Radwanska, Stepanek sparkle
Source: Agencies |
August 9, 2011, Tuesday
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AGNIESZKA Radwanska won the biggest hard court title of her career when she upset world No. 3 Vera Zvonareva of Russia 6-3, 6-4 to win the Mercury Insurance Open in Carlsbad on Sunday.
The third-seeded Radwanska adeptly mixed up the pace and direction of her ground strokes, took over the net and showed no evidence that her heavily taped shoulder was bothering her.
"Playing the Russian(s) in the finals is always tough," Radwanska said. "I played very well today. I'm very happy with my performance. Winning a tournament with a lot of great matches against top players, it's always very special."
Radwanska began the match near perfectly and never let her foot off the pedal. She broke Zvonareva to 3-1 with a forehand winner down the line and easily held in her next three service games before she won the first set with a leaping backhand winner.
Zvonareva, who had played late on Saturday to hold off Ana Ivanovic, tried to push herself forward, but her usually searing ground strokes were a little off and Radwanska won most of their extended rallies.
"I think I was playing the right shots," said Zvonareva, who hit 25 winners but committed 28 unforced errors. "I was maybe just a little slow.
"My footwork wasn't perfect, and that's why I had a few mistakes. Of course against Agnieszka, when she's playing well, if you have those mistakes, it's tough to win."
It was the fifth title of the 22-year-old's career, but was her first WTA premier title on hardcourts, with her only previous premier title on grass at Eastbourne in 2008.
The victory ensures Radwanska will rise to 12th in the WTA rankings and gives her a major confidence boost heading into the US Open.
In Washington, unseeded Radek Stepanek's net-charging style carried him to the Legg Mason Tennis Classic title at age 32, making him the tournament's oldest champion since Jimmy Connors was 35 in 1988.
Stepanek won an ATP final for the first time in 2 1/2 years by upsetting top-seeded Gael Monfils of France 6-4, 6-4 on Sunday at the hard-court warmup for the US Open.
"We are like a wine: The older we are getting, the better we are," Stepanek said.
"It's a great feeling to be able to compete with the young guys and still beat them," added the Czech, who is eight years older than Monfils.
The third-seeded Radwanska adeptly mixed up the pace and direction of her ground strokes, took over the net and showed no evidence that her heavily taped shoulder was bothering her.
"Playing the Russian(s) in the finals is always tough," Radwanska said. "I played very well today. I'm very happy with my performance. Winning a tournament with a lot of great matches against top players, it's always very special."
Radwanska began the match near perfectly and never let her foot off the pedal. She broke Zvonareva to 3-1 with a forehand winner down the line and easily held in her next three service games before she won the first set with a leaping backhand winner.
Zvonareva, who had played late on Saturday to hold off Ana Ivanovic, tried to push herself forward, but her usually searing ground strokes were a little off and Radwanska won most of their extended rallies.
"I think I was playing the right shots," said Zvonareva, who hit 25 winners but committed 28 unforced errors. "I was maybe just a little slow.
"My footwork wasn't perfect, and that's why I had a few mistakes. Of course against Agnieszka, when she's playing well, if you have those mistakes, it's tough to win."
It was the fifth title of the 22-year-old's career, but was her first WTA premier title on hardcourts, with her only previous premier title on grass at Eastbourne in 2008.
The victory ensures Radwanska will rise to 12th in the WTA rankings and gives her a major confidence boost heading into the US Open.
In Washington, unseeded Radek Stepanek's net-charging style carried him to the Legg Mason Tennis Classic title at age 32, making him the tournament's oldest champion since Jimmy Connors was 35 in 1988.
Stepanek won an ATP final for the first time in 2 1/2 years by upsetting top-seeded Gael Monfils of France 6-4, 6-4 on Sunday at the hard-court warmup for the US Open.
"We are like a wine: The older we are getting, the better we are," Stepanek said.
"It's a great feeling to be able to compete with the young guys and still beat them," added the Czech, who is eight years older than Monfils.
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