Andrea Petkovic bows out to Elina Svitolina in semis – Royal Indian Open 2012
Former Top 10, Andrea Petkovic from Germany, was edged out by the seventh seed, Elina Svitolina from Ukraine, in brutal straight sets at the Royal Indian Open 2012 on Saturday. She suffered a 2-6, 5-7 loss against the 18-year-old in the final four at this WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) Challenger event taking place in Pune, India.
The sixth seeded wild card recipient, Petkovic displayed dismal performance throughout the clash, eventually exiting from semi-finals at this outdoor hard court event. The Ukrainian on the other hand moved a step closer towards her maiden career title and set up a date with fifth seeded Kimiko Date-Krumm.
"She played well throughout the whole match, but I think I really let the match get away at the beginning" the German stated in a courtside interview after edging out by Svitolina. "I wasn't moving very well and she never really let me get into the match. She was serving at a very high level and it was so tough to break her and she really deserved to go through."
The world number 156, Svitolina made a strong entry at the Balewadi Sports Complex. She drew the first blood in the third game and jumped to a 2-1 lead. Despite levelling the scores in the very next game, the Ukrainian unleashed barrage of groundstrokes and reeled off last four games. She failed to block the only breakpoint she came across but cashed all three break chances to seal the opener by winning six games to two.
Currently ranked 143rd in the WTA Premier Rankings, Petkovic carried her drastic ways in the following set. She suffered the first blow in the opening game and fell at 0-2. Despite recovering in the sixth game, the German lost her serve again and eventually endured a 5-7 loss. She availed only one out of nine break opportunities but dusted away two out of three breakpoints she encountered.
The Ukrainian teenager will face off the Japanese veteran, Date-Krumm. The 42-year-old battled past the Thai challenger, Tamarine Tanasugarn, in a topsy-turvy three setter to set up this clash. She was broken seven times but availed eight out of 18 break chances to formulate a 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 success.
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