Daniela Hantuchova routines past Anne Keothavong in the opening round – AEGON International 2012
Slovakian veteran, Daniela Hantuchova, had no troubles at all in disposing of the British number one, Anne Keothavong, in the opening round clash of the AEGON International on Monday. The eighth seeded Slovak took just 72 minutes to wrap up her first grass-court victory of the running season in straight sets, settling the final scores at 6-2, 6-3, advancing into the second round of the star-studded event in Eastbourne, the United Kingdom.
Currently holding the 29th spot in the WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) Premier Rankings, Hantuchova exhibited her vintage class to outplay the home favourite with commanding ease. She had already defeated Keothavong at the same venue in 2010 edition and her Monday’s victory extended her lead to 2-0 over the Brit.
With a 63 per cent serve precision, Hantuchova dropped merely five points on her first serve, clinching 28 out of 33 points en route to victory. She broke the British serve four out of seven times, whereas the local wildcard entrant could come up with just one break point in the entire matchup to finish on the losing side in the end.
Action took off right from the beginning of the opening set, with Hantuchova breaking her opponent in the second game to lead 2-0 straight up. Keothavong backfired immediately in the following game, only to be broken again in the fourth to trail 1-3. The eighth seeded Slovakian then kept her lead intact and nailed her third break point of the match to finish off the first set at 6-2.
A more regular game play was seen in the following set, with both contenders holding their serves in the opening seven games. Hantuchova made the move once again and broke the Briton to lead 5-3. She served out of the match convincingly to clear the opening round of the tournament.
Hantuchova is slated to face the unseeded Austrian tennis ace, Tamira Paszek, in the second round of the tournament. Paszek had a convincing victory over Marina Erakovic of New Zealand in the opening round, finishing off with a 7-5, 6-1, score line to book a date with Hantuchova for a place in the quarter-finals of the AEGON International.
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