This match between Svetlana Kuznetsova and Garbine Muguruza was the blockbuster match of the Brisbane International quarterfinals as it is the only quarterfinal with both players belonging to the top 10 of the rankings. The pair had met three times in the past, with the Spaniard leading their head-to-head record by 2-1. The 2016 Roland Garros champion also won their last and only meeting on a hard court at the WTA Finals in Singapore, having to come from a set down to triumph in three sets, losing only one single game in the last two sets (It was a dead rubber as Muguruza was already eliminated and Kuznetsova already qualified for the semifinals). However, this match did not live up to the hype it created as Muguruza stormed to a straight sets victory within just under two hours, despite a tough fight put up by Kuznetsova.
Kuznetsova gets off to a perfect start
The veteran started the match perfectly as she finally broke serve after three straight service holds to start the match with, after her glorious backhand shots and attacking style of tennis managed to break down Muguruza’s consistent serving. The Russian then furthermore extended her lead by consolidating her break of serve with a comfortable service hold to secure herself in a position to win the first set. The first set looked certain that it would go to the 2-time Grand Slam champion as she continued strolling through the match and earned another well-deserved break point opportunity in the next game, but this time, she failed to capitalize on it and gave the hold to the Spaniard.
The missed break point opportunity would soon prove costly as the Russian was immediately broken by Muguruza in the next game, allowing her to make the set return on serve. Kuznetsova once again lost break point opportunities, which was also set points, at 5-4, and Muguruza was able to maintain her composure to save the set points in a nervy service game. The highest-ranked Spaniard eventually won the first set in 58 minutes when she served it out comfortably, after breaking Kuznetsova’s serve once more to take the lead in the match for the first time.
Muguruza gets off to early lead
The Roland Garros champion looked poised for a straight sets victory when she made the first breakthrough on Kuznetsova’s serve by breaking serve on a double fault. Her celebrations would be short-lived though as Kuznetsova broke back immediately with some precise hitting after a loose service game by Muguruza. Nevertheless, Muguruza proved that her lead was no fluke as she broke serve once more to regain the lead and edge her closer to the win. That final break of serve was crucial, with the benefit of hindsight, as there were no breaks of serve that followed, with Muguruza eventually serving the match out successfully, despite a tough fight put up by Kuznetsova.
Match Statistics
Kuznetsova ended the match with a disappointing 46% of first serves getting in only, whereas Muguruza was a totally different case on her first serves, getting 70% of them in and winning 73% of them. The Russian was very erratic during the match, and that was reflected in the 29 unforced errors she made during the whole match. Her usually effective and consistent sliced backhand was backfiring on her today, as it often did not clip over the net, causing her to lose points at crucial moments. Meanwhile, both players’ backhands were a beauty, and both of them always targeted the lines which resulted in an abundance of unforced errors but came along with some amazing winners.
First semifinal for Muguruza since August
Muguruza would play her first semifinal in any tournaments since the Cincinnati Masters, where she lost to eventual champion Karolina Pliskova. Her opponent in the semifinal would be Alize Cornet, whom she has a 2-0 record over. It would be a tough match as Cornet looked in great in form in her quarterfinal against Dominika Cibulkova, who was defeated in straight sets. Both Cornet and Muguruza made narrow escapes along their way to the semifinals with Cornet coming from 3-6, 1-4 down to triumph in the first round, and Muguruza saving one match point in her second round match. A stat worth noticing is that Muguruza has saved at least one set point/match point to win in all her matches. This is also a very encouraging start to the season for Muguruza, whose season last year failed to deliver apart from her maiden grand slam title.