Alexandra Dulgheru crashes out to Silvia Soler-Espinosa in the opening round –Monterrey Open 2012
Fourth seeded Alexandra Dulgheru edged out by the Spanish starlet, Silvia Soler-Espinosa, in straight sets at the Whirlpool Monterrey Open 2012 on Tuesday. She suffered a 3-6, 3-6 shock at the hands of the world number 71 in the opening round of this WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) International level tournament held in Monterrey, Mexico.
The Romanian clobbered a better first serve share but spilled eight double faults and several unforced errors, ultimately sealing the deal with a disappointing straight set defeat. The Spaniard on the other hand not only avenged her loss at the Barcelona WTA Premier event two years ago but also took lead in the head-to-head series by 2-1 against Dulgheru.
Ranked 56th in the WTA rankings, Dulgheru made a drastic entry at the Sierra Madre Tennis Club and went 4-0 down after losing her serve twice. Regardless of snatching a break back in the fifth game, she lost her serve again in the very next game and eventually sealed the opener with a 3-6 loss.
The fourth seed made a fitting reply in the proceeding set and wiped out the opening three games successively. However, she stepped off steam after this and lost the last six games in a row, subsequently registering a 3-6 defeat.
Overall, the 22-year-old acceptably clicked 24 out of 43 points on her first serve share but dusted away only six out of 12 breakpoints she came across.
The Spaniard on the other end advanced in this tournament. She will confront Dulgheru’s compatriot, Alexandra Cadantu, in the second round.
Top seeded Roberta Vinci faced a better fate on Monday. The Italian lost her serve three times but stayed focused throughout the match to earn the spotlight against the American competitor, Coco Vandeweghe. She cashed in five out of eight break opportunities to seal the deal with a 7-5, 7-5 score line.
"I had problems closing the match out. I was up two breaks and got nervous," the blooming Italian commented after the match. "The courts are fast and Coco is a strong server, and as the No.1 seed it's always hard to win the first match, but I'm happy to win. I have to improve for the next round, though."
World number 23, Vinci, will next face Nina Bratchikova who overpowered Anastasia Pivovarova in an all-Russian battle to occupy this spot. Bratchikova broke her compatriot’s serve six times to register a 6-3, 6-1 victory in 68-minutes.
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