Mirjana Lucic blasts away Estrella Cabeza Candela in the qualifiers – Family Circle Cup 2012
Qualifying competition for the Family Circle Cup concluded on Sunday, with the sixth seed Croatian, Mirjana Lucic overcoming Spain’s Estrella Cabeza Candela to reach the main draw of the event. She took just one hour and 14 minutes to dispose of the 15th seed Spaniard in twin sets, 6-2, 6-2.
It was a completely one-sided affair, with Lucic dominating every second of it to register a comprehensive victory. She bettered her bleak opponent in every segment of the game, cruising through the sets and sealing victory in an assertive fashion. The 30-year-old veteran gave away limited opportunities to Candela, forcing her to spill unforced errors and commit mistakes regularly.
The last time these two went one-on-one against each other in the round of 32 at Campobasso, Italy, in 2008, with Candela winning in a stiff three-setter to level the head-to-head series at 1-1. This time it was the belligerence of Lucic which prevailed throughout the contest, driving the Spaniard out of the WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) Premier-level event.
Lucic delivered 63 per cent of her first serve on target but coughed seven double faults in the process. She compensated for it by clinching 26 out of 37 first serve points and further bagging 16 out of 30 return points en route to victory. The sixth seed Croatian converted five out of 11 break points to root out her 147th ranked opponent in an assertive manner.
Candela had her chances in the contest but she kept frittering them away carelessly, eventually finishing on the losing side in the end. She cashed in just one out of his five break opportunities in the match and secured merely 14 out of 30 first serve points.
Action started off right from the very first game of the match, with Lucic breaking the Spanish serve to lead 1-0. Candela broke back soon to reduce the deficit to 1-2 but the Croatian kept with her aggressive game play and went on to strike two consecutive break points, followed by a successful serve hold, to lead 5-1 in the opener. The 15th seed had no option but to submit the first set to her opponent at 2-6.
The following set took off in the similar manner to the opener, with Lucic belting two serve breaks right up to lead 4-0 in no time. A regular game followed, settling the second set and the match in Lucic’s favour at 6-2, awarding her a berth in the main rounds of the Family Circle Cup.
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