New Haven: Wozniacki Downs Dementieva to Reach Final
World number two Caroline Wozniacki reached the final at the US tour after a very poor first set conceded by the Danish in front of Russian Elena Dementieva. Top seeded in New Haven, Wozniacki struggled for a comeback in the match and succeeded taking the second set in an uneasily tie break which ended 7-6(5). Thus, the Dane will face in the final another Russian, this time Nadia Petrova, the one who passed also in three sets compatriot Maria Kirilenko, after conceding the first set, too. It ended 2-6, 6-2, 6-2 as Petrova is very close to her first title of the season.
“Even if you have pain, you have to try. I decided to continue,” Kirilenko said right after the defeat and after being treated for a back injury during the semi final. “I was in pain in the first set, but I won it because she was making a lot of mistakes. She was missing the first ball, the second ball. It was good for me. But then she started to play better. I’m playing well and to get this out of nowhere is always sad,” the Russian said. Petrova took advantage of her compatriot’s treatment to go further in the match and claim break points which fired her finally into the final. When Maria called for the physio, those couple of minutes did very well for me. I saw she was struggling and believed I could come back and win. I had a good conversation with my coach. I cut down on my mistakes and focused a lot on my serve. I felt I started playing the right game,” this said, after receiving the invitation in New Haven in the last minute. “It’s amazing. I got a phone call from Anne Worcester late Friday afternoon. I was still in Montréal, about to leave the hotel and fly to New York. Then suddenly she offered me that last wildcard. It was a great gift. I was very happy. I’m sure my team was also excited to come for an extra tournament before the Open,” Petrova added.
On the other side, the Dane admitted she was helped by the crowd, who encouraged the youngster to get closer to her fourth title of the year and become the main danger at the US Open that is scheduled to start this Monday at Flushing Meadows. “The crowd really helped me today. It wasn’t easy,” exhausted Wozniacki said. “This is a great tournament. Obviously I’m playing well here. I’m really happy to be in the finals again, the third time in a row. Hopefully I can win the last match here,” top seeded at the US Grand Slam added.
