by Matija Pecotic, Francesca Curmi and Elaine Genovese advance to the Singles’ semi-finals in straight sets. Matthew Asciak was forced to retire from his Singles match but came out firing alongside Matija Pecotic to land Team Malta a place in the Men’s Doubles Final.
Curmi Fires Past Constantinou
Malta’s Francesca Curmi delivered blow after blow to beat Cypriot Maria Constantinou 6-2, 6-0, in a game that featured an interesting battle in tactics. Curmi raced to a strong 3-0 lead, breaking Constantinou in the opening two service games, while holding her serve. However, Constantinou cleaned up her errors and started looping balls in Curmi’s second service game to get a breakpoint. However, Curmi fought back to take the game, at which point disruptions from the crowd, as well as the wind picking up, dealt more factors for the two players to contend with.
Constantinou did not let her head drop and used the momentum to earn her first hold of the match and then secured a break to get to 4-2. However, Curmi swiftly closed the door by attacking every second serve and hunting down the points to break right back. At 5-2, the Cypriot made a tactical return to looping balls, which led to some topsy-turvy points. However, at 40-30, Curmi closed out the set before she let out a roaring ‘Come On’ to let the home crowd know just how much it meant. The Maltese showed no signs of letting her foot off the gas as the second set got underway and cruised to a 6-0 victory to close out the match in two sets.
Genovese Wins the Battle of the Breaks Against Molinaro
Played under the intense afternoon sunny conditions, the match between Malta’s Elaine Genovese and Luxembourg’s Eleonora Molinaro proved a tighter affair. A match that showcased longer rallies and more variation in shots, swiftly kicked off in a hunt for the first hold since both exchanged breaks for the first six games of the set (3-3).
It was evident that the first hold proved crucial, and it was Malta’s Genovese who secured it. Molinaro looked set to earn another break at 15-40, but Genovese rescued the two breakpoints, before forcing Molinaro to hit the net twice to secure the hold. She then sustained it with a break, earning the chance to serve for the set at 5-3. Genovese raced ahead to 40-0 before Molinaro saved the three set points to earn a deuce. However, experience proved crucial as the Maltese veteran rallied patiently allowing Molinaro to flinch first, earning her the two points needed to close the set 6-3.
Luxembourg’s representative opened the second set with an ace, but the momentum shifted back to the Maltese who piled pressure to earn a break in the opening game of the second set. She then backed it up with a hold to open a 2-0 cushion. Molinaro got herself on the scoreboard by convincingly holding to love, but Genovese returned fire with a hold of her own. The two exchanged holds to get to 4-2, before Genovese delivered a sucker punch by breaking her opponent’s serve to love. She then needed to only serve for the match, while Molinaro contended her own demons in both the match itself and the home crowd. At 40-15 down, she erased one match point, before going long with the return. Genovese game, set, and match.
Asciak & Pecotic Secure Doubles’ Final
The two Maltese veterans opened their day in very different manners in their Singles commitments. Matthew Asciak fell a set down and was forced to retire with injury at 4-1 in the second set against world number 449 from Monaco, Lucas Catarina. On the other hand, Matija Pecotic secured a place in the semi-finals with a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Luxembourg’s Raphael Calzi.
There was delight from the home crowd as Asciak emerged alongside Pecotic for their semi-final in the Men’s Doubles, against the same Calzi who now teamed up with compatriot Alex Knaff. The crucial break in the first set came at in the fourth game, allowing Malta’s team to get a two-game cushion at 3-1. Malta’s duo then extended their hold with aggressive net play, and though Luxembourg’s pairing tried to scheme a break, they were shut out, losing the set 6-3.
Knaff and Calzi opened the second set with a determined hold to love, by making the most of errors from Malta’s duo while cleaning up their own. However, Pecotic served up a hold for Malta, before the duo broke Calzi’s serve to get to 2-1. Matthew Asciak served up another hold for Malta, and though the hosts eyed another break on Knaff’s serve, Calzi landed a smash to clear breakpoint, before Asciak lobbed the ball out of play to 3-2.
Luxembourg’s duo channeled their newfound momentum to break Pecotic’s serve convincingly to draw out the set. It set a string of breaks in motion, as the two sides broke each other back until getting to 5-4. Though tension rose in the crowd, the locals rallied behind their team willing them to stick the landing at Pecotic’s serve. There was fantastic tennis at either end as Calzi delivered an inspired backhand volley to get to 30-30. However, pressure got to Luxembourg’s duo who then overcooked the return to hand Malta a match point, before miscuing a smash to hand victory and a place in the final to Team Malta. The crowd roared in celebration as Pecotic and Asciak were engulfed by Gordon Asciak (former gold medallist and Matthew Asciak’s father), and then their compatriots in celebration. The final will be played on Friday.
Semi-Finals on Day 4
Things heat up in the singles competitions on Thursday, as several semi-finals will take place on Day 4. Elaine Genovese will contend with top seed Victoria Jimenez who hails from Andorra. The match will be followed by Francesa Curmi who faces Luxembourg’s Marie Weckerle. The women’s singles give way to the men’s as Matija Pecotic then faces Cypriot Petros Chrysochos, while Lucas Catarina contends Stylianos Christodoulou.
The afternoon will then give way to Mixed Doubles as Asciak and Genovese face Cypriots Constantinou and Neos in the semi-final, while Luxembourg’s Knaff and Molinaro team up against Cervos and Jimenez.
Photo: Deea Buzdugan
