Caroline Wozniacki ensured that she would end a relatively poor year in high spirits by rounding off a dominant week with an easy victory in the Luxembourg Open final. The former world number one only dropped a single set the whole tournament and looked on cruise control as she brushed aside German teenager Annika Beck for a straight sets victory.
Little known Beck, who is ranked 57th in the world and was playing in her maiden tour final, has come out of the shadows and produced some simply sublime tennis. Originally from the German town of Giessen, whose population is almost that of the whole of Luxembourg, Beck has had the luxury of owning that ‘unknown’ quality which more often than not can cause even the most experienced pro to falter – as Lucie Safarova found out to her demise.
And straight away, this seemed to be the case with Beck breaking Wozniacki in the very first game. A few surprisingly sprightly forehands and a few uncharacteristic errors from the Dane and suddenly Beck had a spring in her step. But, the pressure etched on the face of Beck told its own story and unsurprisingly she was immediately broken back without much of a whimper.
In yesterday’s semi, Wozniacki expertly saw off Sabine Lisicki to win in straight sets and would have quite rightly expected to stroll through this match. But she has the experience to know that her opponent wouldn’t have gone down without a fight and as such her trademark physique and poise were stretched to their extreme.
The two players hadn’t wasted anytime in warming up and were already playing some of the best tennis from the whole week. With nothing to lose on her opponent’s serve, Beck was stepping in and thundering her backhand right at her Wozniacki’s feet and eventually there was another break!
German tennis has undergone somewhat of a revival in recent years with the emergence of a host of talented young women who are ploughing their trade at the upper end of the rankings table. Judging by the talent that includes Angelique Kerber – who has superbly qualified for the WTA Finals, Sabine Lisicki, Mona Barthel and the recently resurrected Andrea Petkovic and it is simply amazing that the former Girl’s French Open Champion has achieved so much in her relatively young career. The wealth of talent on show should ensure that the German Fed Cup team begin to dominate in the near future.
On the court, and Beck again failed to build on a timely break as she was broken to thirty by some excellent defensive talent by Wozniacki who then consolidated it with a superb flurry of winners including several volleys.
Slowly but surely, Wozniacki was beginning to take charge of the match – grabbing it by the scruff of the neck and asserting her authority on the youngster. A lengthy game ensued and despite having four game points, Beck was broken by Wozniacki on only her second. Break began to follow break and despite a flutter of winners, the errors were finding their way off of the German’s racket.
If tennis were a tug of war then Beck was nearing the mud and Wozniacki was the bully at the other end laughing in her opponent’s turmoil. In no time at all, she wrapped up the first set, 6-2, and sat very much in the driving seat at the break while Beck looked sheepishly into space.
Annika Beck hadn’t played a bad set of tennis; not by any stretch of the imagination. Some of her shot making and attacking play was excellent. It was just unfortunate for her that her opponent was reading her every move with simplicity and audaciously returning almost everything the German had.
A much needed hold arrived to stop a run of five games in a row for Wozniacki but even at this early stage in the set, it looked like merely delaying the inevitable. Even a quick trade of breaks couldn’t prevent the end result and a run of two games later and suddenly Wozniacki was a single game from victory.
And it arrived in a rather tepid manner with the Dane breaking Beck to love for the victory; an over hit forehand ending proceedings. With a beaming smile stretched across her face, she approached the net and rightly acknowledged the very talented Beck, who will no doubt be a household name in the near future.
It may not be the tournament Wozniacki wants to win or even competing in this year but it certainly will provide a welcome bonus to the growing list of honours beside her name.