Donna Vekic stuns Monica Puig to reach the main round – Tashkent Open 2012
Amazing scenes were witnessed at the hard courts of Uzbekistan during the final qualifying battle between the fourth seed Puerto Rico star, Monica Puig, who took on the two year younger Croatian, Donna Vekic. It was expected that
the 18-year-old Puig will roll into the main round of the tournament with ease but an hour and 21 minutes onslaught from the 16-year-old Croatian broke her heart; dismissing her in straight sets 6-2, 6-3.
Vekic begin the match with a serve hold and won all four points on her rival serve to take the lead of two games upfront. However, she failed to win a single point on her own serve and couldn’t protect the breakpoint. Puig was
on course to level the scores but a late comeback in the fourth game from the 183rd ranked Croatian broke her serve; drowning her to a trail of 1-3.
The Croatian made no mistake in the following game and consolidated the breakpoint with a serve hold to love. The lead was extended to 4-1 and her opponent merely managed to squeeze a serve hold before losing out another breakpoint
in the eighth game that rounded off the first set proceedings in favour of the Crotian.
Puig was under the cosh and despite her entry as a fourth seeded player in the qualifier, she looked to be a minnow in front her of her competitor on the eve of Monday. She saved three breakpoints in the first serve game of the
second set but couldn’t hold her opponent from running away with the show. Vekic was cruising along with a lead of 3-0 and an exchange of breakpoints didn’t do any damage to her cause. The lead was extended to 5-2 by the end of the seventh game.
The 161st ranked Puig required a serve hold which she did in commanding fashion but failed to convert any of the allotted breakpoint in the following game that led to her downfall. She lost the match in disgraceful manner
walked back as a loser despite a superior rank in the world than her rival.
Vekic awaits the draws update so that she knows her next opponent in the main round of the tournament.
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