Julia Goerges crouches to Barbara Zahlavova Strycova in the quarters - XXV Italaicom Open 2012
Another setback for the German tennis icon, Julia Goerges, was witnessed on the eve of Friday when she stooped to the 71st ranked Czech star, Barbara Zahlavova Strycova. It was the quarter-final battle in the XXV Italaicom
Open that featured an enthralling battle of two hours and 37 minutes ending in favour of the inferior ranked Czech 7-6(4), 6-7(4), 6-1.
Goerges was expected to repeat the performance she displayed in the previous two battles between the two star icons. However, she broke a lot of hearts on the eve of Friday and disappointed her global fan base with another uncharacteristic
clay court play. She holds the record of the fastest serve of the season which she smashed in the French Open and was recorded to be 126.1 mph that translates into 203 kmph. It is disappointing to witness such a talented and gorgeous looking lady getting out
of the tournament with just one played win.
The third seed German was the victim of an early breakthrough in the third game of the match. However, she recovered well to bring the set into balance with a successful breakthrough in the sixth game.
Both players swapped breakpoints in the dying stages of the set. However, it didn’t help any player and the tie-breaker round was enforced to decide the winner. After a struggling start, Strycova won points in succession to take
the first set under the nose of her rival.
The second set witnessed a stunning performance from both players. They capitalized on their serves throughout the first 10 games before exchanging breakthroughs to keep the scores together. Georges rocked the show with four aces
and clinched the win in the tie-breaker round to keep her chances alive for qualifying for the semi-final.
Both players won 38 points in the second set but the German 24th ranked star was lucky to have bagged the crucial points in the final tie-breaker that helped her to contain her rival from running away with the show.
Unfortunately, Strycova did run away with the show in the final set. After two tie-breakers, everyone expected another close battle but the Czech contestant had other plans. She squashed her competitor badly; won three breakpoints
in a row and didn’t allow a single opportunity for the German beauty queen to bounce back in the contest.
Strycova will lock horns with the British teen queen, Laura Robson, in the semi-final clash.
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