Divij records first ever ATP tour win, Prakash ousted

Divij Sharan recorded his first ever ATP Tour level win when he along with partner Ivo Karlovic saved five match points to advance to the second round of the Hall of Fame Tennis Championships even as Prakash Amritraj crashed out of the singles event, here.

Divij, who made his Grand Slam debut at Wimbledon, and Karlovic got the better of the Ukrainian pair of Illya Marchenko and Denys Molchanov 4-6 7-6(1) 11-9 in the opening round of the USD 455,775 grass court event. Karlovic is playing his first tournament after recovering from viral meningitis. In the singles, Prakash Amritraj suffered mauling at the hands of former world number one Lleyton Hewitt, losing his second round match 2-6 1-6. The Australian broke Amritraj six times while saving seven of the eight chances he faced.

Divij and big-serving Karlovic had two break chances in the first two service games of their opponents but could not convert and lost both at deuce. In the match tie break, Divij and Karlovic were staring down the barrel, down 4-9, but saved five match points and won seven points in a row to win 11-9. They play quarters next.