Alize Cornet outclasses Pauline Parmentier to enter round two – Nurnberger Versicherungscup 2013
In an all-French encounter, third seed Alize Cornet triumphed over her compatriot, Pauline Parmentier, in straight sets at the Nurnberger Versichenberungscup 2013 on Tuesday.
She recorded a 6-3, 6-4 victory against the 27-year-old to secure a spot in the round of 16 at this WTA International event taking place in Nurnberg, Germany.
The higher ranked Frenchwoman maintained her good form on the clay court and overpowered Parmentier with ease. With this victory, Cornet avenged her defeat at the Toray Pan Pacific Open last season but also took lead in the head-to-head series by 2-1 against
Parmentier.
“It's always difficult to play against a countrywoman,” the winning Frenchwoman was quoted in a courtside interview after winning the match. “We are good friends. You have to forget this on the court and try to play your best. I had a really good first set
and then I didn't start well in the second set and she started playing better. We were stopped by the rain at 5-4 on my serve after I had been up 5-2. That helped me relax and I was able to close it out when we resumed.”
The high flying Frenchwoman, Cornet, made a poor start at this clay court event. She suffered the first blow in the opening game to trail at 0-1. However, she quickly re-structured her strategy and went on a four-game killing spree. The seeded Frenchwoman
squandered her edge in the seventh game but capitalised on another break chance, subsequently sealing the opener with a 6-3 win.
The former world number 11, Cornet maintained consistency in her game in the next set. She drew the first blood in the opening game and took a 1-0 lead. The seed lost her serve twice but availed three more break opportunities to take a 5-2 lead. Despite
losing her serve in the eighth game, Cornet managed to bag the set with a 6-4 success after keeping her serve once more.
Ranked 23rd in the WTA Premier Rankings, Cornet jolted down brilliant stats in this battle. She clobbered a better first serve ratio of 62 per cent and spilled fewer unforced errors. The seeded Frenchwoman clicked 23 out of 42 points on her first serve share
and ruled the match.
Up next for Cornet is the Kazakhstani contestant, Galina Voskoboeva, in the pre-quarters. The Kazakh trashed the Russian qualifier, Alexandra Panova, in straight sets to progress at this epic battle.
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