World number eight Garbiñe Muguruza got the better of Ana Ivanovic in a stunning performance at the 2015 Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open. Muguruza dropped the opening set before dominating the second and third sets 4-6, 6-1, 6-0 to advance to the final eight. She will meet WTA rising star Anna Karolina Schmiedlova next.
Ivanovic Edges Out Muguruza in Tight Opening Set
Coming into this highly-anticipated match, a lot was expected from both women. Having never played a professional match against one another, both Ivanovic and Muguruza were eager to get off to a good start because they both knew the other would be hard to beat if they had a sizeable lead.
Just moments after both players set foot on the biggest tennis court in Asia, it began to rain on the Optics Valley Tennis Centre. Play was pushed back twenty minutes as they needed to close the retractable roof before starting play.
When play did get underway, both women were playing exceptionally well. As you would expect, both were trying to get first strike in the rallies because even though they’re able to defend, they would much rather be the aggressive player in this matchup. The first break of serve came in the fourth game with Ivanovic breaking to go up a 3-1 lead. Despite having some of the momentum on her side, she double faulted to hand the break straight back to her Spanish counterpart. From there, both players held serve until Muguruza was serving, trailing 4-5. Some sloppy unforced errors from the Wimbledon finalist at the wrong time ultimately costed her the set. Ivanovic was able to break for a second time to win the opening set 6-4.
Muguruza Strikes Back in Emphatic Fashion
Muguruza needed to regroup from the disappointment of getting broken and did so very quickly. She put all of her disappointment behind her and broke Ivanovic in the first game of the second set. From there, the Spanish number one seemed to be playing better and better as the set went on and the Serbian number one’s level was beginning to drop quickly.
Muguruza reeled off three straight games after breaking to go up a 4-0 lead, before Ivanovic held serve to keep her chances of winning the match in straight sets alive. That wasn’t enough to stop Muguruza’s momentum though. The fifth seed was predominantly dictating most of the points in that second set, and it showed. Ivanovic’s forehand and footwork seemed to have disappeared as the Serb missed a relatively simple backhand on Muguruza’s first set point, giving her the second set 6-1. To be fair, Ivanovic didn’t give away the second set because Muguruza played well, but her level had dropped significantly in comparison to the opening set.
Muguruza’s Dominance Continues, Bagels Ivanovic in the Final Set
Muguruza continued the momentum she had sustained in the second set into the final set, holding and breaking once more to go up a 2-0 lead. In the following game, Ivanovic had half a chance to get the break back at 15-30 but Muguruza’s serve and ground strokes were too strong and powerful for her to handle. 3-0 quickly became 5-0 for the Wimbledon finalist as she got the insurance break and held to love, giving her Serbian counterpart little belief that she could complete a comeback.
Inevitably, Ivanovic was furious with herself but she couldn’t channel her anger in a positive way enough, and Muguruza had all the answers. She needed three match points but Garbiñe Muguruza was able to get over the line, to complete a 4-6, 6-1, 6-0 win over Ana Ivanovic.
The Spaniard is the first player to win a match under the retractable roof at the Optics Valley Tennis Centre, which seemed to have been perfect conditions for her aggressive game style. With this win, Muguruza will move to a career-high of number six in the world next Monday. If she were to defeat her next opponent, Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, she would be able to break into the top five.