Fuente : Wimbledon
http://www.wimbledon.org

WIMBLEDON: Qualifier Pushes Dementieva

/noticias.info/ Wednesday, June 22, 2005

Russia's Elena Dementieva staved off tough competition from a little-known qualifier to book her place in the third round of the Ladies' Singles this afternoon.

Competing in stifling conditions on Court 3, the No.6 seed looked uncomfortable from the start. Serving against Germany's Sabine Klaschka, her opening game was littered with double faults - three to be precise - and she found herself 1-0 down in a matter of minutes.

Unfortunately for Dementieva, this poor serving pattern was to be a feature of the first set and Klaschka wasted no time in capitalising on the Russian's weak second serves, returning them with blistering pace.

All Dementieva could do was stare at her camp in a bemused, despairing fashion. The crowd was also growing frustrated, with cheers for the Russian growing louder game by game.

To make matters worse, her favoured crosscourt forehands were simply not coming. In a desperate attempt to win points she started to snatch at balls, which only worked to interfere with her timing.

At 5-1 down she was under serious pressure and the double faults began to creep back. This time there were two and suddenly she was a set point down. But Klaschka failed to convert and Dementieva was saved on this occasion.

The next game was a different story and, despite a few wobbly moments, the German overcame her nerves to take the set 6-2 in 30 minutes. It was this conviction that helped Klaschka win her match against Britain's Elena Baltacha in the first round.

But the loss of a set simply served as a wake up call for Dementieva, who managed to recover some consistency. Just 36 minutes later she was in possession of the second set.

At the start of the third, it was time to reach for the earplugs as the player's grunts grew louder with their determination. But again both women consistently failed to hold serve. At 5-4 the Russian squandered a match-point, and also hit two more double faults, taking the match total to 16.

It was clear the winner would be the one to hold serve. And finally that's what Dementieva did - taking the match 8-6 in the third.

Written by Helen Gilbert


Court 3 - Ladies' Singles - 2nd Round
Sabine Klaschka GER 6 3 6
Elena Dementieva RUS (6) 2 6 8 notas_de_prensa_archivo