LA Countrywide Classic 2007

Kunitsyn rallies past Nalbandian

From Greg Heakes in Los Angeles, California
July 18, 2007 IGOR Kunitsyn made the most of his first match in Los Angeles by defeating former Wimbledon runner-up David Nalbandian 7-6 (7-5) 7-5 at the UCLA tennis stadium today.

Kunitsyn rallied from a 5-3 deficit in the second set to close out the match in a shade under two hours by winning four successive games.

"That was my second favourite victory," Kunitsyn said.

"I beat Lleyton Hewitt in Adelaide a couple of years ago in front of a full crowd, but this is the best tennis I ever played.

"Hopefully I will play this way more often in the future. The most important thing for me is to win. I have been playing tennis all my life and being able to improve like this is a wonderful feeling."

Kunitsyn next plays Nicolas Kiefer from Germany, who defeated another Russian, Teimuraz Gabashvili, 6-3 6-3 yesterday.

"He never gives up," Kunitsyn, a runner-up in doubles at the ATP Newport tournament last week, said of Nalbandian.

"The most important thing is I didn't let it slip away. My goal was to play at a high level but don't give him anything. One point could have turned the match."

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