A bad start had the 20-year-old trailing 2-4 in the first set. Uzakov dominated the opening six games, hardly making any errors and looked all set to seal the set. However, seventh game onwards, Haenle looked a completely different player.

Sticking to the baseline, he hit some powerful forehand shots to break his opponent’s serve and get back into the set. Uzakov, who looked unstoppable just a few points ago, left too many gaps on the court and Haenle took advantage. The 4-2 lead in the Uzbek’s favour was soon squared and within no time Haenle took the first set winning four games in a row.

“After the sixth game, I don’t know what happened to me. I lost focus completely and played some unnecessary shots. But he was better than me and deserved the win,” Uzakov said.

Haenle continued his good form in the second set and played some sublime shots from the baseline. Uzakov tried all he could to stop the German but could not match his opponent. He had a glimmer of hope when he broke Haenle’s serve in the eighth game, saving three match points in the process.

But it was too little too late for him as he failed to hold on to his crucial serve and awarded the set and the match to Haenle.