Lucie Hradecka jolts down Petra Kvitova to enter third round – Mutua Madrid Open 2012
In an all-Czech clash, qualifying Lucie Hradecka shocked everyone after upsetting her third seeded compatriot, Petra Kvitova, in straight sets at the Mutua Madrid Open 2012 on Wednesday. She registered a 6-4, 6-3 victory against the world number four to
power into the round of 16 at this blue clay court event taking place in Spain.
Hradecka claimed her biggest win after upsetting her top compatriot in one hour and 11 minutes. As a result, the lower ranked Czech not only avenged her lost at the US Open two years ago but also levelled the head-to-head series by 1-1 against Kvitova.
"This one was a little bit strange because we are good friends, and we were even laughing with each other on the way to the court," Hradecka ecstatically commented in a post-match interview. "I knew if I played strong and concentrated on my serve I had a
chance to win. We played at the end of last year in some club matches and I won, and also we've played a lot of sparring games from Fed Cup. We know each other's games pretty well."
The 26-year-old made a sluggish entry at this WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) Premier Mandatory event and suffered the first blow in the second game to trail at 0-2. However, she made a fitting reply and reeled off the proceeding four games in a row to
leap to a 4-2 lead. Hradecka then held her remaining serves and clinched the opener with a 6-4 score line.
Ranked 105th in the WTA Premier Rankings, Hradecka kept momentum running into the follow-up set and jumped to a 4-1 lead after breaking her fellow citizen’s serve twice. Regardless of losing her serve in the sixth game, the blooming Czech cashed
in another break chance in the last game and sealed the set by winning six games to three.
All in all, the Prague native outshined her left-handed compatriot completely. She committed fewer double faults and produced a better first serve share of 60 per cent as compared to Kvitova’s 56 per cent.
Next challenge for Hradecka is the Russian contender, Ekaterina Makarova, who also stunned her 16th seeded compatriot, Maria Kirilenko, in straight sets to secure this spot.
The fourth seed, Agnieszka Radwanska, faced a better fate later that day. She slaughtered the clay specialist, Sara Errani, with a bagel and a breadstick in 65 minutes to progress at Park Manzanares.
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