Sara Errani, Pauline Parmentier qualify for the second round – XXIV SNAI Open 2011
Current World Number 35 and third seed Sara Errani managed to defeat Russia’s Regina Kulikova in straight sets at the 2011 XXIV SNAI Open here on Monday.
Closing out the match with a victory in less than two hours, Errani won the match with a 6-1, 6-3 scoreline.
After Kulikova lost the first set with a breadstick defeat, few wondered if she had the mettle to fight back against her much experienced opponent. But Kulikova allayed all the fears with an early break of serve in the second set,
eventually holding serve for the first time to level the score at 3-all.
However, after ticking the scoreboard on even terms, the 22-year-old Kulikova never returned to win another game in the match as Errani reeled off three games in succession to close out the match 6-1, 6-3.
It was not a vintage performance from the second-seeded as her artistic two-handed backhand winners were not flowing freely, but what the Italian lady could do with such a performance is to gain some competitive edge which will
going to help her in the up-coming matches at the tournament.
she now moves on ahead to face Pauline Parmentier of France, who did away with the American Jill Craybas in the first round of the tournament.
Parmentier, unlike, Errani, dropped the second set against the American but she broke back in the third set to clinch the match in a three-set marathon 6-4, 3-6, 6-4.
Both women had a pretty shaky opening to the deciding set and were exchanging early breaks, but once Parmentier sorted out her first serve, she simply overpowered the tiring Craybas with her unerring forehand bombs, going carefully
towards the net to finish off the floundering American.
The French powerhouse won 56 percent on her service, 47 percent on return and a total of 101 of 196 to compete a fine win over a tricky customer, who could not repeat the feat as all the cards were stacked against her. She lost
the match with meager difference of six points in total as she walked off with 53 percent on her service, 44 percent or return and 48 percent of points in total.
She now moves on to face Errani and both the women will do the battle for the third time in their careers, and their head-to-head score is led by the Italian lady 2-0.
Tags: