Petra Kvitova bows out to Christina McHale in the third round – BNP Paribas Open 2012
Czech number one, Petra Kvitova, was dumped out from the BNP Paribas Open 2012 after suffering a 6-2, 2-6, 3-6 shock against the 32nd seed, Christina McHale, on Sunday. She exited in the third round at this WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) Premier Mandatory event taking place on the hard courts in Indian Wells, United States.
Battling each other for the first time, the third seed showed dismal performance after the first set and eventually fell to McHale. After this one hour and 57 minutes duel, the delighted American booked a fourth round spot at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden.
"She played very solid and she didn't have many mistakes," Kvitova was quoted after the match. "She was moving very well, and she played a lot of shots to back. My serve was not too good, too, so it was tough.”
The world number three stormed into the Indian Wells' hard courts and drew the first blood in the opening game. She maintained her intensity and not only held entire serves but also capitalised on another break chance in the seventh game, ultimately sealing the opener with a 6-2 win.
McHale on the other side of net went into overdrive mode and pulled out the equaliser by winning six games to two. After Kvitova kept her serve in the fourth game, the American blasted powerful groundstrokes to wind up the last four games in a row.
The match was poised at a knife but the American teenager kept her momentum and clinched the decider with a 6-3 score line. She earned the coveted break in the fourth game and cruised to a 4-1 lead. Despite losing her edge in the seventh game, McHale cashed in another break chance in the very next game and earned the spotlight.
"I can't even describe how amazing this feels," the blooming 19-year-old stated in post-match interview. "It's amazing she started off really strong but I slowly started finding my rhythm and she began making errors. I am really excited right now."
The local star will next confront the 18th seed, Angelique Kerber, who received a walkover against Vania King to secure this spot.
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