2011 BMW Malaysian Open: Alisa Kleybanova vs. Michaella Krajicek preview
Third seed and World Number 24 Alisa Kleybanova will take on Michaella Krajicek of the Netherlands for a place in the quarterfinals of the 2011 BMW Malaysian Open.
Kleybanova ousted Chinese player Jing-Jing Lu in straight sets 6-1, 6-1 on the first day of the main draw matches. With this win, Kleybanova secured a position for herself in the second round of the Malaysian event against Krajicek, who is ranked World Number
150.
Krajicek scored an easy victory over Tatjana Malek of Germany to win the match 6-3, 6-2 in the first round.
Russian Kleybanova won in style in the first round, keeping the match short and professional. She commented on her performance afterwards, saying, “Really there was no game plan as far as this match was concerned. I went out there and played tennis to the
best of my ability. Defending the title requires me to take one hurdle at a time and I will do just that as the players in this tournament are no pushovers.”
The Russian had possibly the best week of her career at the Malaysian Open in 2010, rushing through the matches with exemplary skill to defeat Elena Dementieva to take the trophy. Kleybanova will be a difficult player for Krajicek to handle in their upcoming
match.
If the Russian pro were to focus more on her game, she would stand a real chance of establishing her position as a serious Top 20 player. Her aggressive game and athletic build make her a challenge for any other player, and she possesses the potential to
excel on hard courts.
Meanwhile, Krajicek, has been plagued with injuries and form problems, but still retains some of the manpower which goes into her massive serve. This could cause trouble for Kleybanova, even though Krajicek’s physical disadvantages can only help her.
Like most other players in the 2011 BMW Malaysian Open, Kleybanova has benefited greatly from the first round match between Francesca Schiavone and Jelena Dokic. The Italian pro was seeded first and her early loss signifies that the Malaysian tournament
promises to be unpredictable at the very least.
When asked about her upcoming match, Kleybanova shrugged and said, “I have played against Krajicek several times. It will be no different tomorrow as she is also familiar with my game. I will just go out there and try to make it to the next round.”
If Kleybanova makes it to the next round, she will be up against qualifier Anne Kremer in the quarterfinals of the 2011 BMW Malaysian Open.
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