Anastasija Sevastova slays Lenka Jurikova to enter main draw – Internationaux de Strasbourg 2012
Latvian star, Anastasija Sevastova, devastated the Slovakian youngster, Lenka Jurikova, with a bagel at the qualifying competition of Internationaux de Strasbourg 2012, a WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) International-level tournament held in Strasbourg,
France. She barely sweated to manipulate a 6-0, 6-1 success against the world number 252 to reach the opening round on Monday.
Sevastova triumphed over the 21-year-old in 51 minutes in their second match-up. The players last battled each other at the Brno WTA event four years ago and after going on a 10-game killing spree, the Latvian not only maintained her winning record against
Jurikova but also booked a spot in the main draw.
The 22-year-old blasted into this clay court event and reeled off the opening six games to pocket the opener with a bagel. She swiftly held her entire serves without facing any breakpoint and converted three out of 10 break chances to her advantage.
Ranked 230th in the WTA Premier Rankings, Sevastova maintained her intensity and stroke out the first four games consecutively before Jurikova could break back. She then pocketed the last two games and bagged the set with a breadstick. The Latvian
failed to ward off the lone breakpoint she faced but capitalised on three out of four break opportunities.
Summing up Sevastova’s performance, the Latvian displayed flawless performance as she broke her rival’s entire serves. She nudged up a lower first serve share of 51 per cent as compared to the Slovak’s 57 per cent and amazingly marked 16 out of 21 points
on it.
Sevastova will square off against the Hungarian star, Timea Babos, in the opening round.
The qualifying second seed, Alexandra Panova, will accompany the Latvian in the first round. She required almost one and a half hour-long venture to formulate a 6-3, 6-4 success against the sixth seed, Stephanie Dubois from Canada. The Russian clobbered
a better first serve share of 76 per cent as compared to her rival’s 69 per cent and amazingly availed 32 out of 52 points on it.
Next challenge for Panova is the fifth seed, Mona Barthel of Germany, in the main draw.
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