Lisicki/Raymond plonk Jurak/Marosi to enter semis – Toray Pan Pacific Open 2012
German-American duo, Sabine Lisicki and Lisa Raymond, dumped the Croatian-Hungarian team, Darija Jurak and Katalin Marosi, in straight sets at the Toray Pan Pacific Open 2012 on Wednesday. They recorded a 6-4, 6-2 success against the alternate team to cruise
into the final four at this outdoor hard court event held in Tokyo, Japan.
The newly form collaboration showed awe-inspiring skills to triumph over the Croatian-Hungarian team, who stunned second seeds, Sania Mirza and Nuria Llagostera Vives, in a three-set thriller to reach this spot. After stealing the limelight in one hour and
four minutes, Lisicki and Raymond booked a spot in the semi-finals at this WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) Premier Five event.
Lisicki and Raymond made a sloppy entry at the Ariake Coliseum. They suffered the first blow in the opening game and trailed at 0-1. Apart from reeling off three games in a row, the German-American tandem lost their edge again in the fifth game. They exchanged
another serve break and levelled the scores at 4-4. Lisicki and Raymond then held their composure and bagged the opener with a 6-4 win after capitalising on another break chance in the last game.
The German-American junction went out of control in the following set. They winded up the opening four games before Jurak and Marosi could snatch a break back. After the Croatian-Hungarian pair held their serve in the sixth game, Lisicki and Raymond pocketed
the last two games and clinched the set with a 6-2 score line.
On the whole, Lisicki and Raymond spilled more errors and produced a lower first serve share of 55 per cent as opposed to their rivals’ 61 per cent. However, they impressively marked 23 out of 31 points on it and ended the deal with 61 points. The German-American
junction also warded off seven out of 11 breakpoints they faced and availed seven out of 10 break chances.
Raymond is the defending champion at this prestigious event. She conquered this tournament with her compatriot, Liezel Huber, last season.
Next up for the German-American duo is the winner of the match between third seeds, Slovenia’s Katarina Srebotnik and China’s Jie Zheng, and the American tandem, Raquel Kops-Jones and Abigail Spears.
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