Wozniacki to play Peng in Brussels Open final
Top-ranked Caroline Wozniacki outlasted French Open champion Francesca Schiavone 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 on Friday to reach the final of the Brussels Open.
- Associated Press
- Updated: May 21, 2011 12:58 pm IST
Top-ranked Caroline Wozniacki outlasted French Open champion Francesca Schiavone 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 on Friday to reach the final of the Brussels Open.
She will play for the title Saturday against Peng Shuai of China, who upset No. 3-ranked Vera Zvonareva 6-3, 6-3.
Wozniacki kept the coolest head in the final set of a match that stretched 2 hours, 32 minutes and will now seek her fourth title of the year heading into the French Open.
The 31st-ranked Peng relied on her powerful serve to pressure Zvonareva throughout the match and capitalized on the Russian's string of unforced errors to reach her first final since 2008 and earn a shot at a first WTA tour victory.
"I'm really excited to go to the final," she said after beating Zvonareva for the first time in eight tries. "I played her many times and lost many times."
The Chinese slammed seven aces on the slow clay of the overcast Primerose center court, compared to none for the Russian. Zvonareva never found her touch as she was pressed all over the court.
Schiavone fought back against Wozniacki with attacking play to force a third set. Schiavone had lost to the Dane three times on hard courts since beating her in the quarterfinals on the way to the French Open title last year.
Both players were error-prone on their serve in the third set, but Wozniacki won the biggest points, eventually capturing the match with a volley that caught Schiavone flat-footed.