, allowing James to grab the opener with an ace in game nine. Saville raised his level in set number two and he was there to fight until the very last point of the match, earning a break in game six to move 4-2 up after a backhand error from Duckworth. Saving a set point at 2-5, James broke back in the following game thanks to a volley winner but his efforts were in vain, getting broken again in game 12 to hand the set to his rival.
Saville had the advantage in those moments and he broke again in the second game of the third set after a perfect lob, looking stronger and stronger on the court. Trailing 4-1 40-15, James saved both break points for one of the most important holds during the entire week, staying within one break deficit and pulling it back in game seven after a double fault from Saville. With the momentum on his side, Duckworth broke again in game 11 after another double fault from his rival and he closed the set with a hold at 15 for a 7-5 and a significant step towards the finish line.
The rain halted the action at 3-3 in the fourth set and Luke suffered a break when they returned an hour and a half later, falling 5-3 down after a service winner from James in the eighth game. Luke saved a match point with an amazing volley winner in the ninth game and another one with a service winner, reducing the deficit to 5-4 and breaking back after a double fault from Duckworth while serving for the match to level the score at 5-5. James broke again in game 11 after a deep return but he failed to serve out for the match for the second time, spraying a backhand error to keep Luke in contention before the tie break. Despite those setbacks, Duckworth stayed composed and he clinched the breaker 7-2 with a forehand winner, punching the Australian Open ticket and starting an emotional celebration of what has been one of his greatest moments in the last couple of years.
Final result:
[3]James Duckworth vs [WC]Luke Saville 6-3 5-7 7-5 7-6(2)
from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2GjPIcA
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