Yulia Putintseva bounces over Elina Svitolina to reach semis – Al Habtoor Tennis Challenge 2012
Kazakhstani contender, Yulia Putintseva, made an epic comeback from a set down to outshine the sixth seed, Elina Svitolina from Ukraine, in a three-set thriller at the Al Habtoor Tennis Challenge 2012 on Thursday. She summed up a 5-7, 6-3, 7-6(4) victory against the Ukrainian seed to charge into the last four at this ITF (International Tennis Federation) Women’s Circuit event taking place from 26th November to 2nd December in Dubai.
The unseeded starlet showed spectacular skills to stun Svitolina in their second meeting. The contestants previously battled each other at the Siberia Cup in Tyumen last year and after bagging this match, Putintseva maintained her winning record at this outdoor hard court event.
The 18-year-old made a strong start at the Habtoor Grand Beach Resort and Spa. After exchanging two serve breaks early in the set, Svitolina held her composure. The Ukrainian starlet got the breakthrough in the last game and eventually pulled out the opener with a 7-5 score line.
Putintseva rebounded in the proceeding set. She exchanged several breaks before founding her rhythm. After pocketing the last three games, the Kazakh clicked the equaliser with a 6-3 success.
Ranked 125th in the WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) Premier Rankings, Putintseva maintained her intensity in the deciding set which matter the most. She exchanged several breaks of serve and eventually prolonged the set to a tie-breaker. The Kazakhstani teenager went berserk in the tie-breaker and ultimately nudged up a 7-6(4) win.
All in all, the Kazakh produced a slightly better first serve share of 62 per cent as compared to her rival’s 60 per cent and amazingly marked 40 out of 64 points on it. She committed fewer unforced errors and ended the battle with 117 points.
Next up for Putintseva is the fifth seed, Kristyna Pliskova, who stunned Nina Bratchikova in straight sets to set up this meeting. The Czech seed dropped her serve once but broke her rival’s serve five times to formulate a 6-2, 6-3 victory.
The ever-green Kimiko Date-Krumm will join Putintseva in the following round. She hit back to overpower Czech Republic’s Karolina Pliskova in a three-set thriller to progress.
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