What almost looked to be another upset for Angelique Kerber turned into a lifesaving victory in the second round of the Australian Open. The world number one had a second straight roller coaster match but somehow held on to beat Carina Witthoeft 6-2, 6-7(3), 6-2 on Rod Laver Arena Wednesday. The victory came on her 29th birthday that was deserving despite its supreme difficulty.
The world number one carried a two-game winning streak against her German counterpart winning at Wimbledon in consecutive years. With the first meeting on court, it leaves Witthoeft with a chance for not only success but an upset as well. Kerber nearly found herself on the wrong end of things in her match against Lesya Tsurenko that went three sets. The high ranking German remains vulnerable going into the round of 64 with everyone in her path looking to bring her down.
Witthoeft had first game jitters committing three double faults on serve. It allowed Kerber to get on deuce winning on a trick shot rally. The second game was harder for Kerber to collect as her German rival gave it her all to fight for every point. After getting on the board, Kerber answered in the third with a second break followed by her first official service hold in the fourth. Just when it looked as if a bigger winning streak would emerge, Witthoeft ended it with her first hold getting within reach of another tie.
The late part of the half began to slow down but for Kerber, it was a coast to victory as she pushed toward a set win while holding her countrywoman back. Witthoeft did most of that on her own in the 35 minute span committing six double faults but taking a toll was her unforced errors which she racked up over 20.
Adding insult to injury, the world number one broke her on serve before consolidating a hold of her own. Witthoeft had to get into the set quickly and did it with stunning defense. After a good hold on Kerber, she won an important break that had her dictating the pace. She did it holding off the late rush from the top seed keeping her winning streak alive at the important moment.
Kerber snapped Witthoeft’s streak in the seventh getting a break that had her back in the set hunting to level the score on service. It was not an easy task as she fought back and forth with Witthoeft through two sets before getting the win. It was a race to the top and both were well in to getting to that point. Witthoeft was first to reach five games making Kerber fight for keep the idea of winning in straight sets. The world number one survived on serve to extend the match onward.
The unranked German was first to set the bar making the 12th the upmost important. Kerber gave every point played all the skill she had in her game. It led to a deuce draw that was going both ways. Witthoeft dropped a great chance at gaining the advantage but stopped to watch Kerber’s return. It ultimately cost her big as the German got the win forcing an interesting tiebreaker.
Witthoeft was first to answer but made a mistake that got her opponent on the board. The unforced errors gave free points to Kerber who more than welcomed them. She was up 3-1 on a long ball hoping to recover on service. She got one on a great rally that had both running for the returns. She got the best of the world number one sneaking a shot that Kerber could not return on slamming her racket in response. The troubles arrived on Kerber’s serve that leveled the score at three all needing seven to win. It got only worse as she allowed four straight points winning 7-3. The set finished in just a minute short of an hour with too many issues for the defending champion.
She was routed right on the point in the first game as Witthoeft gained three break points to lead once again on break. Kerber turned things around quickly with a two game winning streak holding serve in the set. Two quickly turned into four as it was apparent that she was at her best again blasting away at Witthoeft.
Two hours elapsed as the lower ranked German shattered Kerber’s winning streak to show her keen interest in still pulling off an upset. Kerber didn’t let that happen as she secured the seventh on serve to fully pressure Witthoeft to give in playing for the match. A ball landing wide of the court brought an end to the final set completing another assured victory for Kerber and a place in the third round after two hours and eight minutes.
“To have this pressure was a privilege,” Kerber said to Sam Smith during her on court interview. “it’s a completely new situation for me but I think I’m dealing with it very well while trying to enjoy it. Playing on Rod Laver with some great memories has been unbelievable.” When asked about her winning on her birthday Kerber had obvious answers for it. “I’m always playing on my birthday and I always celebrate my birthday in Australia and I really enjoy it because it’s like home.”
Before leaving the court, the entire audience sang happy birthday in unison. With another tough match out of the way, she’ll try to keep things in two sets facing the winner between Karolina Pliskova and Irina Camelia Begu on Friday.
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