Tsvetana Pironkova beats Jie Zheng in a thrilling three-setter – Tournament of Champions 2012
World number 44, Tsvetana Pironkova, registered a majestic comeback against the 29th ranked Chinese star, Jie Zheng, in the first Round Rubber clash at Sofia. During the second match of Tournament of Champions, Pironkova
bounced back a set down to win the contest 2-6, 6-4, 7-6(4) after a gruelling battle of two hours and 41 minutes.
In the past, the 29-year-old Chinese had defeated the Bulgarian tennis ace on two occurrences. One of them was earlier this season in August during the New Haven Open. On the other hand, the 25-year-old local had no victory against
Zheng in her entire professional career so she was bidding to register a landmark.
Enthusiastic Pironkova commented afterwards, “That was probably the most emotional win in my career. I've never played in front of such a crowd. I just want to thank everyone who came out today because I don't think I could have
won this match without them.”
She further added, "In the beginning I was very nervous. Nothing was working the way I wanted it to. I was just too tight. But after the first set and a few games in the second, I started to relax and play the way I wanted to.
I think my serve was working well and helped me a lot - also my backhand, my movement, and my forehand too.”
Big match nerves were there at the start of the encounter. The opening set was entirely dominated by the Chinese tennis ace who grabbed two back-to-back breakpoints to post a resounding lead of 5-1. She failed to serve out the
set in the seventh game but did well to break serve back and end the first phase of the match.
The second set featured a very tight battle between the two athletes. First four games went by without any damage being done to any party. However, the tables were turned upon the superior ranked Chinese in the fifth game. She
was forced to drop a breakpoint and the local superstar protected the breakthrough with a fantastic serve hold.
Swap of breakthroughs were followed up with a serve hold for the Bulgarian who enforced the final set into play. The pressure imposed by the chants of crowd took a toll on the Chinese professional and she stumbled miserably in
the opening phase of the final set.
Pironkova led the scores 3-1 and kept the lead intact until she received an opportunity to serve out the match. The scoreboard pressure forced the 25-year-old Bulgarian to drop a crucial breakpoint but she did well in the final
set tie-breaker to win some glory for the home fans.
Maria Kirilenko and Tsvetana Pironkova will play against each other on Wednesday.
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