Jelena Jankovic looking good in Beijing; reaches second round draw – Tennis News
Former world number one, Jelena Jankovic, has not been in a fine form this season but she had a decent start to the China Open campaign in Beijing. The Serbian veteran cleared the opening round by dumping the former German number one, Andrea Petkovic, in straight sets, 6-2, 6-4, to reach the second round of the WTA Premier Series event.
Just like Jankovic, the German contender is also labouring extremely hard regain her vintage class after her return to the professional circuit. The former top-tenner, Petkovic, has been sideline from the WTA Tour due to injury and has not been in any sort of shape in her most recent tournament. Jankovic’s victory over Petkovic has raised the level of her confidence and she desire to carry on her winning impetus in the rounds to follow in the tournament.
The unseeded Serb was delighted on her opening round victory but also felt sorry for Petkovic, who is a dear friend of Jankovic and her former doubles partner as well.
"It's unfortunate we had to play against each other in the first round - she's a good friend of mine and we are playing doubles with each other too," Jankovic said. "Andrea is coming back from an injury and she's a great player. I'm sure she will be playing great again soon. I just wish her the best of luck."
Jankovic rides a 30-26 winning record for the current year, showing her dismal performances in the recent past. She is still carrying a title drought this year, failing to bag even a single WTA championship. The 27-year-old Serbian will face the 44th ranked Romanian, Monica Niculescu, in the second round of the China Open later this week.
"She's a tricky opponent. She has a different style of game from the other girls," Jankovic said of the Romanian. "She plays a lot of slices and drop shots, and it's going to be a tough match, but I want to focus on my tennis and what I do on the court, what I do best, and go for my shots and control the points."
Jankovic leads 4-0 against Niculescu in the all-time head-to-head series.
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