Sania Mirza-Barbora Strycova go down fighting in final of Wuhan Open
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Indian ace Sania Mirza and her Czech team-mate Barbora Strycova stumbled at the final hurdle of the Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open in China today. The Indo-Czech duo lost in straight sets to fifth-seeded Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Lucie Safarova by a score of 6-1, 6-4.
Expectations were high on Sania Mirza and Strycova as the pair had just won the Tokyo Open over a week ago, dropping only two sets in the process.
However, after reaching the final of the Wuhan Open today, Mirza and Strycova had the worst possible start to the match. They were broken easily in the very first game and their opponents held on to their serve. It was always going to be hard to get back into the set against the American-Czech pair, who had not dropped a single set
In the next couple of games, both teams were able to hold their respective serves, and it was Safarova who got the better of her international team-mate again, coming back from 15-40 down to go up by two breaks. Things would get worse as the 30-year-old Indian World No. 1 was unable to gain any sort of control in the set which they eventually lost 1-6.
The first set lasted just 27 minutes, and when Safarova and
But the American-Czech pair broke back in the very next game to win the set and the tournament.
Since the Mirza-Hingis split, the Indian has won three out of the 5 tournaments that she has played in. However, losses in the US Open and the Wuhan Open today have raised questions about the chemistry of the pair, although they can only get better with time.
