Venus Williams, Samantha Stosur make it to the second round – AEGON International 2011
If anyone is capable of missing almost a half year of tennis and then winning the first round match at the AEGON International 2011, it is Venus Williams, who is returning from the double misfortune of a hip injury and then facing
a subsequent abdominal injury in the third round of the Australian Open, when she pulled out after one game.
Former world number one, Venus Williams won her first match since January with a tough three set win over the world number eleven, Andrea Petkovic of Germany in the first round of AEGON International in Eastbourne.
William, who has not competed in any match since her withdrawing from the Australian open, played tremendously this time around to come up as the victor, at times displaying some rust but overall showing that champion’s spirit
to prevail, 7-5, 5-7, 6-3.
And on the coincidence of playing her comeback match against the German, Venus was a more consistent baseliner to win the match. Regardless of her opponent’s poor choice of tactics in the decisive set, Venus was playing some good
tennis. She was timing her ground strokes nicely, hitting with exactly the right amount of controlled aggression to keep Petkovic on the back foot.
Venus won her comeback match with the help of four aces and 66 percent of points behind her first serve. With this win, the former world number one has improved her year-to-date win/loss mark to 3-1 since her retirement.
Venus will face either Germany’s Julia Goerges or Serbia’s Ana Ivanovic in the second round.
Among all the winners on Monday, the Australian tennis ace, Samantha Stosur also staggered into the second round of the AEGON International after beating Nadia Petrova of Russia, 6-1, 6-4.
Stosur raced out of the blocks, capitalising on some characteristically clownish play from the Russian to canter into a 4-0 lead. Although, Petrova managed to get on the scoreboard in the fifth game, she remained unable to make
an impression on her Australian opponent. In a harbinger of what was to come in the next game of the first set, a series of sloppy shots from Petrova gifted the Australian first set with a breadstick win.
Stosur might have expected a second set wobble, but to her credit, she kept her concentration and composure, whilst her opponent’s clumsiness hand another break at the start of the second set. The woman from Moscow seemed to be
totally frustrated, as Stosur’s variety in game and trickery became too much for her. As the steam billowed out of Petrova’s ears, the Australian cruised to victory, her first against Petrova in her last four attempts.
Stosur will face either Serbia’s Bojana Jovanovski or Russia’s Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the second round.
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