Ksenia Keeps Winning, Wings Into QFs
Published July 20, 2011 04:17
BAKU, Azerbaijan - So far this season Ksenia Pervak has moved from just inside the Top 100 to just outside the Top 50, and the 20-year-old is on track to crack that bracket very soon after winning her way through to the quarterfinals of the Baku Cup on Wednesday.
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Against fellow Russian Vesna Dolonts, lefty Pervak - who is coming off a semifinal run at Bad Gastein last week and is at a career-high No.55 - won two thirds of all points on return. Although Dolonts broke serve on four occasions, Pervak did so seven times and that was enough to prevail, 63 63.
Next up for seventh-seeded Pervak is Aravane Rezai, once ranked as high as No.15 but unseeded this week, having slipped out of the Top 100. The 24-year-old Frenchwoman advanced to her first quarterfinal of 2011 after No.3 seed Elena Vesnina retired due to a viral illness when trailing 63 10.
By that stage Rezai had done everything that could have been asked of her, breaking serve on the back of fierce returns for 5-3, before issuing three aces to close out the opening set.
Earlier, Kazakhstan's Galina Voskoboeva followed up her double bagel rout of Sofia Shapatava in the first round with a straight sets dispatch of fifth seed Monica Niculescu, 76(2) 62. She awaits the winner of Thursday's second round match between No.2 seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and another Russian, qualifier Elena Bovina.
Wednesday's other singles victor was Mariya Koryttseva, who defeated Anastasiya Yakimova. Koryttseva, currently ranked No.168, led a set and 5-2 when her Belarusian opponent won three games in a row to pull level. But the Ukrainian regrouped to complete the win, 62 75.
Top seed Vera Zvonareva returns to action at the inaugural $220,000 hardcourt event on Thursday. The world No.3 faces Slovakia's Kristina Kucova for a place in the last eight.
Watch all the action from Baku on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
Against fellow Russian Vesna Dolonts, lefty Pervak - who is coming off a semifinal run at Bad Gastein last week and is at a career-high No.55 - won two thirds of all points on return. Although Dolonts broke serve on four occasions, Pervak did so seven times and that was enough to prevail, 63 63.
Next up for seventh-seeded Pervak is Aravane Rezai, once ranked as high as No.15 but unseeded this week, having slipped out of the Top 100. The 24-year-old Frenchwoman advanced to her first quarterfinal of 2011 after No.3 seed Elena Vesnina retired due to a viral illness when trailing 63 10.
By that stage Rezai had done everything that could have been asked of her, breaking serve on the back of fierce returns for 5-3, before issuing three aces to close out the opening set.
Earlier, Kazakhstan's Galina Voskoboeva followed up her double bagel rout of Sofia Shapatava in the first round with a straight sets dispatch of fifth seed Monica Niculescu, 76(2) 62. She awaits the winner of Thursday's second round match between No.2 seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and another Russian, qualifier Elena Bovina.
Wednesday's other singles victor was Mariya Koryttseva, who defeated Anastasiya Yakimova. Koryttseva, currently ranked No.168, led a set and 5-2 when her Belarusian opponent won three games in a row to pull level. But the Ukrainian regrouped to complete the win, 62 75.
Top seed Vera Zvonareva returns to action at the inaugural $220,000 hardcourt event on Thursday. The world No.3 faces Slovakia's Kristina Kucova for a place in the last eight.
