Timea Bacsinszky outlasts Anne Keothavong to reach the second round – BNP Paribas Open 2012
Swiss starlet, Timea Bacsinszky, battled past the British rising star, Anne Keothavong, in three sets at the BNP Paribas Open 2012, a joint hard court event taking place in Indian Wells in California, United States. She formulated a 6-4, 2-6, 7-5 victory
over the British veteran in the opening round on Wednesday.
The 22-year-old stayed on track to bid for her second career title after stunning Keothavong in a three set nail-biter. Battling each other for the first time, the Swiss not only took lead in the head-to-head series against the world number 77 but also advanced
into the second round at this WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) Premier Mandatory event.
Bacsinszky made a shaky entry at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden and suffered the first blow in the opening game. However, she recovered in the very next game and exchanged two more serve breaks until she levelled the scores at 4-4. The Swiss then got the
breakthrough in the last game and clinched the opener with a 6-4 score line.
The frustrated 28-year-old made an appropriate reply in the follow-up set and earned the coveted break in the opening game to leap at 2-0. She broke the Swiss’ serve again in the fifth game and subsequently cruised to a 5-1 lead. Keothavong then held her
serve in the last game and sealed the equaliser by winning six games to two.
Ranked 335th in the WTA Premier Rankings, Bacsinszky surprised everyone in the final set. She sought her rhythm again and broke the British’s serve in the second game, consequently going 2-0 up. Despite losing her serve twice to trail at 3-4,
the Swiss cashed in another break chance to tie the scores at 4-4. Bacsinszky then got the breakthrough in the last game and clinched the decider with a 7-5 score line.
Overall, the high flying Swiss found 14 break opportunities and availed half of them to earn the glory. Bacsinszky warded off only two out of nine breakpoints she came across but manipulated a better first serve share of 83 per cent in contrast with the
British’s 59 per cent.
Next up for the Swiss blooming star is the 25th seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia. Bacsinszky needs to lift-up her game in order to overpower a seeded player and advance further in the tournament. The Russian on the other hand received a bye
into the second round to set-up this clash.
Tags: