Thursday, July 6, 2017

Muguruza ends Wickmayer in straight sets at Wimbledon


Garbine Muguruza was on her game from beginning to end at the Wimbledon championships Thursday. The top ranked Spaniard in the ladies draw took care of business against Yanina Wickmayer to win in straight sets 6-2, 6-4 on Court Three at the All England Tennis Club.

The Spaniard had recently found Wimbledon to be her strong suit in the game of tennis but her victory on Tuesday gave her hope to get back to a spot she once found herself in. The 2015 finalist found herself against the Belgian who she last faced at the halfway point to her capturing the French Open. The 23 year old breezed her way through the first round against Ekaterina Alexandrova and foresaw a plan to get the same kind of result.

Wickmayer got the start she wanted in the opening set against Katerina Bondarenko but her consistency was tested before capturing the straight sets win. It would more than be a task for her to upset Muguruza but the opening moves of the match would determine the pace.

For Muguruza, the pace was her own after the opening pair was split between the players. The Spaniard took off with control winning the next three games that took 23 minutes to get done. She was connecting well on shots holding a very high first serve percentage that took its toll on Wickmayer’s. It was soon a 5-1 hold for Muguruza but a much needed break from the Belgian extended the life in the set.

The 27 year old earned her stripes in the seventh and went for bust in the eighth with a force of deuce. It was short lived for Wickmayer as Muguruza cruised to victory in the opening set to win after 32 minutes. The Spaniard had 83 percent of points won on the first serve which was the difference maker with both even on either side of the stats.

They took their successes and got into a draw through the first few games. Muguruza opened with a service hold and kept her end tight with good defense on Wickmayer. As the games went by, the two held serve with Muguruza leading the way but the Belgian right on top of her game to level the score. It was a fight to the finish with the Spaniard suddenly down on the scoreboard for the first time in the set.

Wickmayer edged to 40-0 slicing the ball against Muguruza for the lead. It all disappeared as the world number 15 overcame the deficit and forced deuce with the Belgian. It only took two breaks for the Spaniard to get back on track and pulled it out of the bag to serve for the match. With aggression and response on the returns, Muguruza remained confident to finish strong completing the straight sets win in 80 minutes.


Her first serve remained high while improving the second serve in the late stages. With eight of ten on the net points and five aces on the day, her game was clearly in fine form. She’ll await Saturday’s match against Romania’s Sorana Cirstea in the third round

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