Angelique Kerber upsets Maria Sharapova in the quarterfinals – Open GDF Suez 2012
Top seed Maria Sharapova lost to the ninth seed, Angelique Kerber of Germany, in straight sets 4-6, 4-6 in the quarterfinals at the Open GDF Suez in Paris, France on Friday. The match lasted for an hour and 30 minutes.
Sharapova made a good start and dominated most parts of the first set. She broke Kerber in the very first game to claim a 1-0 lead. The Russian held her serve in the next game to go up 2-0. Kerber needed only a single break
point in the fourth game level the score at 2-2. However, Sharapova broke again in the fifth game and held her serve in the sixth game to grab a 4-2 lead. Sharapova was unable to maintain the momentum after that and lost four games in a row. The 6ft 2in tall
was broken in the eighth and tenth game, losing the set 4-6.
In a similar fashion to the opener, Sharapova was first to take lead in the second set. She broke Kerber in the third game and capitalised on it, claiming a 3-1 lead. Kerber was on the brink of going double break down in
the fourth game but managed to save a couple of break points to reduce the trail to 2-3. The German got the momentum on her side after holding her serve, breaking back in the sixth game to level the score at 3-3. Kerber came across another break point in the
ninth game but once again succeeded in saving it and held her serve. The left-hander hit a couple of stunning shots down the line to break Sharapova in the tenth game, capturing the set 6-4.
The jubilant Kerber said, “I knew before the match I had nothing to lose. It's amazing, my first Top 5 win. My coach was telling me, if I want to win this match, I need to play my best tennis. So from the first point I really
tried to do that. And I'm very happy I beat her and now I'm in the semis.”
Sharapova looked clearly disappointed after the match. She said, “It was a tough day today. My opponent played really well. When I had opportunities I didn't take them - I was up in both sets, had the breaks, but she did
extremely well in those moments, much better than I did.”
Kerber will meet Yanina Wickmayer of Germany in the semi-finals. Ranked 29th in the world, Wickmayer beat qualifier Mona Barthel in three sets 6-4, 6-7(3), 6-3 in the quarterfinals.