Tamira Paszek upsets Marion Bartoli to reach the title match – AEGON international 2012
Dream run for the world number 59, Tamira Paszek, continued at the AEGON International and she ousted another superior ranked opponent to reach the final of the grass-court event in Eastbourne, England. The 21-year-old Austrian
stunned the hot favourite Frenchwoman, world number nine Marion Bartoli, in the semi-final clash on Friday afternoon.
Unseeded Paszek went through a three hour and five-minute marathon to settle the final scores at 4-6, 7-5, 6-4, to reach her first WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) International Tour-level final. She was the unanimous underdog
before stepping on the grass courts of the Devonshire Park Lawn Tennis Club against Bartoli. She suffered an early blow right away when the fourth seeded French claimed the opening set to get the upper hand in the contest. Paszek gathered up pace steadily
in the following set and eventually go the better of the hot favourite contender to level the set scores at 1-1. The 21-year-old then went on with her winning impetus in the decisive set and struck hard at Bartoli to register yet another upset in the tournament.
"Early in the second set I had my chances, but with the wind things just weren't working out," Paszek said. "But I just tried to stay there. I knew I was at the same level, and that I just had to wait for my chances again. Chances
came. It feels amazing to be in the final. Coming into Eastbourne I didn't have a lot of confidence I'd say. I had a lot of injuries. For the first time in a while I was able to practice two weeks continuously during Strasbourg and French Open, and I knew
I had to keep working and do my job, that it wouldn't come in a day or two.”
Bartoli had defeated Paszek back in 2007 on her home soil in Linz and was anticipated to repeat the similar sort of performance on Friday but it didn’t go her way. The French was the highest seeded contestant remaining in the draw
and was bidding for her maiden championship title of the season. Her fall in the semi-final draw has awarded a golden title-winning opportunity for Paszek, who has been completely out of her form this year.
The Austrian will face the German number one, Angelique Kerber, in the final of the AEGON International on Saturday. Kerber was successful against the unseeded Czech, Klara Zakopalova, in the semi-final battle on Friday afternoon.
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