Victory in College Park is her first in three years
Russian Nadia Petrova’s domination of Israeli Shahar Peer had been thorough — five wins in four countries on three surfaces over five years.
On Sunday in the inaugural Citi Open, the beat went on for Petrova — but not without a hitch.
Recommended Stories
After losing the first two games in each set, Petrova had to adjust to Peer’s serve, the unrelenting heat and a grueling week at the Tennis Center at College Park. With her 7-5, 6-2 victory, the second-seeded Petrova, 29, captured her 10th WTA singles title but first in three years.
“I’ve been waiting for this one patiently,” said Petrova, who collected $37,000.
Patience is a characteristic that perhaps has kept Petrova from winning more. With her booming serve, extraordinary reach and solid footwork, she has the skill set for power tennis but is often content to slug it out on the baseline.
On Sunday, as she won the final six games, Petrova appeared capable of winning with any style.
Petrova dominated serve, registering seven aces and just one double fault. The top-seeded Peer, however, notched just two aces and six double faults. Her first big mistake of the match came at 2-1 when she double-faulted for the deciding point of the fourth game of the first set.
“It was all timing,” said Peer, 24. “It unfortunately happened today when I really needed my serve. With Nadia such a big server, you really need to get free points.”
Peer, ranked 24th in the world, appeared better suited to the heat in the first set. In one of her service games, she lost the first three points, only to rebound and win the game by sweeping the next five points with patience and persistence. She forced mistakes from Petrova, who reacted by slamming shots to ball boys in frustration.
In doubles, top-seeded Sania Mirza of India and Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan rolled to a 6-3, 6-3 victory over second-seeded Olga Govortsova of Belarus and Alla Kudryavtseva of Russia, completing a dominant run in which they surrendered no more than four games in any set.
