Victoria Azarenka prevails over Li Na in 3rd round robin match – WTA Championships 2011
On Thursday the 27th of October, Victoria Azarenka proved to be an unyielding wall of power that took down Li Na in the third round robin match of the TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships 2011.
It took Azarenka only one hour and thirty two minutes to get rid of Li in straight sets of 6-2, 6-2 on indoor hard courts of the Sinan Erdem Dome in the magnificent city of Istanbul, Turkey.
The first set of the match displayed a power play from Azarenka, who wanted her vengeance against Li. She expertly hit 89 percent of her first serves on target and was capable of bagging 72 percent of first service points won.
Although she didn’t have a geometric precision and didn’t even smash a single ace, she did not face a single breakpoint in the entire opening set which gave her an edge over her adversary.
With a sturdy defence she not only outstood her opponents attacks and offensive play but it also aided her in achieving a good return as she bagged 52 percent of her total return points won in the initial set.
Li was the first one to serve for the match as she had just won the service toss and both the players were able to hold their serves in the first two games. However, it was in the third and the fifth game that Azarenka capitalized
on two breakpoints and had taken considerable lead. During the last two games the players again won on alternate serves and in doing so; world number four Azarenka clogged the opening set with a 6-2 score.
The second set of the match was initiated once again by Li, Asia’s first female tennis player to achieve a Grand Slam title. This time the Chinese got off to a bad start and double faulted on her primary service game to endorse
a breakpoint to her adversary. On the other hand, Azarenka had reeled off two straight games and placed herself on the scoreboard at 2-0.
From there onwards the players held their own right up until the fifth game. As Li hit a forehand shot it went haywire and she once more gifted away another game to Azarenka. Although, Azarenka had taken the lead after the third
game, she further increased her lead to eventually seal her victory of the set and the match with another 6-2 score against Li.
After winning this match Azarenka not only took her revenge but was able to take a 2-0 lead in the round robin matches, becoming the first person to qualify for the semi-finals from the White group.
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