Li Na edges past Maria Kirilenko to reach the quarter-finals –New Haven Open 2011
World number seven, Li Na of China, manoeuvred her way to victory against the 26th ranked Russian competitor, Maria Kirilenko, in the second round of New Haven Open at Yale on Wednesday afternoon.
Being played at the Cullman-Heyman Tennis Center in New Haven, Connecticut, United States, the contest witnessed an excellent display of quality tennis from two of the finest women contestants. Li Na took one hour and forty seven
minutes of play to wrap up her straight sets victory at 6-4, 7-6(4), after a stiff contest in the second set.
Seeded at number two in the tournament, the Chinese wildcard kept her winning streak against Kirilenko. The last time these two women faced each other resulted in a straight sets victory for Li Na 6-4, 6-2, in the round of 32 of
the US Open in 2009 and her Wednesday’s win over Kirilenko extended her all-time lead over the Russian by 4-1, with four consecutive victories.
Suffering early exits from a couple of most recent tournament, Li Na outplayed Kirilenko to make it to her first quarter-final since her French Open title victory. It was her 30th victory of the running WTA season and
a much needed one as well. Li Na was off to a sloppy start in the contest but regrouped extremely well in the later parts of the game to turn the tables on the unseeded Russian opponent.
The second seed Chinese delivered 71 per cent of her serve on target and secured 33 out of 49 first serve points in the match, while the Russian opponent closely followed her with 32 out of her 50 points to finish on the losing
side. Kirilenko drew first blood in the fourth game to lead 3-1 but was immediately broken by the aggressive Chinese in the very next game. Li Na continued to press the Russian to cough another break point and she was successful in doing so in the seventh
game to lead 4-3. The second seed held her lead to finish off the first set at 6-4 to get one up in the contest.
More intense tennis was seen in the following set, with both contestants throwing their best at each other. A trade to two serve breaks each dragged the set into a tie breaker round, which Li Na clinched with her effective power
hitting to conclude victory at 7-6(4). She will take on the eighth seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia in the quarter-finals of New Haven Open at Yale.
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