Wozniak Loses a Heartbreaker in Birmingham
June 11, 2009
It was a roller coaster day for Aleksandra Wozniak (Blainville, Quebec) on Thursday at the Aegon Classic, a $220,000 Sony Ericsson WTA Tour International Series grass court event being held in Birmingham, England.
The 21-year old came up just shot in her bid to make the quarter-finals, falling in 6-7(7), 7-5, 7-5 in a tightly contested back and forth affair against Melinda Czink of Hungary, no. 57 on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour rankings. Wozniak saved two set points en route before securing a one set lead and seemed poised to book her spot in the final eight when she held a match point at 5-3 in the second set, but Czink came up with some clutch shots at the most opportune time to extend the match. The roles were reversed in the final frame as Wozniak found herself down 3-5, but clawed her way back before being broken in the 12th game to send her opponent into the next round.
“It was a really tight match. My opponent served well and mixed up her shots well,” Wozniak commented after the match. “I am slowly adjusting to grass, it’s really a game of momentum. Hopefully, I will get in a few more matches next week in Eastbourne.”
Wozniak’s third round showing in Birmingham will allow her to move up one more spot in the rankings to a career-best no. 22 in the world. Next week, she will be in Eastbourne, England to compete in her final Wimbledon tune up tournament at the Aegon International, a Premier Tour event.