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SteemSports Editor: Nolan Jacobson, 
, STEEM Witness & PeerPlays Witness.
Final score: Gilles Muller won the final 7-6 7-6 against Ivo Karlovic. Fun Fact: There were zero break points in the whole match. Classic Ivo Karlovic' match. ATP ratings: Currently Ivor Karlovic is 24th, and Gilles Muller is 28th. Aces: There were 41 aces. Karlovic made 19, and Muller added 21 more.
Grass season started this week, and we could already see some classic matches, which reminds us what grass season is all about - aces, serve and volley, and lots of winners. Needless to say, people like Karlovic and Muller are thriving on grass and this stage of the year is their best chance to improve their ATP ratings.
Way To The Final
To be honest, I expected to see Zverev and Cilic playing in Hertogenbosch finals, but both of them lost in semi-finals to Gilles Muller and Ivo Karlovic.
Gilles Muller's road to the final was pretty straightforward as he only lost one set to Bedene and allowed nine break point opportunities to his opponents, losing two of his serve games. We must also note that since semi-finals Gilles Muller has not faced a single break point.
Ivo Karlovic stormed to the final in a similar fashion. In the first round, Karlovic only lost nine points on his serve, which is something way beyond perfect. Well, if you thought that it was only one match, Karlovic did it again in quarter-finals. He tarnished Medvedev in two sets and only lost nine points on his serve again.
Of course, Ivo Karlovic faced a bigger challenge in the semi-finals where he faced the no.1 seed Marin Cilic. Bookies favored the Cilic to go through the semi-finals, of course, but Ivo Karlovic, an experienced 38-year-old wolf, showed why he is still no.24 in the world at such an old age. Ivo Karlovic won an epic battle 7-6 | 5-7 | 7-6 and got an opportunity to win one more grass tournament on Sunday.
First Set
The first set belonged to the serving guys. Six out of 12 games ended 40:0, Gilles Muller only lost three points on his serve, both guys combined for 21 aces, and a tie-break was inevitable.
Ivo Karlovic relied on serve and volley (surprise surprise), and it worked like a charm. Everyone who is trying to learn how to serve on grass should watch Ivo Karlovic playing. His top spin reached as high as 1.85 meters, leaving Gilles Muller no chance to fight for the point. Also, Karlovic made some really tricky drop shots. Those drop shots look so much better when Ivo Karlovic, a tennis player whose height suggests he is more into basketball, makes them.
However, Gilles Muller came out as a winner of the first set, and I must admit that he deserved it a little bit more, even though it all came down to one mistake. I already wrote a lot about Karlovic' brilliant serves, so I can only say that Gilles Muller served even better. He only lost three (!!!) points in the whole set, and that is incredible even against such a terrible defender like Karlovic.
The tie-break was pretty straightforward as well as both guys kept smashing that ball until Gilles Muller managed to get Ivo Karlovic' serve back to the game and won that decisive point. That little detail that decided the winner: Gilles Muller is a better player when it comes to rallies, and he won most of those rare points with 5+ shots.
Second Set
The second set was a replica of the first set. Gilles Muller managed to let Karlovic win two (!!!) miserable points on his serve, while Karlovic himself, gave away eight points. Most of the points were limited to two, or maximum three shots and players kept on winning their serves as if they were playing against me (I suck at tennis) on the other side of the court.
The set went to a tie-breaker once again, and Giller Muller won it again. Actually, if you don't have much time but still want to watch the final, just watch one of the sets, and you will be fine. And I am not even exaggerating here.
What are Muller's and Karlovic' prospects to go far in Wimbledon in a couple of weeks? Well, if they manage to keep those serves working, I can see them beating anyone on any given day. Of course, Murray and Djokovic would never allow Gilles Muller to win 46/49 of his first serves, but I can see Muller winning at least 85 percent of his first serves against anyone.
Keep in mind that grass season is super tricky. We should expect to see more upsets throughout this stage of the season as many games, especially the ones involving good servers, go to tie-breaks and are decided by one or two points. Naturally, it favors all the underdogs. If I knew that Nadal would win Roland Garros this year, I could not see anyone being a clear favorite to win Wimbledon this year. If I needed to put my money on any player, I would place my bet on Krygios, most likely. His odds will be pretty high, and he is serving as good as Ivo Karlovic and can also play rallies like a pro.
