Li Na makes history, dethrones Francesca Schiavone to claim title – French Open 2011
Chinese ace Li Na dethroned Francesca Schiavone of Italy on Saturday 6-4, 7-6 (7) to lift her first Grand Slam trophy at 2011 French Open at the Roland Garros in Paris. With her win, Li also became the first Asian player to win
a Majors tournament in tennis history.
Seeded sixth at the tournament, Li Na made a dream start to the final as she made the crucial first serve break of the match to put herself in the driving seat. The 2010 French Open Champion Schiavone looked very unsettled as she
failed to make any sort of impression on her opponent’s service games. Despite making a good fight back in the second, the Italian lost her way and conceded seven straight points to let Li Na take the championship in straight sets.
Making a very confident start to the match, the 2011 Australian Open runner-up secured her first serve game very comfortably. She dashed her controlled and sent deep backhand and forehand shots all over the court and then created
chances by coming close to the net. A couple of unforced errors from Schiavone in fifth game of the opening set provided her with the break opportunity she was looking for. Li Na then held three consecutive serve games to bag the opener and she seemed to be
in complete control of the final going into the second set.
"I was 4-2 up and she tried to come back, but I just had to stand up again and I made it. I think everyone in China will be so excited. I was nervous but I didn't want to show my opponent." said Li, who has been a pioneer for the
sport in her country throughout her career.
Starting the following set on a positive note as well, Li Na broke Schiavone early to take vital 2-0 lead. An unforced error in sixth game of the set gave another break point to the Chinese but with a court wide open, the world
number six smashed a shoulder high forehand on to the net.
Showing amazing determination, she made her first serve break of the match to even the game score 5-5. With both players holding on to their next serve game, the set was forced into a tie-breaker. Li showed no signs of nerves
as she earned seven straight points in the tie-breaker to seal the contest.
Schiavone said, "She played well. I couldn't push her from the baseline. Then we were closer. One has to lose, one has to win. She deserved to win."
Talking about the importance of Li’s Grand Slam win, Zhang Yueming, the Beijing Green Club’s general manager said, "Throughout China's history people knew nothing of tennis. Now we're standing on the summit of the world game.”
Li’s win will certainly inspire other tennis players in China to train even harder and make excellent achievements in their careers.
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