Agnieszka Radwanska overthrows Marion Bartoli to reach the final – Sony Ericsson Open 2012
World number seven, Marion Bartoli of France, couldn’t hold longer the limelight and was crashed out of the semi-final round of the Sony Ericsson Open at the hands of the fifth seed Pole, Agnieszka Radwanska. The French couldn’t
repeat the heroics she performed in the quarter-final round and was annihilated in straight sets, 4-6, 2-6, to let Radwanska through to the final of the WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) Premier-level event in Miami, Florida.
The Thursday night’s contest witnessed another display of high quality power tennis from the 23-year-old Pole competitor. Radwanska took one hour and 45 minutes of play to devastate the French veteran in an assertive fashion. Bartoli
registered the biggest surprise of the season so far when she broke the 26-match winning streak of the world number one, Victoria Azarenka, in the quarter-final draw. It was anticipated that she would take down another superior-ranked opponent in the semi-final
but Radwanska proved too strong for her. The French was beaten in every single aspect of the game.
The fifth seed Pole kept her clean sheet against Bartoli, hunting her down for the seventh successive time to lead 7-0 in the head-to-head combats. She faced some resistance from Bartoli in the opening set but kept her basics right
and was extremely miser on giving away unforced errors. Once bagging the opening set, Radwanska ignited her rage mode and powered her way through the second set to register a resounding victory in the end.
Radwanska delivered 73 per cent of her serves on target and clinched 24 out of 46 first serve points on it. Her outstanding return game proved to be the decisive factor in the match, as the fifth seed Pole won 22 out of 31 points
on Bartoli’s serve to take the batter of her. She stung nine out of 14 break points, whilst the French registered six out of her 12 chances to finish on the losing side in the end.
The Pole will now face off against the world number two, Maria Sharapova of Russia, in the championship title match of the Sony Ericsson Open. Sharapova, who is bidding for her first Miami Masters title, outshined the former world
number one, Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark, in the semis of the mega event.
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