Irina-Camelia Begu overcomes injured Svetlana Kuznetsova to enter quarters – Fes WTA 2012
Romanian star, Irina-Camelia Begu, was leading in the final set when the second seed, Svetlana Kuznetsova, was forced to pull out from her second round match at the Grand Prix De SAR La Princesse Lalla Meryem 2012 on Wednesday. She registered a 1-6, 7-6(4),
3-2 retirement victory against the injured Russian to progress into the quarter-finals at this WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) international level event held in Morocco.
The seed was leading 6-1, 5-2 when Begu got in action and gave tough time. However, after exchanging an early break in the third set and going 2-3 down, Kuznetsova suffered a left thigh injury. As a result, the Romanian not only advanced into the final eight
at this Fes clay court event but also took lead in the head-to-head series by 2-1 against the 26-year-old.
"It was tough," Begu stated in a post-match interview. "She was ahead by a set and 5-2 and only then I started to play. I was fighting for every ball and I think that was the key to my comeback. She wasn't moving so well after the injury and I tried to move
her about and I started to have some success with this. I'm happy to win, but it's also sad for Sveta and I hope she will recover quickly."
Kuznetsova, who was bidding to end her 20 months title drought, stormed into the Royal Tennis Club de Fes and stroke out the opening three games in a row with two breaks of serve. In spite of losing her serve in the fourth game, the Russian blasted massive
forehands from her arsenal of skills and sealed the opener with a breadstick.
The world number 27 maintained her intensity in the proceeding set and despite suffering the first blow in the third game, she jumped to a 5-2 lead with two breaks of serve. However, she swayed from her path after that and spilled several errors.
Begu on the other side of net took full advantage of this situation and not only recovered in the ninth game but took a 6-5 lead after cashing in her third break chance. Despite losing her edge in the last game, the Romanian edged past her opponent in the
tie-breaker and clinched the equaliser with a 7-6(4) score line.
56th ranked Begu lost her serve in the third game but quickly counterattacked by recovering in the very next game of the decider. She then held her serve once more after which the Russian got injured and retired from the tournament.
Begu will next face Spain’s Laura Pous-Tio in the final eight.
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