This year’s Wimbledon champion Angelique Kerber came back from one set down to beat Anastasya Pavlyuchenkova 4-6 7-5 6-4 in a rai-delayed match at the Western and Southern Open in Cincinnati. The German star, three-time Grand Slam champion has become the first player to win 40 WTA matches this year.
Kerber, who was beaten by French player Alizé Cornet in the first round in Montreal, scored her first win since she clinched her third Grand Slam title at Wimbledon. The player from Bremen rallied from one set down to beat Anastasya Pavlyuchenkova for the second time this year after Miami. The Russian player had beaten Kerber three times last year, including at the WTA Elite Trophy in Zhuhai.
Kerber has improved her record in her head-to-head matches over Pavlyuchenkova to 7-6, although the Russian player leads 6-4 in their 10 hard-court head-to-head matches.
Kerber is making her 8th appearance at Cincinnati and lost twice in the opening round in 2015 to Belinda Bencic and in 2017 to Ekaterina Makarova after holding a match point. The former world number 1 scored her seventh win in eight matches against Russian players in 2018.
Kerber is aiming to reach the quarter final for the seventh time in her eighth hard-court tournament this year. She won in Sydney and reached the semifinals at the Australian Open and Dubai.
Kerber got an early break in the first set, but Pavlyuchenkova broke back before the match was interrupted by rain. As the match resumed on Wednesday evening, Pavlyuchenkova broke serve to clinch the first set. Kerber went up a double break in the second set to take a 5-3 lead, but Pavlyuchenkova broke back to draw level to 5-5. Kerber got the break at love in the 11th game and held serve to clinch the second set 7-5.
Kerber broke serve at 30 in the first game to open up a 2-0 lead. Pavlyuchenkova broke back in the eighth game at deuce to draw level to 4-4, but Kerber broke again in the ninth game at 30 before sealing the win on her first match point.
“I think this was really a match where I was fighting after the first set to come back. That was really an important match for me, to get my rhythm, feel the ball, play tough and close matches again, especially now after few weeks off. These are the matches why I am here. For me, the first matches are not always so easy coming to the tournament. I think at the end I am quite happy to be through”, said Kerber to the WTA webiste.
