Francesca Schiavone outsmarts Kimiko Date-Krumm in the opening round – French Open 2012
Former French Open champion, Francesca Schiavone, reigned supreme over Japan’s Kimiko Date-Krumm in the opening round of the Roland Garros on Tuesday. The 12th ranked Italian formulated a 6-3, 6-1, victory in straight
sets, advancing into the second round of the clay-court Grand Slam event in Paris, France.
The battle between the two veterans was dominated by Schiavone for most of the time and she spared just four games for the Japanese opponent in the entire matchup before coming out as the winner. The 31-year-old Italian lifted
gold at this coveted venue two years ago and has stepped on the clay-courts of Roland Garros in hope of repeating that memorable feat once again. It was her third consecutive victory against the 76th ranked Japanese, giving her a 3-0 lead in the
head-to-head series against her.
The 14th seed Italian went on for the aggressive approach right away but kept her unforced errors to a minimum to remain a step ahead of Date-Krumm. Schiavone’s 54 per cent precise serve earned her 17 out of 26 first
serve points and she broke her opponent five out of nine times en route to victory. The Japanese veteran tried to match her opponent’s belligerence but her error-ridden game play didn’t allow her to do so. She coughed a total of 35 unforced errors and registered
lone break point in the contest to finish on the losing side in the end.
"I think Kimiko is an example for everybody. She works a lot, respects the other players and is a really fantastic athlete," Schiavone said of the Japanese veteran. "I think we have many things to learn from her. She has a great
career. Maybe on clay I have a better chance than her - she plays much better on fast surfaces. But it was a great match and it's great to play against her."
The 14th seed Italian will now square off against the Bulgarian number one, Tsvetana Pironkova, in the second round draw of the French Open later this week. Pironkova had a gruelling three-setter against Belgium’s Yanina
Wickmayer, finishing off at 3-6, 6-0, 6-3, in the opening round of the tournament.
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