Winning 74 percent of her first serves, #AmandaAnisimova successfully served her way into the second round of the #MiamiOpen as she dished up a terrific 6-4, 6-3 win over former world number nine #AndreaPetkovic in an intriguing first-round clash out on Grandstand.
Setting up another interesting clash with 21st seed Anett Kontaveit, Anisimova blasted 34 winners to just 24 unforced errors as she found a way to outhit Petkovic, who had no answers to the aggression of the youngster.
Anisimova edges out the tight opening set
Petkovic started the match in the best possible way as she earned the confident service hold that she needed. Anisimova, coming into the match as the overwhelming favourite considering her form and abilities, asserted her authority across the Grandstand court with a love hold after firing some bullet-like winners.
The first real opportunity to break came early in the third game, with the American youngster holding multiple break points. However, Petkovic was able to hold her nerves and sent in consecutive unreturned serves to stay level early in the set.
Petkovic was doing a fantastic job in remaining in contention and challenge Anisimova’s authority at the baseline because not many players have the ability to do so when the 17-year-old is firing on all cylinders. Even when met with tricky situations, she held her ground at the baseline and took the initiative to be aggressive, attempting to outhit her younger counterpart.
Next, it was surprisingly Petkovic who had the golden opportunity to find the breakthrough and take the lead. Nonetheless, this time it was Anisimova’s turn to show her nerves of steel as she battled through the nervy game and held serve to keep the scoreboard level.
The break just seemed imminent as Petkovic was barely surviving in those baseline rallies but that was an effort worth commending as she had the courage to go for the aggressive mindset against such a powerful young player. And the break ultimately came in the following game, where Petkovic poured her heart out in saving four break points but was unable to fend off a fifth as Anisimova was fifth-time lucky, sending down a magnificent backhand to break serve for the first time in the afternoon.
That break proved to be crucial as it turned out to be the sole break through the entire opening frame. Anisimova held her nerves and served out the opening set 6-4, being a set closer to reaching the second round for the second consecutive year.
Anisimova claims the straight-sets win
After falling short in the tight opening set, Petkovic seemed to have lost the plot as she allowed Anisimova to be the aggressor — which meant that the American started to blast winners at her own will. From 40-15 up, the German was broken in the opening game of the second set and her confidence was dented by the setback.
Despite the disadvantageous scoreline, the former top-10 player continued to fight and troubled Anisimova with her powerful groundstrokes and ability to counterpunch. She earned three break points out of nowhere in the fourth game although the American, with the exuberant support of the home crowd, managed to survive each break point with some world-class hitting.
Bursting out to a commanding 5-1 lead within a blink of an eye, Anisimova looked to have sealed the win but who would have expected that there would be more twists and turns in the bag? Petkovic fired a wonderful cross-court forehand which barely clipped the line to save a match point and earn the consolation hold although she was just delaying the inevitable.
Having gone 0/6 on break points throughout the entire match, Petkovic finally converted her first as she brutally punished Anisimova’s vulnerable second serves. Grabbing one of the breaks back, the improbable comeback seemed to be on the cards with the American showing her first signs of nerves while serving the match out.
Another two forehands went into the net on her next match points, but Anisimova was finally able to close out the impressive win as Petkovic’s resistance finally broke down, sending a forehand long which sealed the American’s passage into the second round.
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