Begin typing your search...
ROLAND GARRUS: Russian Pavlyuchenkova enters maiden Slam final at her 50th major tournament
Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova held steady to beat an erratic Tamara Zidansek in straight sets on Thursday and reach the French Open final at her 50th Grand Slam tournament.
Paris
The 29-year-old’s 7-5, 6-3 win made her the woman with the most attempts needed to reach the final of one of the four majors. It was reward for her patience throughout a career that has earned her 12 titles, and for her calmness against a player who blew hot and cold.“I am tired and so happy, it is very emotional,” Pavlyuchenkova said on Court Philippe Chatrier.
“I tried to fight very hard and work on the tactical side. It is important to stay focused and in the right zone for the final on Saturday,” she added. While 31st seed Pavlyuchenkova had reached the quarter-finals at six Grand Slams, Zidansek had man-aged only three match wins at majors before arriving in Paris.
The latter’s destructive forehand worked well initially and she broke Pavly-uchenkova’s opening service game before holding to love. But, Zidansek missed a smash at 2-1 as Pavlyuchenkova got back on level terms. The Russian then broke for a 5-3 lead. Zidansek broke back and was 15-40 when Pavlyuchenko-va served at 5-5, but could not convert the important chance.
Pavlyuchenkova absorbed Zidansek's best shots and was gifted the first set with a double-fault.The Russian forged 4-1 ahead in the second set and snuffed out an attempted Zidansek comeback, clinching victory when her opponent blazed a backhand wide. “Pavlyuchenkova was able to control the match tactically,” Marion Bartoli told ITV Sport.Djokovic sets up semis clash with Nadal: A fired-up Novak Djokovic repelled a stirring fightback by Italian Matteo Berrettini to clinch a 6-3, 6-2, 6-7(5), 7-5 victory on Wednesday and set up a mouth-watering semi-final showdown with defending champion Rafael Nadal. The victory at one stage looked like a formality but became increasingly fraught as Berrettini threw the kitchen sink at Serb Djokovic, who becomes only the second man to reach 40 Grand Slam semi-finals after Roger Federer.
Salisbury-Krawczyk pair clinches mixed doubles title: Joe Salisbury ended Great Britain’s 39-year wait for a main draw title at the French Open when he combined with American Desirae Krawczyk to win the mixed doubles crown at Roland Garros on Thursday. Krawczyk and Salisbury rallied from a set down to beat the Russian pairing of Elena Vesnina and Aslan Karatsev 2-6, 6-4, 10-5.
Visit news.dtnext.in to explore our interactive epaper!
Download the DT Next app for more exciting features!
Click here for iOS
Click here for Android
Next Story