October 4, 2011 | By Long Island Tennis Magazine Staff
Photo credit: Kenneth B. Goldberg
Fourth-seeded American Mardy Fish beat fellow countryman Ryan Harrison in three tough sets 6-4, 3-6, 7-5, in the first round at the Japan Open. Fish relied on his serve-and-volley game to outlast Harrison in this matchup.
With the final set tied 5-5, Harrison gave up a break before Fish served out the match. On his third math point Fish finally sealed the win with a forehand winner after Harrison.
Seventh-seeded Radek Stepanek of the Czech Republic beat Somdev Devvarman of India 6-4, 6-3 in another first-round match. Top-seeded Rafael Nadal the defending champion in the $1.2 million event, will take on wild card Go Soeda of Japan in the first round and second seed Andy Murray will meet Marco Baghdatis.
