Tímea Babos shocks Sorana Cirstea to reach quarters

She hit back to register a 4:6, 6:4, 6:2 success against the world number 48 to secure a place in the quarter-finals at this WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) International event held in Monterrey, Mexico.

The 18-year-old stayed on track to bid for her maiden WTA title after stunning Cirstea in their first meeting. She not only took lead in the head-to-head series by 1:0 against the wild card entrant but also advanced into the final eight at this hard court tournament.

The Bucharest-born Cirstea made a shaky entry at the Sierra Madre Tennis Club and suffered the first blow in the opening game. However, she unveiled her true colours after this and not only snatched her break back in the fourth game but capitalised on another break chance in the last game to bag the opener. The seed failed to defend the only breakpoint she encountered but availed two out of four break opportunities to register a 6:4 victory.

Ranked 107th in the WTA Premier Rankings, Babos turned the tides towards her favour in the following set. She earned the critical break in the opening game and maintained her lead throughout the set. The Hungarian broke her rival’s serve again in the seventh game and solidified her leading position in the match. Despite losing her serve in the eighth game, the youngster stayed focused and pulled out the equaliser by winning six games to four.

The underdog went berserk in the final set and blasted powerful groundstrokes to reel off the opening four games in a row. She then maintained consistency in her game and swiped in remaining serves, subsequently clinching the set with a 6:2 score line. Babos kept entire serves without facing any hindrance and converted two out of three break chances to her advantage.

The teenager will next face the Austrian contender, Patricia Mayr-Achleitner, who crushed Czech Republic’s Eva Birnerova with a breadstick to set-up this clash. The Austrian lost her serve three times but broke her opponent’s serve seven times to seal the match with a 6:1, 6:3 score line.

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