Tag: Schaivone

FOGNINI WINS

July 22, 2013

Francesca Schiavone’s countryman, Fabio Fognini, has defeated Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany in the final of the Mercedes Cup. Fognini won the match in three sets by 5-7, 6-4, 6-4.

This is the first ATP title won by Fognini in his career. He totally deserved that. He played some wonderful tennis against Kohlschreiber who was given the second seed in the tournament.

This was the 3rd match between these two players and Fognini defeated Kohlschreiber for the first time.

In the post match interview, Fognini said, “I had been in the finals a couple of times before, but, on both the occasions, I had lost. So, I was nervous today. But, fortunately, things went my way and I won.”

“I am glad to win my first title. This has been an incredible week for me. I played at my very best and defeated some quality players. This win is a real confidence booster for me.”

Kohlschreiber on the other hand was looking perplexed while talking to the reporters after the match. He said, “I am obviously sad to have lost the final. I didn’t manage to be consistent right through the match. Fabio had a fantastic tournament and I would like to congratulate him.”

In the opening set, neither of the two players managed to sneak a breakthrough in the first 10 games and the scores were levelled at 5-5.

Fognini dropped his serve in the 11th game to get trailed by 5-6. He needed a breakthrough in the next game to take the set further, but, he failed to do that. Kohlschreiber held his serve in the 12th game quite easily and sealed the opener by 7-5.

In the next two sets, Kohlschreiber couldn’t keep the momentum going. He served poorly in both the sets and lost both of them by the same margin of 4-6.

SCHIAVONE SHOWS THE WAY

March 20, 2013

Francesca Schiavone has defeated her countrywoman Flavia Pennetta in the first round of the BNP Paribas Open. Schiavone won the match in the straight sets by 7-5, 6-1.

Schiavone who is unseeded in this tournament took 109 minutes to get better of her compatriot.

This was the seventh clash between these two players. In the last two matches, Schiavone was beaten by Pennetta in the straight sets, but, in this match, Schiavone didn’t let that happen.

Pennetta served a total of nine double faults in the match. Also, she got 14 break points in the match, but, she managed to capitalize on only three of them.

In the opening set, neither of the two players served that well. In the first 6 games, both of them dropped their serve two times and at the end of the 6th game, the score was 3-3.

Pennetta got her third breakthrough in the 7th game and then, enhanced her lead to 5-3 with a serve hold in the 8th game. She was looking in a great position at that time, but, Schiavone turned the set in her favour with some extraordinary tennis in the next 4 games. With the help of serve breaks in the 10th and the 12th game, she grabbed the opening set by 7-5.

That late onslaught in the first set boosted Schiavone’s confidence and she went absolutely berserk in the next set. With breakthroughs in the 2nd and the 4th game, she took a lead of 5-0. Pennetta held her serve in the 6th game, but, that was too little too late. A serve hold by Schiavone in the 7th game ensured Pennetta’s defeat.

In the post match interview, Schiavone said, “In the first set, there were certainly a lot of mistakes committed by me especially on my serve. But, in the second set, I improved my game and won it comfortably.”

Schiavone Demands Rain Explanation

July 19, 2012

Italian tennis star Francesca Schiavone has demanded an explanation from the authorities of Wimbledon regarding the rain rules that were employed for the tournament this year, following an extremely stand-off on court that effectively handed victory to her opponent Petra Kvitova and a place in the quarter finals of the tournament.

The Italian, a former winner of the French Open at Roland Garros has blasted the way the chair umpire handled the match that took place on court number 3 of the All England Club, adding that the match should have been stopped when the rain hit.

The 32 year old Schiavone had taken advantage of some wayward stroke play from Kvitova to claim the first set quite comfortably. However, with the match poised at 6-5 in favor of Kvitova and struck at deuce on the serve of the big hitting Italian, she requested the match umpire to stop the match temporarily. Continue 

ITALY LOSE TO CZECH ATTACK

April 23, 2012

Lucie Safarova and Petra Kvitova led their nation, the Czech Republic, to a 2-0 lead over Italy in their Federation cup semi final tie.

Safarova was able to get the better of her opponent in the ties first match beating Schiavone two sets to love. However the Italian did put up a fight with the first set being forced to a tie breaker which Safarova was able to win. Kvitova then tightened her Nations grip on the tie by also downing her opponent Sara Errani, two sets to nothing.

The Italian team, which has showed strong form throughout the season, now has an uphill battle in order to stay in the tournament.

The Czech team now only needs one more win to clinch the tie and make an Italian fight back impossible. The players will now swap opponents and play in the reverse singles with a win in either securing the tie for the Czech Republic. If however the Italians do pull off an upset and win both matches then the tie will come down to the doubles match.

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DISAPPOINTING AUSSIE OPEN

February 8, 2012

Francesca Schiavone had a disappointing Australian Open, crashing out in the second round to her compatriot Oprandi, 6-4, 6-3.

After such a promising start at Melbourne Park, beating home favourite and current US Open champion Samantha Stosur, expectation of the number 10 seed’s success was high and yet it was the unseeded Romina Oprandi, currently ranked number 80 in the world, who outclassed Schiavone in just the second round of the competition.

Oprandi started the match with a heavily strapped thigh, and repeatedly had treatment for a hamstring problem, and then a foot injury late on in the match. These continual interruptions eventually led Schiavone to complain, but this was ignored, and Oprandi’s injuries didn’t seem to affect her game as she put in a solid performance, with few mistakes, a high first serve percentage, and a very impressive 83% success rate on her second serve points.

In contrast, Schiavone made 35 unforced errors along with 9 double faults, and failed to find the kind of form that she is capable of producing. The match was over in 84 minutes, with Schiavone’s defiance even less noticeable in a short second set.

Schiavone is primarily a clay court player, though she also enjoys quite a lot of success on hard court, so it is a surprise that the Australian Open was such a disappointment for her – last year she made it through to the quarterfinals in Melbourne.

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