Internazionali BNL d’Italia: Li Na vs. Samantha Stosur – Semi-final Preview
Saturday noon at Rome, Italy, will kick off with the first semi-final of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia, featuring the world number six Li Na of China and the seventh ranked Australian, Samantha Stosur. The two players will encounter
each other at the Foro Italico to fight for a place in the final of the $2,050,000 WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) clay-court tournament.
The contest is expected to be a treat to watch for the tennis fans, as two of the top ranked players face each other to get a shot at the championship title. China’s number one, Li Na is regarded as one of the strongest contenders
for the title at Rome but she needs to take down the strong Aussie opponent before she gets a chance to play in the final of the mega event.
The fourth seed Chinese eased through the semi-final round by defeating the world number 48, Greta Arn of Hungary in the quarter-final stage. Li Na wrapped up the straight sets victory at 6-3, 6-1, to meet Stosur in the round of
four at Rome. Her Aussie opponent exhibited her brilliant tennis skills to blow away the second seed home favourite, Francesca Schiavone, 6-2, 6-4, in the quarter-final. Stosur surprised everyone when she disposed off the second seeded Schiavone from the tournament
and has suddenly emerged as one of the strongest forces in the competition.
Stosur has faced Li Na twice prior before and has defeated the Chinese each time. Their last meeting was held at Stuttgart in 2010, where the Aussie outclassed Li Na in straight sets 6-3, 6-3, on clay surface. Stosur might be confident
of replicating the same performance against her opponent this time round on the red surface of Rome.
The Chinese got into the spot light when she reached the final of the first grand Slam of the year, the Australian Open. Although Li Na lost in the final to the world number two Kim Clijsters, she has recognised herself as one
of the craftiest tennis player among women. Li Na is well known for her accurate serve game and calculated stroke play. These abilities of her can prove to be critical success factors in the contest against the Australian opponent.
Talking about her match with Li Na, Stosur said, “I played very well at the French Open last year and today I probably felt as close to that since then. But Li Na is having a good week. It’s always going to be tough whenever you
go on the court.”
Li Na kicked off the current year by winning the Medibank International Sydney, where she defeated Clijsters in the final. She then stood runner-up at the Grand Slam Down Under but her form has appeared to have faded away since
then. Li Na suffered early exits from all the tournaments she participated in after the Australian Open though her world ranking has improved to career best 6th in the world.
Stosur has not won any of the WTA title this year and is certainly eyeing to have one at Rome. Her run at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia has been quite impressive, as she hasn’t lost a single set in all of her three matches so
far. The Australian is a worthy opponent for Li Na in the semi-final but the Chinese is considered to be the favourite in the contest.
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