World number one Angelique Kerber got her Miami Open campaign undergoing against Duan Yingying in the second round, triumphing in straight sets after coming from 3-5 down in the first set to do so.

Kerber recovers from huge deficit

It was a very tight start to the match as both players exchanged service holds to begin the match with, nothing able to separate both players in the opening stages. The first breakthrough came in the fifth game of the match as Duan failed to find her first serves and Kerber took the advantage to be on the offense and break serve for the first time in the match, taking the early lead.

Angelique Kerber fixing her racquet strings during the match | Photo: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images North America
Angelique Kerber fixing her racquet strings during the match | Photo: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images North America

Nevertheless, with some precise hitting and strong returns, Duan made an immediate reply as she broke straight back to return level on serve as soon as possible. From then on, it was all about the Chinese as she first held her service to 15 comfortably, taking a 4-3 lead, before she broke serve to 15 too, exposing the vulnerability of the world number one’s serves as she powered her way to her second consecutive service break and opened up a formidable 5-3 lead and earned the golden opportunity to serve out the first set.

However, Duan seemed to be affected by the nerves and the pressure on her shoulders as she quickly went down 0-40 while serving for the match due to an abundance of unforced errors coming off her racquet. Despite being able to get back to deuce, Kerber eventually prevented Duan from earning a set point as she broke straight back to return on serve and give herself a chance of winning the first set once again.

Duan Yingying failed to take her chances in the match today | Photo: Jack Thomas/Getty Images AsiaPac
Duan Yingying failed to take her chances in the match today | Photo: Jack Thomas/Getty Images AsiaPac

A nervy service hold to 30 then saw the German make the scoreline 5-5, before earning three break points in her favor as the momentum seemed to shift towards her. Nevertheless, Duan played freely with nothing to lose as she rattled off five straight points to narrowly hold onto her service game to prevent herself from falling behind on the scoreboard and instead take a 6-5 lead.

After Kerber held her serve comfortably, the set was extended to a tiebreak to decide its proceedings. The world number one jumped out to a 4-1 lead all of a sudden and the first set looked to be over for Duan as her unforced errors cost her greatly at the crucial moments. The momentum eventually allowed Kerber to seal up the first set 7-6 after 47 minutes, which can be considered relatively fast for a tiebreak set.

Angelique Kerber hits a backhand | Photo: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images North America
Angelique Kerber hits a backhand | Photo: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images North America

Kerber strolls to victory

Kerber carried the momentum over to the second set as she started the set with an easy hold of serve, looking to close out the match in straight sets. Duan was on the verge of crumbling early in the set as she faced a break point in her opening service game but managed to come back from the brink as Kerber hit a backhand which was barely out. This tough hold of service seemed to give Duan the confidence needed as she earned two break points in the following game, threatening to take the lead in the set. However, she hit two easy returns way out of the court to gift Kerber the service hold, failing to take her chances well.

The first breakthrough of the second set came in the sixth game as Kerber prevailed in a marathon 14-points game to break serve for the first time in the set and take the lead, which she eventually consolidated as she fended off the tough resistance of the Chinese to open up a formidable 5-2 lead and place herself just one game away from the encouraging victory. The match ended with a bittersweet moment as Duan threw in a double fault on match point, which gave Kerber the victory after just 84 minutes of play.

Angelique Kerber stretches out for a shot | Photo: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images North America
Angelique Kerber stretches out for a shot | Photo: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images North America

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About the author
Don Han
Don Han is a young tennis writer who aspires to be a full-time sports journalist in the future, supporting Russian players along the way.