Germany's World No. 56 Jan-Lennard stuns top seed Marin Cilic in Rd 1 at Japan Open
Marin Cilic gets ready to serve to Jan-Lennard Struff in the Japan Open in Tokyo yesterday; (right) Struff. Pics/Getty Images
Top seed Marin Cilic crashed out of the Japan Open in a shock 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 loss to Germany's Jan-Lennard Struff in Round 1 yesterday. The former US Open champion looked to be in complete control after pocketing the first set with a brutal drive volley, but things quickly unravelled for the Croatian when Struff suddenly caught fire.
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After Struff, ranked 50 places below Cilic at 56, had levelled the match, normal service appeared to have resumed in the decider. Cilic, who reached the final of this year's Australian Open, broke for 3-2 but the German struck back — not once, but twice — to force a tiebreak and win it 7-1 with his ninth ace. "Overjoyed after a crazy match," Struff wrote on Twitter later.
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