Grandin/Uhlirova upset Peschke/Srebotnik in the quarter-final – Family Circle Cup 2012
Unseeded duo of Natalie Grandin and Vladimira Uhlirova got through to the last four, as they surprised second seeds, Kveta Peschke and Katarina Srebotnik, in straight sets 7-6(8), 6-2 in the quarter-final at the Family Circle Cup
in Charleston, USA on Friday.
It took the South African-Czech combination an hour and 31 minutes to complete the win.
The opener went with the serves until the fifth game, when Grandin and Uhlirova claimed a breakthrough and capitalised on it to take a 4-2 lead. However, Peschke and Srebotnik hit back in the eighth game to even out the score at
4-4. Both teams held their serve in the next four games to square it off at 6-6 and force a tie-breaker. After a close fight, the South African-Czech pair succeeded in clinching two consecutive points in the end and sealed it 7-6(8).
Grandin and Uhlirova were superb on the first serves, keeping the percentage at 84 and converting 28 of the 36 of them into points in the opener. Though, they were a little weak on the second deliveries and returns, losing five
of the seven and seven of the 12 points on them respectively.
The South African-Czech duo made a great start in the second set, as they struck twice in the first three games to build a 3-0 lead. Peschke and Srebotnik were looking to stage a comeback, as they got one back, claiming two straight
games to reduce the trail to 2-3. However, the Czech-Slovakian pair lost three games in a row after that, losing it 2-6.
Grandin and Uhlirova’s first serve performance dropped, as they delivered 59 percent of them and pocketed nine of the 13 points on them in the second set. Nevertheless, they were extraordinary on the second returns, converting
eight of the nine of them into points. The South African-Czech combination put away one of the two break points they faced and availed all the three chances they received.
They will meet Spanish-Kazakh duo of Anabel Medina Garrigues and Yaroslava Shvedova in the semi-final. They upset fourth seeds, Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka, in the quarter-final.
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