Garbine Muruguza’s sequence of disappointing results at the Madrid Open has continued with a 5-7, 7-6(4), 6-3, loss to Irina-Camelia Begu in the second round.
The match was going to plan for the world No.4 as she lead by a set and a break. Things began to unravel when Begu grabbed back-to-back breaks on her way to clinching the crucial tiebreaker in the second set. The Romanian produced some of her best tennis against the home favorite, firing blistering winners and bullying Muguruza around the court. This form continued in the decider as Muguruza failed to match the aggressive style of Begu as the World No.34 sealed the match after almost three hours of play.
It is now the fifth consecutive year where the 22-year-old has failed to progress beyond the second round at her home tournament. The Spaniard has admitted that playing in her home country is a lot of pressure for her.
“It’s obviously hard. Every time I come here I want to make a great tournament, but every match is so tough,” Muguruza said about playing at the Caja Magica.
“ I have to say I’m a little bit disappointed. I fight a lot today. Sometimes you don’t win when you fight, so, that’s it.”
Instead of criticizing her own performance, the 22-year-old praised Begu’s approach to the match. Prior to their latest meeting, Muguruza had defeated the Romanian twice on the tour.
“I was very impressed. I played her before and I’ve never seen her play that well,” she said about Begu’s performance.
“She’s at the top level and I think she served pretty well. I think her shots were going deep and on the line. I think she was playing great level.”
Begu has recently enjoyed a series of impressive runs on the tour by reaching the fourth round at the Miami Open followed by a quarterfinal appearance in the Charleston Open.
The latest disappointment in Madrid has done little to dent Muguruza’s French Open aspirations. This year she will be hoping to become the first Spanish woman to win the tournament since Arantxa Sanchez Vicario in 1998.
“I’m training a lot. I like clay. That doesn’t mean I’m going to win every match, but I have grown up in Spain and I feel the clay,” she said when asked about her French Open goals.
“I think every tournament helps me to get more in my game.”
Ivanovic Crashes out
Ana Ivanovic was another seed to exit the tournament on Monday after suffering a shock loss to American qualifier Louisa Chirico (5-7, 6-1, 6-3).
After taking a closely contester opening set, Ivanovic fell victim to her own game as an inspired Chirico dominated the remainder of the match. The Serbian produced an uncomfortable 56 unforced errors during the 127-minute encounter.
Despite the high number of errors, there was still chances for Ivanovic to regain control of the match at the start of the third set after breaking for a 2-0, lead. The initial momentum gained by the world No. 17 was short lived as Chirico won six consecutive games to send Ivanovic crashing out.
Second career Top 20 win!
Qualifier @Louisa_Chirico knocks out Ivanovic 5-7, 6-1, 6-3! #MMOPEN https://t.co/krXCn4M5sK
— WTA (@WTA) 2 May 2016
The loss is now the fourth consecutive tournament where the Serbian has failed to win back-to-back matches.
