Christina McHale, Mirjana Lucic advance in qualies at Internationaux de Strasbourg
Qualifying second seed Christina McHale of United States secured a thumping 6-3, 7-6 (4) victory over Ukrainian Viktoriya Kutuzova on Sunday to advance into the final round of 2011 Internationaux de Strasbourg qualification tournament
in France.
McHale made a very positive start to the match. She created tight angles wide of the court and pushed her opponent right back to the baseline with her aggressive approach. Having gained the psychological advantage in the match,
she executed her shots to perfection. The American broke the serve in sixth game of the opening set to take the crucial 4-2 lead in the set. She had no problems securing her service games as she clinched the opener 6-3.
Kutuzova showed true determination and fighting spirit to take the second set in to a tie-breaker. She looked completely down and out at the end of the first set. But she regrouped herself and performed brilliantly under pressure.
Her defence was formidable as she saved a few certain break points against her. However McHale had other ideas in her mind as she clinched four straight points on her opponent’s serve in the tie-breaker to ensure her straight set victory after one hour and
thirty minutes of play.
Mchale’s superior serve proved to be the main difference between the two contestants as she secured 63 per cent of the points on her serve. A 49 per cent share of points in the serve return department allowed her to establish complete
control over the situation. She will be looking to continue her great form in her next match-up against compatriot Ahsha Rolle. Rolle defeated Ana Clara Duarte of Brazil in straight sets 6-2, 6-1.
Ranked 81st in the Women’s Tennis Association rankings, McHale is a fresh face in the WTA world with significant results under her belt. Her most impressive performance was recorded at Charleston this year where she
reached the quarterfinals. McHale ousted number eight seed Alisa Kleybanova and number ten seed Hantuchova en route to the last eight. She will be hoping to put up a similar show here at the red clay courts of Strasbourg to improve her WTA rankings even further.
Joining McHale in the final qualies is Croat Mirjana Lucic who secured a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Australian Jessica Moore.
Lucic broke serve six times during the contest and dominated her opponent with her blazing forehand and backhand shots. Moore failed to handle the heat and made critical mistakes. She had her chances to break the serve but she
was unable to convert them.
Lucic will face American Gail Brodsky who defeated Kristina Mladenovic 7-5, 7-6 (5).
Tags: