TENNIS ANTWERP – Andrea Petkovic battled past Barbora Zahlavova Strycova in a tight match to set a final against Carla Suarez Navarro who beat Czech rising star Karolina Pliskova 6-2 6-2. Diego Sanpaolo
Petkovic cruised to a easy 5-1 in the first set but Zahlavova Strycova saved a set point reeling off five consecutive games. Petkovic won the tie-break with 7-2 after one hour and 11 minutes before opening up a 4-2lead in the second set but Zahlavova Strycova clawed his was back into the match forcing the second set to the tie-break. The Czech player earned a set point at 6-5 but Petkovic rallied by winning the final three points to close out the second set with 8-6 after a two-hour and 24-minutes hard-fought match
“You have to work for every point against her. She brings you out of your rhythm. I started really well and, slowly, game by game, I felt my rhythm was going off”, said Petkovic
With the final in Antwerp Petkovic has crowned her perfect week in which she has made her return to the top-10.
Her next opponent will be Carla Suarez Navarro who will be looking to win her second title after winning in Oeiras last year. The Spanish player is projected to reach her career-high. She will reach the 13th place after this week if she loses the final and the 12th place if she beats Petkovic.
