Elina Svitolina won an important match that was very close to her heart at the Abierto GNP Seguros Tuesday night. The Ukrainian was ready despite her personal sadness and took down Anastasia Potapova in straight sets 6-2, 6-1 on center court at the Sierra Madre Tennis Club.
This was their first meeting and a difficult one for the Ukrainian and the Russian. Both were capable of handling business on the court, but with both countries in a dangerous conflict, the heart was heavier on the side of the world number 15. Svitolina has been under major stress with members of her family stuck in Ukraine while it remains under attack by Russian forces. Despite her attempts to withdraw from Monterrey if she was matched with Russian or Belorussian athletes, she was convinced to play the game she loves while trying to defend her title.
The 20-year-old took down Ukrainian Lesia Tsurenko and was again having a Ukrainian to face once more. She and Svitolina would feel the emotional pressure and a second time for Potapova against one of Ukraine’s popular players.
Svitolina opened the set with a break of Potapova and backed it up with a hold in the second. The top seed ran off with full control of her offense, scoring a 4-0 run after a tough fight in the third and a shutout of Potapova in the fourth. The 20-year-old managed to get on the board, forcing errors on Svitolina to hold serve and end the slide. She tried to get a break in play when she forced deuce and battled for the AD point. Two chances came and went for the 20-year-old before Svitolina made it 5-1.
The Ukrainian couldn’t get dug in against Potapova’s service, watching her opponent run off with a second win. Potapova made it another challenging time for Svitolina, who battled back a breakpoint chance for the 20-year-old and forced deuce. After three set point attempts, Svitolina locked it down against her opponent to finish the set in 36 minutes. Svitolina bested Potapova on first and second serve percentages despite having two double faults.
The second set began with Potapova clinching her first service game and again went after Svitolina on her serve. The top seed held off Potapova for the third time after a break. The 27-year-old took it to the 20-year-old throwing it right back to force deuce and create breakpoints to give her the lead. The number one seed continued her momentum as she carried a 4-1 lead over Potapova, who showed signs of frustration after a couple of slams to her racket.
Svitolina fired big forehands in the sixth that set her up with a shot to take the match from Potapova. Gaining the key match point in the seventh, Svitolina scored it on a line drive return winner to complete a heartfelt victory in one hour and three minutes. “I’m in a very sad mood but you know I’m happy that I’m here playing tennis here.” “For me, it was very important to be ready for anything that comes my way and to be moving my legs all the time and generally stay focused.”
While times are tough back in her home country, the Ukrainian would continue her title defense and give it to the competition.
No comments:
Post a Comment