Soderling advances at home team fails

Robin Soderling continued an impressive winning streak on clay at the German Open in Hamburg on Wednesday, defeating Fabio Fognini to advance to the third round of the tournament.

Soderling came into the 2009 German Open hot off the back of a victory in the Swedish Open. Only Roger Federer has managed to defeat the Swede in his last 21 matches, and Soderling looks to be a genuine title contender in Hamburg after beating Fognini 6-3, 6-7 (3), 6-3.

Meanwhile France’s Jeremy Chardy also secured passage to the third round of the 2009 Hamburg Open. The Frenchman required two tie-breaks to end the challenge of home favourite, Andreas Beck, 7-6 (2), 7-6 (6).

“I have a lot of confidence, I played my best tennis last week,” Chardy said after the match. “The court was different though and it was hard to play well. But I served very well indoors.”

The third day of the 2009 German Open also produced a win for Russia’s Nikolay Davydenko, who defeated Germany’s Philipp Petzschner 6-3, 6-2. Beaten Stuttgart Open finalist, Victor Hanescu, also reached the third round with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Jan Hernych.

Finally, David Ferrer of Spain eliminated the last German in the draw by beating Florian Mayer 6-3, 6-2.