Petra Kvitova hits back at Yaroslava Shvedova to reach the semi-finals – French Open 2012
World number four, Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic, had to recover from a one-set deficit to overcome the early resistance of the Kazakh qualifier, Yaroslava Shvedova, in the quarter-final brawl of the French Open. The Wednesday’s contest was settled with the final scores of 3-6, 6-2, 6-4, in favour of the Czech number one.
The enthralling battle witnessed a number of momentum swings from both sides but it was the sheer class of the last year’s Wimbledon champion which prevailed in the end. Kvitova was off to her usual sloppy start and was found struggling early on with her shot making. After dropping the opener, the fourth seed Czech shifted to her rage mode and launched an all-round onslaught upon her inferior-ranked opponent. She breezed past Shvedova in the last two sets of the match to earn a spot in the semi-final round of the Grand Slam event in Paris, France.
"I was very nervous at the beginning and was making some easy mistakes - she also started very well," Kvitova said. "But I knew I had to change my game and had to be the aggressive one going for the points. The games were close but I'm happy I won the big points. I was fighting hard today - I couldn't give up."
Shvedova has been the surprise package in this year’s Roland Garros tournament. She outsmarted a number of top class performers, including the defending champion, Li Na of China, in the fourth round clash. Her enthralling cameo was finally ended at the hands of the Czech powerhouse, Kvitova, on Wednesday but the Kazakh diva had made a huge impact in the tournament prior to her exit.
"Petra is very precise - she hits very close to the lines, and a lot of times she hits the lines," Shvedova said after her defeat. "Her game is to just keep attacking - sometimes she makes mistakes but she keeps going for it, which I think is a great thing.”
Kvitova delivered 64 per cent of her first serve on target, clinching 31 out of 47 points on it and breaking her opponent seven out of 16 times en route to victory. Shvedova could register five out of 10 break points in the match but lost some crucial points to finish on the losing side in the end.
The fourth seed Czech will next face her arch rival and the world number two, Maria Sharapova, in the semi-finals of the tournament on Thursday.
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