Djokovic seals 5th Beijing crown, Sharapova wins
Print Edition
WORLD No. 1 Novak Djokovic destroyed Tomas Berdych in a lopsided contest to win his fifth China Open crown yesterday while Maria Sharapova overcame Petra Kvitova 6-4, 2-6, 6-3 in the women’s final in Beijing to move up to No. 2 in the world rankings.
Top seed Djokovic took 66 minutes to seal a 6-0, 6-2 win against Berdych, who raised his arms in celebration when he won a game to avoid the ignominy of a double bagel with the Serb leading 6-0, 5-0 and serving for the match.
Berdych managed to win back-to-back games, but it was just a matter of time before Djokovic sealed an easy win to continue his love affair with the tournament where he now has a 24-0 record.
Earlier in the women’s final, Wimbledon champion Kvitova broke her opponent in the very first game but Sharapova showed greater intensity towards the end to prevail in a contest that lasted two hours and 28 minutes.
French Open champion Sharapova broke her Czech opponent twice to claim the first set, but Kvitova unleashed 15 winners in the second to force a decider.
Sharapova, having dropped her first set in the tournament, raised her game in the third, racing to a 3-0 lead but could not capitalize on her first match point at 5-2 with an inside out forehand into the net. She eventually served out the match and raised her hands in celebration after Kvitova buried a return into the net.
“It was a bit of an up-and-down match I’d say — maybe not the best out of the tournament,” Sharapova said. “But it’s never easy playing against Petra. You don’t always quite get a good rhythm. She goes for a lot of shots, very deep, and she’s a very good, confident player.
“She became the more aggressive player in the second set. I think I took a few too many steps back and let her play that way. But I was able to lift my game again in the third and come out with a win.”
Sharapova hit 18 winners compared to Kvitova’s 25 but committed 15 less unforced errors than her opponent’s 44 to prevail in the three-setter.
Kvitova, who won in Wuhan last week, conceded she had succumbed to fatigue towards the end of the contest.
“I was tired, but it was a final, and every time I’m playing a final, I’m giving everything I have inside,” the Czech said. “What I did today was a great battle. It was small things and small points that make the difference in the end. I had some chances but Maria just didn’t let them go.
“She just played really well. And we played two and a half (hours), so I hope the fans enjoyed it, too,” Kvitova added.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
