Wozniacki Reaches Quarterfinals

No.2 seed Caroline Wozniacki dodged a tough second-round challenge from Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, advancing to the quarterfinals of the Abierto Monterrey Afirme 6-4, 6-4.
No.2 seed Caroline Wozniacki dodged a stern second-round challenge from Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, advancing to the quarterfinals of the Abierto Monterrey Afirme 6-4, 6-4.
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"It was very tough," Wozniacki said after the match. "[Lucic-Baroni] plays really strong and really hard from the baseline and I didn't have much time to get ready for my shots. So yeah, I'm very happy to be through."
Wozniacki found herself in trouble early on - she quickly found herself down 4-2 in the first set, overpowered by Lucic-Baroni's heavy groundstrokes and returns. After a word with her coach, Wozniacki came back with more aggression, winning the next four games to take back the set 6-4.
The pair contested a tight second set, holding serves and trading breaks at 3-3, staying level until Wozniacki sealed the match with a final break to Lucic-Baroni's serve as the Croatian sent a forehand wide.
"I think I just kept my head cool and just got that extra ball back, try to get a little extra pop in my shots when she was attacking me," Wozniacki said of her first-set comeback. "I got a lot of returns back and I kept the ball deep."
Wozniacki is set to face Britain's Heather Watson in the Monterrey quarterfinals.
Earlier in the evening, No.1 seed Sara Errani was no match for the inspired performance of 20-year-old Anett Kontaveit, who sent her packing 6-1, 6-3.
Kontaveit's first-round win over Cibulkova - a former Australian Open finalist - fired a warning shot to her Monterrey rivals, and although Errani had never played against her she knew to expect a challenge.
"No, I have seen her on television in a couple of games but I don't know her," Errani said ahead of their match. "I have seen her play very well, hit the ball very hard, but let's see."
Errani was confounded by Kontaveit's short-angled forehands and pace, and once the Estonian found her footing in the match there was no looking back. After Errani's service hold in the first game of the set, Kontaveit won the next six to win the first set 6-1 in barely 22 minutes. Errani's troubles continued in the second set; though Errani broke Kontaveit's serve twice, the 20-year-old kept the pressure on and kept the points short, marching to a 6-1, 6-3 victory.
A pair of qualifiers also made their way to the quarterfinals. Nicole Gibbs is through to face Errani after a seesaw match against Christina McHale, who was forced to retire at 7-6(5), 6-7(4), 3-0 due to dizziness. Pauline Parmentier defeated Monica Puig 6-3, 6-4 and she's set to face the No.5 seed and Fed Cup teammate Caroline Garcia in the next round.
"It's going to be a funny match because we are really good friends," Parmentier said of the all-French quarterfinal. "We played the Fed Cup together a few weeks ago and we are close.
"I hope it's going to be a good match because sometimes when you play a player from your own country it's like so-so, but I hope for me it's good."

Source: WTA Tennis