Jarmila Groth defeats Misaki Doi to qualify for the Malaysian quarterfinals
Australian tennis pro Jarmila Groth has defeated Japanese player Misaki Doi in the second round of the 2011 BMW Malaysian Open in straight sets 7-6(6), 6-3.
Groth is currently ranked World Number 31, and tennis pundits had already touted her as the favourite to win the match. Meanwhile, Doi is relatively unknown as World Number 124 and has yet to turn professional. Groth remained on top of her opponent for much
of the match, although she did struggle to find her footing in the first set.
Doi, who is just 19 years old, played exemplary tennis in the first set. She scored three aces and broke Groth twice, and lost the set by just one point. However, Groth was also in top shape and managed to score two aces more than Doi. She also double faulted
three times less than the Japanese player.
In the second set, Doi seemed to have exhausted all her resources and faltered to give Groth the lead. The Australian 23-year-old scored six aces, while Doi committed two double faults. Groth managed to improve her performance by evading three break points
and successfully converting one of three against Doi. Groth won a total of 32 points in this set, maintaining and impressive 57 percent of the total points.
Overall, Groth scored 11 aces to Doi’s 3 and committed six double faults, while Doi committed 11. She also broke her opponent twice, while the Japanese player followed closely with three two successfully converted break points. The Australian pro scored
53 percent of the total points in the match.
One of the major factors in Groth’s victory is her adjustability to tough weather conditions. She had already stated that playing in the heat of Kuala Lumpur would not be an issue for her, as she had been training under far worse conditions. The player said,
“I’m used to playing in such weather. In fact, I play well in hot and humid conditions.”
Groth will face another Japanese pro, sixth seed Ayumi Morita, in the quarterfinals of this event.
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