Davydenko Beats Harrison; Nishikori Survives In Kuala Lumpur
By James Waterson Photo Credit: Mark Peterson/Corleve
Davydenko overwhelmed the 19-year-old American early on, as he broke twice to get to a 4-0 lead. Although Harrison broke back twice, he couldn’t keep the Russian from breaking him four times.
Harrison was outmatched in the second as well, as he dropped serve three times while he broke only once.
Overall, the American won a paltry 41 percent of his service points, while he managed to win 42 percent of his returning points. Meanwhile, Davydenko won seven of his 11 break point opportunities.
Davydenko said despite the score, he struggled on the court.
"I was winning the long rallies in the beginning," Davydenko said. "After 4-0, I started to get tired and I couldn't hold the same level. Then I lost my serve quite easy, my legs were getting heavy. I tried to do everything on court to survive and win the match. It doesn't matter how you feel or play, you just have to win. It was 6-3, 6-2 today but for me it was tough. The court and balls are slow here. It was really tough to hit any winners with these conditions."
Davydenko moves on to play Poland’s Lukasz Kubot, who beat Lukas Rosol of the Czech Republic 6-3, 6-3.