Kristyna Pliskova upsets Nina Bratchikova to reach semis – Al Habtoor Tennis Challenge 2012
Czech starlet, Kristyna Pliskova, stunned third seeded Nina Bratchikova, in straight sets at the Al Habtoor Tennis Challenge 2012 on Thursday. She juggled up a 6-2, 6-3 victory against the seeded Russian to power into the final four at this indoor hard court
tournament taking place from 26th November to 2nd December in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Seeded fifth in this tournament, Pliskova showed brilliant tennis to outmuscle the Russian in their first battle against each other. After earning the fame in almost one hour and 15 minutes, the Czech comfortably progressed into the semi-finals at this ITF
(International Tennis Federation) Women’s Circuit event.
Pliskova made a comfortably entry at the Habtoor Grand Beach Resort and Spa. After Bratchikova held her serve in the fourth game, the Czech unveiled her skills and reeled off last four games in a row. She smoothly kept her entire serves after brushing off
both breakpoints she faced. The Czech availed two break chances and inched closer towards her goal.
Ranked 110th in the WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) Premier Rankings, Pliskova lost her track towards the following set and gifted away her serve early in the set. However, she broke her opponent’s serve three times and eventually sealed the
set by winning six games to three.
On the whole, the 20-year-old nudged up an equal first serve share of 68 per cent and amazingly marked 24 out of 30 points on it. She struck seven aces and ended the match with 70 points.
After pocketing this match, Pliskova comfortably secured a main draw spot at the Australian Open 2013, first of the four Grand Slam events taking place in Melbourne.
Next in queue for Pliskova is the Kazakhstani challenge, Yulia Putintseva, who upset sixth seeded Elina Svitolina in a three-set thriller to set up this duel. She found her momentum after the opening set and eventually sealing the deal with a 5-7, 6-3, 7-6(4)
score line.
China’s Yi-Miao Zhou will join the Czech in the following set. She dumped the Japanese challenger, Kurumi Nara, in straight sets to reach this spot. The Chinese will face off eighth seeded Kimiko Date-Krumm in the semi-finals.
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