2011 19e Open GDF Suez women’s first round (part 2)
Yanina Wickmayer defeats Elena Vesnina 7-6 (1), 6-2
Belgian tennis player, Yanina Wickmayer, defeated Elena Vesnina, of Russia, in straight sets 7-6(1), 6-2 in the first round of the 19th edition of the Open GDF Suez, held in France.
Wickmayer ousted her opponent in just over an hour and thirty-five minutes on Wednesday.
Wickmayer is currently World Number 26, and her rankings are expected to rise within this year. She is 21 years old and recently helped lead her country’s Fed Cup team to victory against the US team by defeating Bethanie Mattek-Sands.
Her opponent was Russian world number 51, Elena Vesnina, whose highest career ranking is world number 22, and she is coached by former tennis player Andrei Chesnokov.
Both players are right handed, and began playing on the WTA circuit within two years of each other. Wickmayer turned pro in 2004, while Vesnina joined the WTA in 2002.
Their head to head is now one all, as Vesnina has defeated Wickmayer once before in 2009. They met on the grass courts of the Wimbledon Championships, battling it out in the qualifying rounds.
Elena Vesnina was rated world number 37 at the time, while Yanina Wickmayer was almost 20 spots behind at world number 56. The Russian player won the match in straight sets 6-1, 6-1.
Wickmayer has played in eleven matches so far this year, and has won eight of them. Meanwhile, 24 year old Vesnina has taken part in six matches in 2011, suffering defeats in four of them.
The Belgian player played a fast-paced match against her opponent, with a competitive first set. Vesnina seemed to stand a greater chance of winning, firing four aces and saving half her break points.
However, Wickmayer seemed to recover halfway through the first set to save a break point at 4-2 to Vesnina. She took the first set in a close match, after which her Russian opponent seemed exhausted and unable to continue playing the level of tennis demonstrated
by her in the first round.
Although, fans of the Ukrainian-born player may have hoped to see her climbing back up the charts, she seems to have lost the skills, which helped her make her way to Number 22.
However, the Belgian player seems to be on a hot streak so far this year. She received a wild card and was seeded seventh at this tournament, and has played a number of difficult matches and come out on top. Her next opponent in the second round is Klara
Zakopalova, a player from the Czech Republic.
Zakopalova managed to defeat Swiss player, Timea Bacsinszky, in the first round, ousting the player 6-3, 6-3.
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