Sabine Lisicki, Heather Watson successful in the second round – AEGON Classic 2011
German tennis player Sabine Lisicki thrashed out Kirsten Flipkens of Belgium 7-5, 7-6 (3) to make it to the third round of 2011 AEGON Classic in Birmingham City.
With Wimbledon coming closer, Lisicki showed her exceptional grass court skills taking down her opponent in straight sets. The 21-year-old put up a great show at the Roland Garros just over a week ago where she almost snatched victory against world number two and the Australian Open champion Kim Clijsters before suffering from a leg injury.
Looking to win her first Women’s Tennis Association title on the green surface, Lisicki started off very brightly. Her foot work was excellent and she made some great moves to create tight angles for her opponent. Flipkens, who dropped only three games in her opening match, was also up for the challenge as she held on to her serve game to even the game score at 5-5. Coming up with a great combination of shots, Lisicki managed to make her first break of the match to earn a crucial 6-5 lead, serving for the set. Clinching four straight points on her next serve game she pocketed the opener 6-5.
The second set also followed a very similar trend with both players trying to get the better of one another. Ranked 100th in the world, Lisicki held her nerves and broke the serve twice as the set moved into a tie-breaker. Showing her temperament and strong mental abilities, the German was nerveless in the tie-breaker as she executed her forehand and backhand winners to perfection. An unforced error from the Belgian provided Lisicki with three match points and she converted the first one to ensure her third round place at the US $ 220,000 grass-court tournament.
Serving with control and accuracy, the German struck an impressive 60 percent on her first serve. However, she managed to convert only three out of nine break points in the match, an area of her game that needs definite improvement for consistent results on the tour.
Meanwhile British hope Heather Watson continued her incredible grass court season with another emphatic 6-2, 6-4 win over Japanese tennis-pro Misaki Doi.
Looking in great touch in the last week or so, Watson required only one hour and 22 minutes flooring her opponent. She broke the serve five times in the match forcing the challenger to make errors. Her serving was also quite exceptional as she converted nearly 70 percent of her first serves. Taking control of the rallies, she was able to push Doi to the baseline.
Doi received seven break chances during the contest but converted only two of them. Her unforced errors also played a big part in her defeat.
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