Maria Kirilenko trounces Yaroslava Shvedova to enter quarters – Kremlin Cup 2012
Seeded seventh in this event, Maria Kirilenko displayed superb skills at her home soil event and eventually outclassed the Kazakhstani contender, Yaroslava Shvedova, in straight sets on Thursday. She nudged up a 7-5, 6-4 victory against the world number
29 to power into the quarter-finals at the Kremlin Cup by Bank of Moscow 2012, a WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) Premier event held in Moscow.
The local seed made an epic comeback from 1-5 down in the opening set to registering a straight set in one hour and 53 minutes. Battling each other for the third time, Kirilenko not only avenged her loss at the Barcelona Ladies Open two years ago but also
took lead in the head-to-head series by 2-1 against the Russian-born Shvedova.
"This year Slava has beaten good players, and she started at such a high level today," the beaming Kirilenko stated in a courtside interview after overpowering the Kazakh. "For me it was difficult to show her something as well, but then I won the seven games
and changed the match. I found the key to beat her and started playing more aggressive, and finally I won, so I'm happy."
Kirilenko made a drastic entry at the Olympic Stadium. After losing her serve twice, she fell at 1-5. However, she stayed focused and not only levelled the scores in the 10th game but got the breakthrough in the 12th game, eventually
sealing the opener by winning seven games to five. She cashed three out of four break chances to go on a five-game killing spree and get in contention.
Ranked 16th in the WTA Premier Rankings, Kirilenko maintained consistency in his game in the following set. She got the desiderated break in the sixth game and took a 4-2 lead. Despite losing her serve in the very next game, the Russian broke
her rival’s serve again and clicked the set with a 6-4 win. She failed to block the lone breakpoint she came across and converted two out of six break chances to her advantage.
Kirilenko will square off against the Swedish star, Sofia Arvidsson, who stunned second seeded Marion Bartoli with a bagel to set up this meeting.
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