Results - Wednesday August 12, 2009

Popular Battistone Brothers Fall to No. 1 Seeds in Doubles

by Jeffrey Dunham
Aug 12, 10:05 pm EDT

Dann Battistone, at 32 the older of the double-handled racquet wielding Battistone brothers, was playing in only his second tournament back after taking a few months off after the birth of his third child. During Dann’s time off, his brother Brian, 30, played with a variety of partners, including India’s Harsh Mankad, who is still in the doubles draw of the LG&T after winning his match today with partner David Martin of the USA. Of his brother, Brian Battistone remarked that "his wife gave [Dann] the okay for one more full year on the tennis tour." Crowds will be appreciative of this fact, as the brothers never fail to entertain with their games and their generosity of spirit. In fact, the brothers were just a few points away from defeating the No. 1-seeded team of American Scott Lipsky and South African Rik DeVoest this evening, which is just Dann’s second event since returning to the tour.

Dann Battistone (USA)

Brian Battistone began the match with his leaping, hand-switching serve. He tosses the ball impossibly high; it must take incredible timing to strike the ball so cleanly and serve so many aces. However, it can make for a risky second serve, as Brian got down 15-30 before eventually holding in the first game of the match.

Throughout the first set, neither team could count on an overhead being an easy winner, as all four of these players pick balls up off from their shoelaces with ease and lob defensively very well. Lipsky and DeVoest were often successful in forcing the Battistones to volley up, setting up an easy put away shot. Also, the experience of the No. 1 seeds was evident in their ability to continually volley out in front with confidence and power.

Near the end of the first set, Brian Battistone missed an overhead to give Lipsky and DeVoest an opening at 0-30. Another long exchange at the net ended with a lob that Brian thought was going out, but the ball dropped just inside the baseline. A forehand error by Brian gave Lipsky and DeVoest the first set, 6-4.

Rik DeVoest (SA)

The Battistones broke to start the second set, and consolidated that break with a hold by Brian. Big serves and overheads seemed to be the order of the evening, as the Battistones maintained their one break lead for 4-2.

"That’s it," said Brian Battistone as they got Lipsky and DeVoest to 0-30 to open the door for another break of serve. "I’ve just got to jump," Brian groaned after missing a lob return by Lipsky. Two points later, the Battistones got that second break on a strong backhand crosscourt return by Brian. Dann went on to easily hold and the Battistones won the second set, 6-2.

Scott Lipsky (USA)

The 10-point match tiebreak followed, with each team trading mini-breaks until Lipsky held serve for 5-4. Brian Battistone then held both of his serves to go up 6-5. The Battistones were just four points away from defeating the No. 1 seeds in just their second match together in months! However, DeVoest’s experience showed as he easily held both of his service points with two excellent first serves. Dann Battistone lost his first service point at 6-7 on a deep shot by Lipsky, and then lost his second service point on a deep volley by DeVoest. Depth is truly everything in the game of tennis, as the No. 1 seeds suddenly had four match points. Fittingly, Lipsky served an ace to win the match. The final scoreline was 6-4, 2-6, 10-6 for Lipsky/DeVoest.

"We knew it was just a point here or there," commented DeVoest about the closeness of the match. "We lost a few of the deciding points, and that made the difference [in the second set]." DeVoest also indicated that his confidence was high after winning the doubles in Vancouver last week.

As for the Battistones, they remained as upbeat as ever. Their enthusiasm for tennis and their appreciation of tennis fans makes them excellent ambassadors for the sport. They hope to find out about getting a possible wild card into the U.S. Open next week. Otherwise, they are looking into the possibility of going to Europe for a few weeks.