No. 1 seed, Caroline Wozniacki survived a scare from No. 6 seed Francesca Schiavone in a Quarterfinal match at the 2011 Australian Open, but prevailed 3-6, 6-3, 6-3.
It was evident from the start that Schiavone came to play, and the battle was on. Everyone thought Schiavone would be exhausted from her record-long match in round four. She had played more than twice as long total match time during the tournament as Wozniacki. But she came out showing no signs of fatigue.
The 30-year-old Schiavone took the offensive from the beginning, running 20-year-old Wozniacki corner to corner, coming in to the net, hitting winning volleys, hitting heavy top-spin on forehands and backhands, picking the right shot at the right time.
Schiavone saved 7 break points in the 1st set, and then converted the only one she had, going on to win the 1st set 6-3.
After losing the first set, Wozniacki went off court for some medical attention, and came out with her left thigh taped. She had it re-taped on a changeover, then during the 4th game of the 2nd set, she tore the tape off and played without it.
In the second set, Wozniacki continued to be on the defensive. Schiavone broke serve in the 3rd game to take a 2-1 lead. With great strategy and shot making, Schiavone continued to dominate.
In game 6, Schiavone played a really loose game, serving a double fault, hitting a couple shots wide, and dumping one into the net to get broken at love to even the set at 3-3. Wozniacki then took the offensive, hitting through her strokes, keeping Schiavone pinned at the baseline and the momentum began to swing toward Wozniacki.
Wozniacki then broke in game eight to take a 5-3 lead, and she held serve to take the 2nd set 6-3 and force a deciding 3rd set.
Wozniacki continued to show positive energy and broke Schiavone for the 3rd time in a row to take a 1-0 lead in the third set. Schiavone broke back at love to even the set at 1-1. Wozniacki broke right back to take the lead again at 2-1.
By now signs of fatigue were beginning to show on Schiavone, and she seemed to lose a little of her focus. Wozniacki broke, held, and broke again to get to 5-2 and serve for the match. But Schiavone wasn’t finished yet, survived several match points, and broke to bring the set to 5-3.
But Wozniacki was determined and broke to win the set and the match.
It was an awesome match, with both players hitting fantastic shots, putting all their heart into every point. It was one of those matches where you hated to see anyone lose.
Wozniacki will now face No. 9 seed, #11 Na Li of China in the Semifinals, a straight-sets winner over German Andrea Petkovic. Li hasn’t lost a set throughout this tournament.
