Nalbandian freaches Vienna quarter-finals

VIENNA, Oct 12 (Reuters) David Nalbandian soaked up some early pressure to defeat Austria's Oliver Marach 6-2 6-3 and reach the quarter-finals of the Vienna Open today.

Eighth-seeded Serb Novak Djokovic failed to reach an expected appointment with top seed and defending champion Ivan Ljubicic when he was beaten 6-3 6-3 by Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland.

Second-seeded Nalbandian had to fight off two break points in the opening game and three more at 2-2 before gaining the upper hand against an eager opponent.

A double-fault then gave the Argentine a break for 4-2, and he broke again to love to claim the set.

Marach continued to offer a strong challenge in the second set, breaking to lead 3-2 with a winning forehand. But Nalbandian recovered the break in the next game, and broke again in a lengthy eighth game when Marach netted a backhand.

Djokovic, who last week won his second career title in Metz, struggled to overcome an aggressive and persistent opponent who rallied strongly and used a powerful serve to good effect.

The 19-year-old Serb was often guilty of pressing too hard in an effort to get the upper hand, and paid the price.

He self-destructed to fall behind 4-2 in the first set, dropping his serve to love, and a backhand error gave Wawrinka a break for 3-2 in the second set.

Djokovic had one opportunity to rescue the match, holding two break points when down 4-3, but Wawrinka responded with a service winner and then forced a backhand error. Djokovic then dropped his final service game to love.

Reuters PDS DB2109