Paula Cristina Goncalves bounces over Julia Cohen to capture title – Santiago ITF 2012
Brazilian contender, Paula Cristina Goncalves, made an epic comeback from a set down to shock top seeded Julia Cohen in a three-set thriller at the Santiago ITF event on Sunday. She summed up a 0-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory against the American challenger to capture
the title at this ITF (International Tennis Federation) Women’s Circuit event taking place in Santiago, Chile.
The Brazilian underdog made a drastic entry at this outdoor clay court tournament. However, she found her rhythm afterwards and eventually carved out the victory in almost two hours and 15 minutes against the highest ranked player of the tournament. As a
result, Cristina Goncalves claimed the crown and bagged the prize money of this $25,000 event.
The world number 115, Cohen made a thunderous entry at the Club de Tenis Providencia. She unleashed barrage of groundstrokes and went on a six-game killing spree. The American was never threatened with any barrier and cashed all three break chances to pull
out the opener with a bagel.
Cristina Goncalves hit back in the following set. She drew the first blood in the second game and cruised to a 3-0 lead. The Brazilian then held her composure and bagged remaining serves with poise, eventually sealing the equaliser by winning six games to
three.
Ranked 383rd in the WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) Premier Rankings, Cristina Goncalves carried her rhythm in the final set. She lost her serve in the opening game but quickly snatched her break back in the very next game. The Brazilian broke
her opponent’s serve again and jumped to a 3-1 lead. She held her composure in the remaining set and subsequently clinched the set with a 6-4 score line. The Brazilian youngster dusted away one out of two breakpoints she came across and cashed both break chances
to steal the limelight.
Summing up performance of the 22-year-old in this tournament, Cristina Goncalves showed her best tennis. She lost only a single set en route to the final showdown. Mustering her performance further, the Brazilian shocked second seeded Paraguayan, Veronica
Cepede Royg, in straight sets to secure a spot in the title-round.
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