Saturday, April 17, 2010

Top-seeded Wozniacki advances at Charleston

CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) -Top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark rallied to beat Barbora Zahlavova Strycovia of the Czech Republic 6-4, 6-1 Wednesday in her opening match at the Family Circle Cup.

Wozniacki fell behind 3-4 in the first set on the green clay on Daniel Island before breaking Zahlavova Strycovia to even the set. The world's second-ranked player then held serve in a game that went to deuce three times before breaking her opponent at love in the next game to take the set.

"She got a lot of balls back, and I just needed to find my game and find a way how to beat her, and once I did that, I won a lot of points and I won the games," said Wozniacki, who is coming off a win last week at Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.

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Wozniacki will play on Thursday against 16th-seeded Patty Schnyder of Switzerland, who ousted Michelle Larcher De Brito of Portugal 6-3, 6-1.

Three players withdrew from their second-round matches on Wednesday, including fifth-seeded Marion Bartoli of France who retired during the third set of her evening match with Peng Shuai of China.

Bartoli was pale and holding her stomach and head during a changeover about 2 hours, 20 minutes into the match.

Tour spokeswoman Mary Jane Orman said Bartoli felt fine entering the match but suffered stomach pains and dizziness during the match. Shuai was ahead 2-6, 7-6 (2), 4-3 at the time.

Third-seeded Victoria Azarenka of Belarus and Ayumi Morita of Japan also retired. Azarenka, the world No. 9, retired with a left hamstring pull while leading qualifier Christina McHale of the U.S. 6-2, 2-2; and Morita retired with a thigh strain while trailing Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia 6-4, 2-0.

Azarenka, who had ice taped around her leg, said she was injured last week in Marbella.

"It's not that bad, but I hoped that it's probably got better, you know, and healed," she said. "It obviously didn't today, but you know, I just need to keep rehabbing it."

American Melanie Oudin, seeded 13th, advanced with a 6-2, 6-4 win over Sophie Ferguson of Australia, her second straight-set victory of the tournament.

"I've been going three sets a lot lately and especially after winning the first set. So I'm so happy to be done with my first two rounds and two sets in each one makes life a lot easier," said the 18-year-old Oudin who last year, as a qualifier at the Family Circle, won two main draw matches and later in the year made the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open.

In other matches sixth-seeded Nadia Petrova of Russia defeated American Vania King 6-2, 6-1, while 10th-seeded Elena Vesnina of Russia advanced with a 7-5, 6-2 victory over Sofia Arvidsson of Sweden, and Angelique Kerber of Germany beat Monique Adamczak of Australia 6-3, 6-2.

In other second-round matches, Vera Dushevina of Russia defeated Chang Kai-chen of Taiwan 6-2, 6-2, Evgeniya Rodina of Russia outlasted Michaella Krajicek of the Netherlands 6-3, 2-6, 6-2, and Alona Bondarenko of the Ukraine defeated American Bethanie Mattek-Sands 4-6, 7-5, 7-5.

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