Daniela Hantuchova defeats Mathilde Johansson; moves into quarters at Internationaux de Strasbourg
Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia secured a comfortable victory over France’s own Mathilde Johansson 6-4, 6-2 to book her place in the quarterfinal of 2011 Internationaux de Strasbourg.
Although Hantuchova dropped her first service game of the opening set, she came back strongly and claimed next four straight games to earn a commanding 4-2 lead in the set. She then held on to her next serve game with ease to clinch
the opener 6-4.
The Slovakian tennis-pro continued to display top quality tennis in the following set as well and dropped only a couple of games in the set to seal the match. Hantuchova’s first serve conversion was a satisfactory 49 percent while
she secured 55 percent of the points on serve return. With her supreme on-court agility, she created all sorts of problems for the challenger. She also made most of the opportunities in the match as she converted six out ten break chances to tighten the screws.
"I didn't have much time to get used to the conditions before my first match, but today I felt much better on court," Hantuchova said. "Today was very hot and very fast, but that's how it's going to be in Paris. I'm really glad
to be playing here because I think it's a perfect preparation for next week."
Johansson on the other hand looked a bit out of sorts and leaked important points due her poor shot selection. Her weak second serve also played its part in her defeat as she managed to win only 31 per cent of the points on her
second serve. The Frenchwoman would be extremely disappointed with the result after she had done so well in her opening match at the Women’s Tennis Association tournament.
Eleven years ago, Hantuchova made her first WTA quarterfinal appearance at Strasbourg as world number 182. Reflecting on the decade or so since her last tour to the French City, she added:
"I was here, what, 11 years ago. My mom and I remembered the city being so beautiful and the people being so nice to us. So we thought, we haven't been here for such a long time, it would be great to come back. I'm really glad
we made this decision because we're having a great time."
Surprisingly, Hantuchova’s opponent in the quarterfinal will be Nadia Petrova, whom she defeated to reach the last eight all those year ago. A straight set win over a player of Mathilde’s calibre will certainly give her the confidence
to make it all the way to final stage of the tournament here at Strasbourg.
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