Petra Martic defeata Maria Sanchez in qualifying final round – Cincinnati Open 2011
Kicking off on the 14th of August was the final qualifying round of the Cincinnati Open 2011. The two were meeting for the first time on the hard courts of the Lindsay Tennis Centre in Mason, Ohio. Croatian Petra Martic
won in straight sets of 6-4, 6-3 against the Hispanic Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez in 1 hour, 36 minutes and 46 seconds of thrilling play.
The 20-year-old Croatian never allowed Sanchez to set her rhythm and was dominant over her. With strong ground strokes and a stronger forearm, she won an exceptional 69% of her total service points against her opponent, who was
only able to attain 25 of 43 points making it an above average 58% of her total service points.
Even though, both the players had an average return, Martic had managed to score 11% more points in her total return points than Sanchez who had only mustered 31%.
With a sturdy defence that did not falter, Martic saved all her break points and instead broke her opponent once which gave her a competitive edge over her Hispanic rival, as she was only able to save 5 out of the 8 break points
and won none.
She powered through the first set, by accomplishing 54% of her total set score, and also set the tone for the second. This time she had improved her return serve and managed to attain an excellent 67% win in her total return points.
By grinding all her shots towards the baselines and utilizing her forearm, she was capable of bagging 52% of her total service points.
Mean while, Sanchez was completely crushed, and was unable to pick up her rhythm, against the Croatian’s big serves and ground strokes she was unable to score many points on her return serve and hence only mustered 48% of her total
return points
Although, Martic was unable to save the only two break points on her serve, she was able to break her opponent twice more than the Hispanic. Hence, gaining an upper hand and by accomplishing 10 more points than Sanchez in the total
set points, she hacked the set away from her opponent securing a deftly 6-4 win and was able to secure a position in the main draw of the event.
World number 72, Petra Martic is a right handed player who turned pro in 2008 and this year she has won 22 matches out of the 38 that she has contested in.
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