Jankovic ousted in Carlsbad round two
Jelena Jankovic of Serbia was blasted out of the Mercury Insurance Open with a 7-5, 6-2 second round loss to Alisa Kleybanova of Russia in Carlsbad, California on Wednesday evening.
Kleybanova endured a struggle to move into the lead past the world number two ranked Jankovic, but gained momentum to race into an impressive victory over the tournament number one seed.
"I kept trying to find the key to the match. After the first few games I picked up the pace," said Kleybanova. "I figured I would see what happens, and even better if I won the first set. My job today was to play, fight and win."
Despite Jankovic leading the first four games of the opening set, she was unable to finish things off with Kleybanova. At 5-3 in the first set, the Serbian impressively held three set points, yet Kleybanova fired up to win the next eight games back-to-back, turning 3-5 into a personal advantage, and finally claiming the set with a triumphant win.
The Russian continued her aggressive approach, storming past Jankovic into her third career victory over the Serbian in their previous five meetings. The two women now share a record of 3-2, in favour of Kleybanova.
Jankovic ankle acts up
After suffering an injury to her left ankle two weeks ago at the Slovenia Open, Jankovic was forced to sit out from her scheduled matches, giving her little time for on-court practice. Regardless of a lack of preparation and training, Jankovic entered the match anyway, claiming that it was important to get back in the game to begin fine-tuning for the upcoming US Open, which she has vied to win for several years. After her loss to Kleybanova, the Serbian admitted that her less then ideal fitness level was a definite factor in her loss against the Russian.
"I think I had lots of chances but with the lack of practice and fitness, I was pretty tired, and it showed tonight," Jankovic said. "I had some fear moving and was in doubt at times whether I should have been running or not. I didn't know what to expect from myself today."
More time-off for Jankovic?
With aims of success at the upcoming hardcourt Grand Slam, Jankovic cannot afford to play on an injured ankle. Not only does it interfere with her movement, but the risk of a worsening condition is one the Serbian cannot afford at this point.
''I had some fear moving, at times in doubt because I'm afraid to twist it again,'' she said. ''I'm still not confident 100 percent in the matches when I have to move side to side.''
Tags: