TENNIS – Viktoria Azarenka won the blockbuster second round match against last week’s Indian Wells finalist Jelena Jankovic with 6-1 6-1 but it was a far from easy win. Simona Halep needed three sets to beat Nicole Vaidisova. Ana Ivanovic overcame a tough match against Irina Falconi. Diego Sampaolo
In the first set Azarenka broke serve in the opening game of the match and cruised to a 6-1 win in the first set. Azarenka faced the only trouble when she had to save a break point at 4-1.
Jankovic bought up two break points but Azarenka saved them. Azarenka converted on her fifth break point chance to open up a 3-0 lead. In the fifth game Jankovic earned two more break back points but Azarenka saved them. Azarenka was serving for the match at 5-1 but Jankovic saved six match points and earned seven break point chances in a very long game featuring 12 deuces. Azarenka converted on her seventh match point to clinch the win with a double 6-1.
“I just tried to stay focused and tried to find a way to stay in that game. I had to save a couple of break points. I know that Jelena Is a fighter. It doesn’ t matter what the score is. She will not give up. I just had focused and stay tough and try to find a way to finish the match”, said Azarenka
Simona Halep came back from a second-set loss to battle past former World Number 7 Nicole Vaidisova with 6-4 2-6 6-1. The fresh Indian Wells champion won a tough first set after 55 minutes and broke serve to love in the first game of the second set but Vaidisova bounced back winning six of her seven next points. Vaidisova went up 4-2 after both players traded breaks. Vaidisova held her serve in the seventh game before clinching the second set with 6-2. Halep fought back with a break in the first set of the third set and cruised to 5-0 in the third set dropping just five points in the first five games and wrapped up the match with a brak in the seventh game after 1 hour and 44 minutes.
Halep will face Italian Camila Giorgi for the first time in her career. Giorgi beat Belgian qualifier Alison Van Uytvanck with 6-3 6-2.
Ana Ivanovic had to fight hard in the second set to beat Irina Falconi. The Serbian star was cruising to a 7-5 5-2 lead but Falconi clawed her way back in the second set to 4-5. Ivanovic brought up three match points as Falconi was serving. The US player saved all of them before winning the second set at the tie-break. Falconi earned two break points for a 2-0 lead. Ivanovic bounced back fending off the two break points before winning six of the next eight games to wrap up the match with 7-5 6-7 (4-7) 6-3 after two hours and 35 minutes. Ivanovic, who achieved her best result at Crandon Park in 2005 when she reached the quarter finals, will take on German Sabine Lisicki (Indian Wells semifinalist last week) who battled past her compatriot Julia Georges with 7-6 (7-1) 6-7 (5-7) 6-4. Ivanovic leads 4-1 in her previous head-to-head matches against Lisicki but the German player won her only match in the third round last year at Wimbledon.
Last year’s Indian Wells Flavia Pennetta rallied from a set down to edge Pironkova with 6-7 (1-7) 6-3 6-3. Pennetta got an early break at the start of the first set but Pironkova broke straight backin the next game. The first set came down to the tie-break where Pironkova won 7-1. Pironkova dropped her serve in all her four service games winning only six of her 24 points on her serve. Pennetta won two of her five service games but she drew level with 6-3. Pennetta reeled off the final three games of the match from 3-3 and wrapped up the match with 6-3 after 2 hours and 20 minutes. Pennetta will take on Azarenka in the third round.
Sloane Stephens beat this year’s Australian Open semifinalist Madison Keys 6-4 6-2. Keys dropped her serve early in the first set but she broke back to draw level to 3-3. Stephens broke serve again in the seventh game for 6-4. Stephens cruised to 5-0 in the second set and never lloked back to win the second set with 6-2.
US teenager Cici Bellis, who reached the second round at last year’s US Open at the age of 15, beat 20-year.old Zarina Diyas from Kazakhstan 6-2 6-1. Bellis got a double break to open up a 4-1 lead in the first set. Dyas broke back for 2-4 but Bellis clinched the first set with 6-2 before dominating the second set with 6-1
