Ancic Delights His Fans
22 June 2005
By Beci Wood
Croatian giant Mario Ancic advanced into the third round of The Championships with a hard-fought win over little-known Thai player Danai Udomchoke.
The No.10 seed, who famously knocked out British hero Tim Henman in the quarter-finals last year, survived a second set scare before triumphing 7-6 (8-6), 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 in just under three hours.
Hundreds of fans decked out in Croat national football shirts and flags had squeezed into Court 14. They braved the scorching sun to cheer their most famous tennis player since 2001 Champion Goran Ivanisevic. And they weren't disappointed.
Despite wavering concentration mid-way through the second-round match, the 21-year-old Croat hammered immaculate serves and volleys that would have made Goran proud.
Udomchoke, who at 5ft 8in stood almost a foot shorter than his opponent, played his part in a thoroughly enjoyable game. Maybe, just maybe, if the Thai had taken one of the three break points on the Ancic serve in the first set the story could have been different.
Instead after 12 consecutive breakless service games, a tiebreak finally had to separate the pair. Both players then had opportunities to take the first set but the Thai player served a disastrous double fault and handed Ancic the advantage.
Still Udomchoke was not prepared to let his head drop. Cheered on by his Thai fans, he came back strong and broke Ancic with fine forehands. Udomchoke maintained his good form and claimed the second set in 32 minutes.
In the next set Ancic raised his game at the right moment. He exploited Udomchoke's weakness with finesse and raced to a 5-0 lead. The Thai player managed to peg the score back to 5-3 but Ancic took the set with an exquisite volley.
Ancic, who is very much the image of his hero Ivanisevic with his massive serve and gangly body, was then in the mood to finish off the match. He efficiently closed the fourth set 6-4 with his 19th ace of the match.
Mario Ancic will now play 18-year-old French sensation Gael Monfils in the third round.