Serena Williams breezes into the quarters; Halep retires at Collector Swedish Open – Tennis News
Top seed, Serena Williams, cruised into the final eight at the Collector’s Swedish Open 2013 on Thursday after outshining Georgia’s Anna Tatishvili. The Romanian top ranked star, Simona Halep, wasn’t so luck as she was forced to
pull out from her match against the Italian veteran, Flavia Pennetta, with a lower back injury.
The 16-time Grand Slam champion, Williams, squandered her chance of carving out the victory with a breadstick. However, she stayed on track to capture the title by triumphing over the Georgian number one. The players previously
fought each other at the French Open earlier this season but with this win, the American maintained her winning record.
"To be on top was really an honor for me," Williams was quoted in a courtside interview after pocketing the match. "I've worked really hard, and there have been so many fabulous female athletes in the last year, so to get that
award really means a lot to me."
Williams drew the first blood in the second game and took the initial lead. Despite losing her serve twice, the American managed to seal the deal with a 6-2 win.
The 31-year-old went berserk in the following set. She went on a five-game killing spree before Georgian showed resilience. Williams lost her serve in the seventh game but stayed focused and clinched the set with a 6-3 score line.
The American icon reflected about her goals after stealing the show, “My main goal is to do well here... I'm staying really focused, Grand Slam style.”
Williams is currently unbeaten on clay this season. She has won 25 matches and is eyeing to grab another title on clay courts.
Elsewhere, the second seeded Halep wasn’t that fortunate. She bagged the opening set with ease but squandered her lead in the following set. In the deciding set, she endured an early shock and fell at 0-2. Later the Romanian star
was forced to withdraw as she suffered a low back injury.
The former Top 10, Pennetta, reflected about the match in a post match presser, "It was a little bit of a strange match… In the beginning of the third set I saw she was a little bit tired and injured, which is normal when you've
played so many matches. I wish her the best to recover and come back very soon."
The Italian star is bidding to climb up the rankings after suffering a wrist injury which ruled her out of tennis for six months.
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