Hsieh Su-wei yesterday rallied from a set down to upset 13th seed Caroline Wozniacki at the Wuhan Open, the Taiwanese 33-year-old’s second victory over the former world No. 1 this year.
Fresh off the disappointment of losing the Pan Pacific Open doubles final in Osaka, Japan, with younger sister Hsieh Yu-chieh on Sunday, the Taiwanese No. 1 fought back from 5-1 down in the first set to complete a 6-7 (2/7), 6-1, 6-2 victory in 2 hours, 4 minutes on the hard courts in China.
“The first set was not easy, because I just came from Osaka. I lost early so I was not preparing for singles too much, because I was in the doubles with my sister,” Hsieh told the WTA Web site. “When I came on the court … I was a little bit lost and she was playing good as well. I asked my coach to come on the court and I said: ‘OK, I don’t feel anything. I feel weird.’ And he said: ‘It’s OK, just try to play,’ and I did. I tried to keep playing, and after a couple of games it was going better and better.”
Photo: AFP
The Kaohsiung native saved eight of 10 break points and converted six of seven, winning 59 percent of her points on second serve to follow up her 6-3, 6-7 (0/7), 6-2 victory over the Dane in Miami in March.
Prior to that victory, Hsieh had lost all four of her matches to Wozniacki dating back to Bad Gastein, Austria, in 2008, but she has had the measure of the former Australian Open champion this season.
“Since the first set when I was 1-5 down and I picked up one or two games, I was feeling more rhythm,” Hsieh said. “Normally, when losing by a lot, I feel more free on the court. I knew the match could go very fast, so I kept trying.”
“I tried to not get crazy with losing on the court. Sometimes, when you don’t get rhythm, and the other girl is really good, it can go really fast because after a few games, you feel like you want to cry on the court,” she said. “I was a little bit upset, but not totally gone, so it was very good what I tried to do.”
Hsieh next faces two-time Grand Slam champion Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia, who advanced to the second round when Yulia Putintseva retired with an ankle injury while trailing 6-1, 1-0.
“Definitely it’s not going to be an easy match, so I need to try to play good. I hope the fans will cheer louder for me,” Hsieh said.
Among the players joining the Taiwanese No. 1 in the second round were Ons Jabeur of Tunisia, who defeated Croatian 16th seed Donna Vekic 4-6, 6-3, 6-3; and Christina McHale of the US, who ousted Latvian 14th seed Anastasija Sevastova by the same scoreline.
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