Marion Bartoli defeats Svetlana Kuznetsova in the quarterfinals – French Open 2011
French tennis ace Marion Bartoli silenced all the pundits who thought the woman does not stand a chance at this year’s championship, with a tremendous win over the Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova to enter the semi-final of the Roland
Garros.
Kuznetsova was again walloped in straight sets, like in last year’s Miami, where Bartoli outplayed the Russian woman with a 6-3, 6-0 score line. However, this time her Russian opponent showed some resistance but once again suffered
an ugly defeat at a major, losing 7-6(4), 6-4 to Bartoli in the quarterfinal of the tournament, here in Roland Garros.
Bartoli opened the match with a break, and held for 2-0, then lost the next five games and allowed the Russian to take the lead with a 2-5 score. But a mix of Kuznetsova’s misses and Bartoli pressure tied the score at 5-5. Kuznetsova
may not have the consistent shot making of Bartoli, but she had the superior offense which she utilized to the fullest and pushed the set into a tie-breaker. Bartoli was far superior to Kuznetsova as she grabbed three points more than Kuznetsova to take the
first set.
The 26-year-old had a very good first serve percentage, delivering a whopping 73 percent of the first serves and bagging 91 percent of the points on her second serve in the first set. At the same time, Kuznetsova could not impress
the Frenchwoman with her service game, winning a meagre 62 percent on her first serve.
Bartoli carried her momentum in the second set and started to play more consistently. That’s what finally decided the second set, which Kuznetsova at a point led by a break. But a lead did not matter much, as Bartoli roared back
from 4-1 down to 5-4 up. If Kuznetsova had tied the score at one set apiece, the match would have taken another twist. But the ride came to an end, as did Kuznetsova’s hope.
The Frenchwoman hit six winners and 62 percent of her first serves in the second set, winning 78 percent of the points on them. In contrast, Kuznetsova was less destructive for Bartoli as she committed a whopping sixteen unforced
errors as opposed to Bartoli’s eight.
With this win, Bartoli has improved her year-to-date win loss mark to 31-14 matches and looks very determined to extend it further.
Up next for Bartoli is the defending champion, Francesca Schiavone of Italy, who ended the inspiring run of Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Jelena Jankovic to set-up a semi-final clash with the Frenchwoman.
Bartoli and Schiavone have already met each other at five different occasions of the WTA (Women Tennis Association) with the Italian standing at a lifetime 4-1 edge. Schiavone is bidding for her second Grand Slam title at the tournament,
having previously won in 2010. Until Bartoli proves otherwise, Schiavone is a clear favourite to win the match.
Tags: