Serena sets up Azarenka final
Source: Agencies |
May 13, 2012, Sunday
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SERENA Williams will meet top-ranked Victoria Azarenka in the final of the Madrid Open after both players dispensed with their rivals in straight sets yesterday.
Williams beat Czech Lucie Hradecka 7-6 (5), 6-0 on the new blue claycourt and Azarenka ousted fourth-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland 6-2, 6-4.
The ninth-ranked Williams will play for her second title of the season. Azarenka of Belarus has won four tournaments so far this season.
Williams holds a 6-1 head-to-head record against Azarenka, whose only win came in 2009. This will be the first time they meet on clay.
"She's one of the best players in the world and one of the toughest opponents to play against so we'll see, but as I said it's going to be a different story," Azarenka said.
While both Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic promised to never play again on the blue clay, neither of the finalists on the women's side saw their big-hitting style overly hampered by the new surface many players have criticized as slippery.
Williams held off the tenacious Czech's seven early aces in the first set that she won in a tiebreaker. The American then broke Hradecka three times in the second to cruise to her 12th consecutive win on clay this season.
The 105th-ranked Hradecka had upset defending champion and fellow Czech Petra Kvitova and US Open winner Sam Stosur of Australia to reach the semifinals.
Azarenka was in good form and had little trouble beating Radwanska for the sixth straight time.
Azarenka hit a deep return to set up a slam and break her Polish opponent's first service game, and went on to hit 14 winners and held for love to wrap up the first set. The players traded a pair of breaks in the second set before Azarenka, the runner-up last year, won a decisive third break with a crosscourt return.
"I'm really happy. All the top players are here and I'm in the final and looking forward to it," said the 22-year-old Belarusian. "(Radwanska and I) keep meeting each other. I'm glad to win today. The score maybe wasn't so close, but it was a good match."
Azarenka, who began the season with 26 consecutive wins, stands 34-2 for the season, with her only defeats coming against France's Marion Bartoli in Miami and Russian Maria Sharapova in the Stuttgart clay final last month.
In the men's semifinals, Roger Federer of Switzerland was taking on Janko Tipsarevic, the conqueror of fellow Serb Djokovic on Friday, and Czech Tomas Berdych was playing Argentina's Juan Martin del Potro later.
Williams beat Czech Lucie Hradecka 7-6 (5), 6-0 on the new blue claycourt and Azarenka ousted fourth-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland 6-2, 6-4.
The ninth-ranked Williams will play for her second title of the season. Azarenka of Belarus has won four tournaments so far this season.
Williams holds a 6-1 head-to-head record against Azarenka, whose only win came in 2009. This will be the first time they meet on clay.
"She's one of the best players in the world and one of the toughest opponents to play against so we'll see, but as I said it's going to be a different story," Azarenka said.
While both Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic promised to never play again on the blue clay, neither of the finalists on the women's side saw their big-hitting style overly hampered by the new surface many players have criticized as slippery.
Williams held off the tenacious Czech's seven early aces in the first set that she won in a tiebreaker. The American then broke Hradecka three times in the second to cruise to her 12th consecutive win on clay this season.
The 105th-ranked Hradecka had upset defending champion and fellow Czech Petra Kvitova and US Open winner Sam Stosur of Australia to reach the semifinals.
Azarenka was in good form and had little trouble beating Radwanska for the sixth straight time.
Azarenka hit a deep return to set up a slam and break her Polish opponent's first service game, and went on to hit 14 winners and held for love to wrap up the first set. The players traded a pair of breaks in the second set before Azarenka, the runner-up last year, won a decisive third break with a crosscourt return.
"I'm really happy. All the top players are here and I'm in the final and looking forward to it," said the 22-year-old Belarusian. "(Radwanska and I) keep meeting each other. I'm glad to win today. The score maybe wasn't so close, but it was a good match."
Azarenka, who began the season with 26 consecutive wins, stands 34-2 for the season, with her only defeats coming against France's Marion Bartoli in Miami and Russian Maria Sharapova in the Stuttgart clay final last month.
In the men's semifinals, Roger Federer of Switzerland was taking on Janko Tipsarevic, the conqueror of fellow Serb Djokovic on Friday, and Czech Tomas Berdych was playing Argentina's Juan Martin del Potro later.
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