Nov. 9, 2008
University of Illinois sophomore Roy Kalmanovich gritted out a three set victory over Tim Smyczek on Sunday to advance to the second round of qualifying at the JSM Challenger at the Atkins Tennis Center in Urbana, Illinois. He'll now face Ramon Delgado from Paraguay to advance to the qualifying round. The 13-year ATP veteran dominated Kalmanovich's teammate Abe Souza Sunday, 6-1, 6-4.
"I know that he looks like Pete Sampras, a Sampras look-alike," Kalmanovich said of Delgado. "He's very good. He's quite the veteran on tour, and has been very highly ranked. I watched a match once in Florida when he had a match point on Andre Agassi. So I have to come out focused and ready to play."
The first day of the 2008 event was otherwise unfriendly to the host school, as the remaining four players with Illini ties all fell. Ryan Rowe succumbed to 1999 Challenger Champion Frederic Niemeyer in three hard fought sets with few breaks. His former teammate, Ruben Gonzales, fell in straights to former UCLA Bruin Tobias Clemens. Current Illini Ahmed El Tabakh and Ruan Roelofse also lost in straight sets on Sunday.
The main draw was revealed on Sunday night, with some entertaining matchups set for the first round. The Illini highlight will pit the tournament's seventh seed, Kevin Anderson, versus highly touted University of Illinois freshman Dennis Nevolo. Anderson will be playing with his All-American banner in the background, something Nevolo aspires to this spring.
Amer Delic, the top player on Illinois' 2003 National Championship team, is the 8th seed in this week's event, and will battle longtime nemesis Sam Warburg in round one. GD Jones, a 2007 Illinois graduate, plays Ryan Sweeting. And Rajeev Ram, another member of the 2003 team, takes on Phillip Simmonds.
The top seeds for the main draw, in order, are Vincent Spadea, a former top 25 player in the world; Bobby Reynolds; Robert Kendrick, a winner this past week in Nashville; 2008 Challenger Champion Jesse Levine; Kevin Kim; Wayne Odesnik; Anderson; and Delic.
Admission in to the $50,000 2008 JSM Challenger of Champaign-Urbana is free until Friday. Tickets for the quarterfinals and semifinals on Friday and Saturday will be $5 for general admission, and $3 for students. For Sunday's finals, tickets will run $7 and $5. Tickets are available at the door, or by calling (217) 244-3318. More tournament information can be found at www.illinoischallenger.com.
Sunday's Results:
Qualifying Singles, First Round
M Mcclune (USA) d P Polansky (CAN) 76(6) 26 63
R Bemelmans (BEL) d T Helgeson (USA) 63 61
L Gregorc (SLO) d [WC] Z Fleishman (USA) 64 63
F Nielsen (DEN) d M Michalicka (CZE) 76(4) 75
I Van Der Merwe (RSA) d [WC] A El Tabakh (CAN) 75 64
R Delgado (PAR) d [WC] A Souza (USA) 61 64
G Elias (POR) d A Kuznetsov (USA) 63 26 75
T Clemens (GER) d [WC] R Gonzales (USA) 64 64
S Oudsema (USA) d M Fugate (USA) 63 64
R Frantzen (NED) d O Charroin (FRA) 61 62
T Rettenmaier (USA) d [WC] R Roelofse (RSA) 75 62
[WC] R Kalmanovich (USA) d T Smyczek (USA) 62 46 62
C Klingemann (USA) d N Van Der Meer (NED) 62 64
F Niemeyer (CAN) d R Rowe (USA) 67(11) 76(3) 75
Monday's Highlighted Matches: (all times after 12PM approximate)
12:00PM - Luka Gregorc vs. Chris Klingemann
1:30PM - Roy Kalmanovich vs. Ramon Delgado
4:00PM - Doubles Qualifying match
Quotes:
Roy Kalmanovich on knowing Smyczek from Juniors: "That doesn't factor in at this level. Everyone here is good. If you're in this tournament you're very good. So I wasn't thinking about it."
On how he played today: "I came out really focused, and I felt that maybe he was a little tight. I played a solid first set, and a really great third set, with only one loose game."
