Anastasia Rodionova, Ksenia Pervak move into main draw – New Haven Open 2011
Australian tennis pro Anastasia Rodionova made a sensational come back to floor Olga Govortsova of Belarus 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 on Sunday to book her place in the main draw of 2011 New Haven Open qualification tournament here in New Haven,
United States.
Unseeded at the Women’s Tennis Association tournament, Govortsova made a solid start to the match as she timed her gorgeous forehand and backhand winners to perfection early in the opening set. Breaking her opponent twice in the
opener, she earned a very healthy 4-0 lead.
Rodionova was also up for the challenge as she put up a great fight to stay in the set. Breaking back once, she managed to reduce the game score deficit to 4-2. However, Govortsova continued to play very aggressively and she
broke her opponent for the third time to take the set score lead 1-0.
Looking to hit back into the contest, Rodionova showed great determination and fighting skills in the following set. Displaying some high quality tennis throughout, she made the challenger run for her money. Defending her half
of the court brilliantly, she created all sorts of problems for her rival.
Hitting the ball fiercely from the baseline, she outplayed the Belarusian in ground play department of the game. Breaking her opponent three times in the set, she took an impassable lead. Holding on to her games score advantage,
she evened the set score 1-1 to force the match into the final set.
The contestants continued to exchanged serve breaks in the final set as well as some highly competitive tennis was witnessed. With momentum on her side, Rodionova played freely and created match winning opportunities. Breaking
the serve at regular intervals, she established complete control over the contest. Leading 5-4 in the decider, she played in a lovely drop shot to set up two match points for herself. Converting the first one with her only serve ace of the match, she completed
a deserving victory.
Ranked 97th in the world, Rodionova was delighted with her effort. Her first serve conversion was as good as 55 per cent and she took her chances on her second serve as well. She will be hoping to maintain her current
form and make it to the final stages of the competition.
In another match, number three seed Ksenia Pervak was awarded a victory over Urszula Radwanska 5-0 after her opponent couldn’t continue due to an injury.
Pervak was the better of two players in all aspects of the game in pair’s short meeting at the Cullman-Heyman Tennis Centre.
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