Sabine Lisicki edged out by Marina Erakovic in round one – Internazionali BNL D’Italia 2012
Seeded 11th in the tournament, Sabine Lisicki became the casualty of the day after bowing out to the Kiwi contender, Marina Erakovic, in troublesome three sets at the Internazionali BNL D’Italia 2012 on Tuesday. She suffered a 6-7(4), 6-4, 3-6 shock at the hands of the world number 41 to exit from the opening round at this WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) Premier Five event held in Rome.
The high flying German found her rhythm in the second set but lost her track again in the decider, ultimately enduring a shocking defeat in their second meeting. As a result, Erakovic not only avenged her loss at the Reggio Emilia WTA event but also levelled the head-to-head series by 1-1 against the German.
Lisicki made a strong start at Foro Italico and drew the first blood in the second game to leap to a 2-0 lead. However, she lost her concentration after that and gifted away her serve twice, eventually going 3-5 down. Despite snatching her break back in the 10th game and enforcing a tie-breaker, the German was underplayed in it and eventually endured a 6-7(4) loss.
Ranked 13th in the WTA Premier Rankings, Lisicki improved the level of her game in the second set and went on a four-game killing spree to jump to a 4-0 lead. Apart from losing the proceeding four games in a row, the German got the breakthrough in the ninth game and subsequently clicked the equaliser with a 6-4 win.
The match was poise on a knife edge but New Zealand’s number one Erakovic was the one who re-gained her strength. She brushed off all three breakpoints she faced to keep her entire serves and got the breakthrough in the fourth game to clinch the decider with a 6-3 score line.
All in all, Lisicki spilled fewer double faults and produced a better first serve share as compared to her rival. She also sought 14 break opportunities but capitalised on five of them. On the other hand, the German brushed off four out of nine breakpoints she came across and eventually dumped out from the event.
Erakovic will next face the South African number one, Chanelle Scheepers, who tumbled over the Australian challenger, Jarmila Gajdosova, in straight sets to set-up this meeting.
The 15th seed, Jelena Jankovic, will join Lisicki towards the exit doors. She fell to Romania’s Sorana Cirstea in gruelling three sets in two hours and 35 minutes.
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