Shuai Peng wins against Lucie Hradecka in the third round of the BNP Paribas Open
World number 36 Shuai Peng defeated the Czech qualifier Lucie Hradecka in the third round of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, California on Monday evening. The unseeded Chinese took two hours to bag a three-set victory by
6-3, 4-6, 7-5, booking a berth in the fourth round of the tournament.
It was a tough battle to win for Peng as she had to bounce back into the game after dropping the second set to her opponent. The Chinese made a tremendous comeback in the third set and turned the tables on Hradecka to register
her 19thwin of the running year.
Peng had a great start to the opener, serving with a brilliant 72 per cent accuracy and collecting 16 out of 18 first serve points without committing a double fault. She took advantage of a break point to race past Hradecka, sealing
the first set at 6-3.
Hradecka fought back in the second set, breaking in the second game to lead 3-1. Peng reduced the deficit to 3-2 by breaking the Czech in the fifth game, only to be broken in the very next game to trail 2-5. Hradecka gifted four
double faults and had a lower first serve percentage of 43 in the set to clinch 14 out of 28 total serve points.
The 25-year-old Czech stung her third serve break of the set at 5-4, sealing the second set to her name. She won 30 out of total of 57 points in the set to conclude at 6-4.
The third set had a steady start, with both players holding their serve in the opening five games of the set. Hradecka broke first in the sixth game and then held her serve to have a commanding lead of 5-2 in the decider. It appeared
as the game was over for the Chinese but she made a critical breakthrough in the ninth game and levelled the scores at 5-5 after holding her serve.
A costly double fault from Hradecka gave the vital chance to Peng to sting a break point and serve out of the contest at 6-5. The Chinese cashed in her very first match point at 40-30 in the 12th game to register a victory
for her at 7-5.
Peng will face the 18th seed Nadia Petrova of Russia in the next round to qualify for the quarter-finals. The Russian defeated the American wildcard Christina McHale 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 in the third round of the competition.
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