Dementieva’s shock retirement sends Schiavone into French Open final
Francesca Schiavone has become the first Italian player to reach the final of a Grand Slam after Elena Dementieva retired from their semi-final match.
Schiavone had won an absorbing first set against the Russian in a tiebreak, when Dementieva surprised everyone watching when she approached Schiavone’s chair and conceded the match.
While the fifth seed had been troubled by leg problems during the tournament, including her quarter-final match against Nadia Petrova, she had shown no outwardly apparent signs the injury was having impact on her game in the semi-final match.
Before Dementieva’s shock retirement, the match had been shaping as an intriguing struggle between two players who in 10 previous encounters had plenty of time to familiarise themselves with one another’s playing styles.
For her part Dementieva was clearly intent on exploiting any weaknesses on Schiavone’s one-handed backhand as she peppered that particular wing – a tactic which induced its share of wild shots from her opponent - while Schiavone’s defensive abilities shone as she repeatedly moved from the back foot into winning positions.
It was the 17th seed who created the early break point chances, but Dementieva who secured the first break of the match with her first break point opportunity. Consolidating the break proved a tougher task for the Russian, as Schiavone broke straight back to level at 4-4 thanks to a badly timed double-fault from her opponent, and games remained on serve to the tiebreak.
Two poorly executed drop shots in the tiebreak helped Schiavone gain a 5-2 lead; an ace handed the 17th seed four set points and it took just two for the 29-year-old to take the first set her maiden Grand Slam semi-final.
As it turned out that was all she needed, and the final chapter of Schiavone’s French Open fairytale is now destined to be written in the final.
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