Aircel Chennai Open 2015: Daily Scores, Results and Draw Schedule
World No. 4 Stanislas Wawrinka got his year off to the best possible start, winning the Chennai Open for the second consecutive season.
The Swiss player started 2014 with a bang after overcoming Rafael Nadal to take his first-ever Grand Slam at the Australian Open, but the momentum he carried into that tournament was built up with an excellent performance in Chennai; he'll be hoping for a similar outcome this time round.
With Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Nadal all playing elsewhere in the buildup to the Melbourne showdown, Wawrinka showed the requisite class to pick up some comfortable wins in India.
Wawrinka shared some of the spotlight with Indian tennis icon Leander Paes, however. The 14-time Grand Slam doubles winner starts his 25th season on the ATP Tour at Chennai and has admitted that at 41 years old, his willingness to play on is founded on sheer competitive instincts, per ATPWorldTour.com:
"My own sense of competitiveness makes me put the hours in and then when the magic happens, in a big tournament or in a shot, it is very clear to recognise it.
We talk about athletes having an ego. But it is probably not ego. It is the pride of performance. The years of perseverance. I know every inch of that court.
"
Here's how the action panned out during a fascinating week at the Chennai Open.
Seedings, Draw and Schedule
1 of 8
| Seed | Player |
| 1. | Stanislas Wawrinka |
| 2. | Feliciano Lopez |
| 3. | Roberto Bautista Agut |
| 4. | David Goffin |
| 5. | Guillermo Garcia-Lopez |
| 6. | Yen-Hsun Lu |
| 7. | Marcel Granollers |
| 8. | Gilles Muller |
Seedings courtesy of aircelchennaiopen.org.
Full singles draw can be found here.
Full doubles draw can be found here.
Daily order of play can be found here.
Day 7 Recap
2 of 8
Day 7 Results
Men's Singles
Stanislas Wawrinka (1) beats Aljaz Bedene: 6-3, 6-4
Stanislas Wawrinka continued his dazzling form in the final of the Chennai Open, beating shock finalist Aljaz Bedene in straight sets.
The 6-3, 6-4 scoreline was an emphatic indicator of the top seed's dominance and the win means he didn't drop a set in the entire tournament; perfect preparation for the upcoming defence of his Australian Open title.
Bedene has been magnificent in the run up to this final, knocking out a host of seeded players on his way to this clash with the world No. 4, but this match always looked likely to be a step too far for the unseeded Slovenian.
Wawrinka began like a man who has been in exceptional form, too. He put the 25-year-old under pressure from the off and it became clear quickly that the first set was going to be over in a hurry. As noted here by the tournament's official Twitter account, the top seed's serve was working well too:
"Wawrinka serving at good first serve percentage (68) but Bedene finding a way to get into Stan's serve games #ACO2015
— Aircel Chennai Open (@chennaiopen) January 11, 2015"
On the critical points, Wawrinka always seemed to have an edge, though. So often Bedene found himself in the midst of a rally before his concentration slipped or an unforced error cost him.
That was wholly apparent as the match drew on. With the second set on serve the Swiss managed to snaffle a break point in the seventh game—his first of the set—and he took it with aplomb.
After Bedene saved four match points on his way to the vital, Wawrinka will have been keen to get this one done and dusted. But for a player of his class, from 4-3 and a break of serve up the result was never in doubt, and eventually won the second set 6-4.
Wawrinka won this tournament 12 months ago and it proved to be an excellent momentum builder on his way to a maiden Grand Slam title. After some scintillating displays this week there's a case that he looks in even better form on the cusp of the Australian Open and he's going to be a tough man to topple when the Melbourne showpiece gets underway.
Day 6 Recap
3 of 8
Day 6 Results
Men's Singles
Aljaz Bedene (SLO) defeated (3) Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP): 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (8)
(1) Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) defeated (4) David Goffin (BEL): 7-5, 6-3
Men's Doubles
Yen-Hsun Lu (TAI)/Jonathan Marray (GBR) defeated Purav Raja (IND)/Adil Shamasdin (CAN): 5-7, 6-3, 10-8
Recap
Slovenian qualifier Aljaz Bedene beat yet another Spanish seed on Saturday at the Chennai Open as he toppled Roberto Bautista Agut in three sets to reach his first ATP Tour final, where he will meet Stan Wawrinka.
Top seed Wawrinka beat Belgium's David Goffin 7-5, 6-3 to make the last two, Bedene—who beat Feliciano Lopez and Guillermo Garcia-Lopez in previous rounds—winning a final-set tie-break against third-seeded Bautista Agut to pull off another shock win.
Saturday's semi-finals were significantly different contests, Bedene's match stretching out to over two and a half hours while Wawrinka wrapped his victory up in 90 minutes.
The Swiss defending champion picked his moment to claim victory in the opening set with the first break of the match in game 12 against Goffin.
Wawrinka then made easier work of the second set as he broke on three occasions to see out his win with ease and is prepared for a tough final on Sunday, per ESPN:
"I lost against him [Bedene] here some years ago and he played amazingly then. It's going to be a really good match, an interesting one for sure.
"
Bedene looked a long way from the final as he gave up the opening set against Bautista Agut in tame fashion, losing it 6-3, and his fine tournament looked to be coming to an end.
However, the world No. 156 turned things around and picked up the second set with his own 6-3 victory.
Thus, a decider was needed, and the pair could not be separated in 12 games of the third set and a tie-break was required.
Bedene held his nerve, saving two match points and winning 8-6 to make it through to the final and, given his performances in Chennai so far, a Wawrinka triumph is far from guaranteed.
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Day 5 Recap
4 of 8
Day 5 Results
Men's Singles
Aljaz Bedene (SLO) defeated (5) Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (ESP): 2-6, 6-3, 6-2
(3) Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP) defeated (6) Yen-Hsun Lu (TAI): 7-6(7), 6-4
(4) David Goffin (BEL) defeated Andreas Haider-Maurer (AUT): 7-5, 6-2
(1) Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) defeated (8) Giles Muller (LUX): 6-2, 7-6(4)
Men's Doubles
(1) Raven Klaasen (RSA)/Leander Paes (IND) defeated Pablo Carreno Busta (ESP)/Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (ESP): 6-3, 6-3
Recap
Dark horse Aljaz Bedene continued to conquer Spain's big guns on Friday, following up his upset win over Feliciano Lopez with a 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 triumph over Guillermo Garcia-Lopez.
Garcia-Lopez, who was the No. 5 seed in Chennai, didn't look like to be in any danger after claiming the first set 6-2, but Slovenian contender Bedene took control of the tie from that point on.
Confidence clearly wasn't flowing for Bedene in that first set, who struggled particularly with second serves, both for and against. Per the official ATP World Tour website, he managed to win just four of his 13 second serves (31 percent) and five of 14 points (36 percent) on his rival's second deivery.
By the end of the match those figures had risen to 46 and 50 percent, respectively, though, and Bedene will have the chance to make it three Spanish victims in a row, poised to face third-seed Roberto Bautista Agut in his semi-final.
Agut was one of three favourites to seal his place in the last four alongside top seed Stanislas Wawrinka and No. 4 seed David Goffin.
It took a 16-point tiebreaker for Lu to go down in the first set in what proved to be an incredibly close meeting, and it was on Agut's second serve that the Taiwanese player struggled, losing 20 of 38 points.
Wawrinka and Goffin also overcame lower-seeded opposition in the shape of Gilles Muller and Andreas Haider-Maurer, respectively.
Wawrinka, in search of a third Chennai crown, lost just two games en route to taking the first set, but found his second far more difficult, pulled level at 4-4 before easing away in the tiebreaker.
Of his quarter-final win, the Swiss was quoted by The Associated Press (h/t New York Times) saying the conditions had an influence: "The weather was a bit tricky with the wind but I played aggressively."
Goffin's win against Haider-Maurer was similarly close, but still decided in straight sets, with the Belgian claiming 21 of his 25 first-serve points en route to the last four.
Day 4 Recap
5 of 8
Day 4 Results
Men's Singles
Aljaz Bedene (SLO) defeated (2) Feliciano Lopez (ESP): 6-4, 6-4
(3) Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP) defeated Peter Gojowczyk (GER): 6-3, 6-2
(5) Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (ESP) defeated Tatsuma Ito (JPN): 6-7(1), 6-2, 6-0
(6) Yen-Hsun Lu (TAI) defeated Pablo Carreno Busto (ESP): 6-4, 6-4
Men's Doubles
(1) Raven Klaasen (RSA)/Leander Paes (IND) defeated Mahesh Bhupathi (IND) and Saketh Myneni: 1-6, 6-1, 10-7
Purav Raja (IND)/Adil Shamasdin (CAN) defeated Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP) and Stanislaw Wawrinka (SUI): 7-6(5), 4-6, 10-4
Yen-Hsun Lu (TAI)/Jonathan Marray (GBR) defeated (2) Andre Begemann (GER) and Robin Haase (NED): 3-6, 7-6(2), 10-6
Pablo Carreno Busta (ESP)/Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (ESP) defeated Ricardas Berankis (LTU)/Mate Pavic (CRO): 6-4, 0-6, 10-4
Second seed Feliciano Lopez was beaten by unseeded Aljaz Bedene in the big shock on Day 4 of the Aircel Chennai Open 2015. The Slovenian overwhelmed a below-par Lopez in straight sets.
Bedene dominated on first serve. He won points off 33 of 38 first deliveries, according to ATPWorldTour.com. That level of excellence applied plenty of pressure to Lopez, who was forced into saving several break points just to stay in the match.
Bedene's return game proved as strong as his serve to soon see Lopez off. Bedene won 40 percent of his return points to keep Lopez scrambling in what was a dominant victory.
The rest of the singles matches saw the top seeds hold sway. Second seed Roberto Bautista Agut kept Spanish hopes alive by thrashing Germany's Peter Gojowczyk.
Agut was simply too quick around the court for the German. He dominated the returns, winning 53 percent when receiving.
Agut will be joined by fifth seed and fellow Spaniard Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, as well as sixth seed Yen-Hsun Lu. Garcia-Lopez avoided a scare after Japan's Tatsuma Ito had pinched the first set. Garcia-Lopez recovered to emphatically power past Ito in the next two sets.
Each of today's winners will likely hope to avoid defending champion Stanislaw Wawrinka who has so far been irrepressible in India.
Day 3 Recap
6 of 8
Day 3 Results
Round 2 - Singles
David Goffin (4) beats Ricardas Berankis: 6-0 4-6 7-6(1)
Giles Muller (8) beats Elias Ymer: 6-4, 6-3
Andreas Haider-Maurer beats Jiri Vesely: 6(3)-7, 6-4, 6-4
Stanislas Wawrinka (1) beats Borna Coric: 6-1, 6-4
Quarter-Finals - Doubles
Purav Raja/Adil Shamasdin beat Aljaz Bedene/Damir Dzumhur: 6-1, 6-2
Ricardas Berankis/Mate Pavic beat Giles Muller/Igor Sijsling: 7-6(7), 3-6, 10-8
Mahesh Bhupathi/Saketh Myneni beat Chandril Sood/Lakshit Sood: 6(4)-7, 6-4, 10-6
Recap
Stanislaw Wawrinka took to the court on Wednesday in what was his first match of the Chennai Open, beating Borna Coric in straight sets to get his title defence underway in confident manner.
The Swiss is gearing up for another run at the Australian Open and steered past Coric with ease, taking his spot in the quarter-finals and showing he means business after taking the first five games without response.
Of his most recent victory, Wawrinka was quoted by the Associated Press saying:
"Every year you have to start from zero, but I'm quite happy with today as I was feeling the ball well. I started really well and had some other chances for service breaks in the second.
"
Giles Muller and David Goffin were the other top-ranked contenders on display in Wednesday's second-round meeting, with fourth-seed Goffin taken to task by Lithuanian contender Ricardas Berankis.
Berankis came up against tough opposition with Luca Vanni on Day 2 and played another three sets on Wednesday, although Goffin did enough to blitz through a third-set tiebreak, hitting 12 aces in total.
The Associated Press provided quotes from Belgian Goffin following his triumph, saying:
"It was a tough one to start the season with. I played really well in the first set but it was tough to maintain my level. It's not always easy when you win the first set 6-0. It was really close after that because he served very well in the second set.
"
Elias Ymer wasn't as tough a foe for Muller, who won in straight sets, but the Luxembourg native comes up against a more formidable rival in the quarters, where he'll hope to topple favourite Wawrinka.
Goffin, meanwhile, will line up against Andreas Haider-Maurer in the next round, after the Austrian managed to come back from a set down against Jiri Vesely and reverse the tide.
Vesely's serve tested Haider-Maurer from the beginning, only just losing out in the first set to a tiebreak, but the 27-year-old gathered his thoughts, winning both the second and third sets 6-4.
Day 2 Recap
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Day 2 Results
Round 1 - Singles
Elias Emer beats Igor Sijsling: 6-4, 4-6, 6-3
Ricards Berankis beats Luca Vanni: 6-1, 2-6, 7-5
Jiri Vesely beats Vijay Sundar Prasanth: 6-2, 6-1
Aljaz Bedene beats Lukas Lacko: 7-6(0), 6-3
Tatsuma Ito beats Ramkumar Ramanthan: 6-3, 6-3
Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (5) beats Evgeny Donskoy: 6(3)-7, 6-2, 6-3
Pablo Carreno-Busta beats Alejandro Gonzalez: 6-1, 6-3
Lu Yen-Hsun (6) beats Somdev Devvarman: 6-3, 6-4
Peter Gojowczyk beats Alejandro Falla: 6-0, 6-1
Round 1 - Doubles
Roberto Bautista Agut/Stanislas Wawrinka beat Johan Brunstrom/Nicholas Munroe (3): 5-7, 6-3, 10-8
Andre Begemann/Robin Haase (2) beat Frantisek Cermak/Jiri Vesely: 7-6(2), 6-4
Ravin Klassen/Leander Paes (1) beat Andreas Hainder-Maurer/Lukas Lacko: 6-4, 6-4
Recap
Tuesday's action brought about a packed fixture list, but the cream of the crop are still waiting in the Chennai wings as the top four seeds wait to make their singles bows.
Among the highlight displays on Day 2 came a dramatic comeback win for Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, who dropped his first set to Evgeny Donskoy by the closet of tiebreak defeats.
However, the fifth-seeded Spaniard gathered his thoughts to give a much more composed displays in sets two and three, losing just five games across the rest of their first-round bout to advance.
The other seeded star opening his tournament on Tuesday was Taiwan's Lu Yen-Hsun, who dominated a straight-sets win over Somdev Devvarman, where his Indian foe managed to save just 18 of the 54 return points faced, per the official ATP World Tour website.
Joining him in the second round come the likes of Peter Gojowczyk, Pablo Carreno-Busta and Jiri Vesely, each of whom came up against minimal opposition in their first-round fixtures.
Vesely looked to be in especially confident form against Vijay Sundar Prasanth of India, dropping a total of three games and not having to face a single break point.
Elias Emer and Ricards Barankis were tested more fiercely in their round one matches opposite Igor Sijsling and Luca Vanni, respectively, and were two of just three Tuesday victors not to take straight-set triumphs.
Both Emer and Barankis had the benefit of winning their opening sets, however, and despite slumping in the second, were able to rally their way to booking a place in the tournament's second stage.
Day 1 Recap
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Day 1 Results
Round 1 - Singles
Gilles Muller (8) beats Edouard Roger-Vasselin: 6(11)-7, 1-6, 7-6(3)
Andreas Haider-Maurer beats Marcel Granollers (7) : 3-6, 7-6(6), 2-0 (retirement)
Borna Corcic beats Robin Haase: 6-2, 6-2
Round 1 - Doubles
Yen-Hsun Lu & Jonathan Marray beat N. Siriam Balaji & Jeevan Nedunchenzhiyan: 6-4, 4-6, 10-6
It was very much a case of calm before the storm on the first day of the Chennai Open, as only a smattering of players got their respective competitions underway.
For seventh-seed Marcel Granollers, it was an especially disappointing day. He was involved in a thrilling match with Andreas Haider-Maurer, and after the Austrian won a nervy tie-break to take the match into a deciding third set, it was clear Granollers wasn’t at full fitness.
Sadly for him, he was forced to retire with the score at 2-0 down in the third.
It was a better day for eighth-seed Gilles Muller, but he too was made to work hard for his place in the second round of the tournament by Edouard Roger-Vasselin. The Frenchman took the first set thanks to a thrilling tie-break—Roger-Vasselin won 13-11 in that—but Muller responded in style to take the second 6-1.
The final set yielded plenty of chances for both players, but eventually the score moved on to 6-6. But with both players weary and the pressure firmly on, the class of Muller shone through as he took the tie-break 7-3.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
