Mandy Minella tops Cristina-Andreea Mitu to enter quarters – Ankara Cup 2012
Top seed, Mandy Minella from Luxembourg, rallied past the Romanian challenger, Cristina-Andreea Mitu, in a three-set mouth-watering battle at the Ankara Cup 2012 on Wednesday. She nudged up a 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 victory against the 21-year-old to power into the quarter-finals at the Ankara Tennis Club held in Ankara, Turkey.
The Luxembourgian star remained calm throughout the battle, eventually pocketing the match in their first encounter. She lost her serve in the end of the second set but quickly picked up her pace in the final set. As a result, Minella comfortably progressed into the final eight at this indoor hard court tournament.
Minella stormed into this ITF (International Tennis Federation) Women’s Circuit event taking place from 17th to 23rd December. She drew the first blood in the opening game and took the initial lead. The Luxembourgian lost her edge in the very next game but broke her rival’s serve again, eventually jumping to a 3-1 lead. She swiped her remaining serves with poise and clinched the set with a 6-4 score line. The Luxembourgian fended off two out of three breakpoints she came across and availed two out of three break chances to inch closer towards her goal.
The Bucharest native rebounded in the following set. She quickly took a 5-1 lead with two breaks of serve. Despite squandering her lead in the 10th game, Mitu remained focused and quickly got the breakthrough in the 11th game. She failed to block both breakpoints she encountered but cashed three out of six break opportunities to pull out the equaliser with a 7-5 score line.
Ranked 77th in the WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) Premier Rankings, Minella sought her early momentum again in the deciding set. After Mitu held her serve in the fourth game, the Luxembourgian held her composure and clicked the decider with a 6-4 win. She fended off the only breakpoint she faced and converted both break chances to her advantage.
Minella will square off against the fifth seed, Marta Sirotkina from Russia, who trashed the Uzbekistani qualifier, Nigina Abduraimova, in straight sets to set up this epic battle.
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