July 21, 2011
Norcross, Ga. – Kevin King, after suffering a close loss to the formerly world ranked #38 Nicolas Massu in qualifying singles play, paired with UGA rival and long time friend, Drake Bernstein to take out the top seeded doubles team Wednesday July 20th at the Atlanta Tennis Championships.
Atlanta Tennis Championships site
King and Bernstein were granted a wild card into the ATP doubles event and defeated the top seeded American team of Scott Lipsky and Rajeev Ram, who are the defending champions in this event and are ranked #26 in the world. In this thrilling night match that concluded after midnight, King and Bernstein captured the biggest upset win of the tournament with a score of 7-6 (7-3), 6-3.
“Just a few points made all the difference. We had to focus on some fundamentals like first serves and returns and we were able to win some key points. Serving out the tiebreak was huge,” King said of the match.
The college duo from rival universities played nearly perfect doubles in front of a mostly Tech and Georgia fan base. One Tech fan described the atmosphere as “unusual but interesting”.
King spoke of his thoughts going into the match. “I was excited to get the opportunity… there was really no pressure on us except to go out and do our best.”
King and Bernstein will have another opportunity to compete on Friday at the Racquet Club of the South. They will face the German team of Matthias Bachinger and Frank Moser in the quarterfinals. Check here for the schedule, draws and order of play.
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