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Jankovic knocked out of Open by Bartoli
(Agencies)
Updated: 2009-01-25 10:26 MELBOURNE - Top seed Jelena Jankovic was knocked out of the Australian Open fourth round by an aggressive Marion Bartoli on Sunday.
The Frenchwoman capitalised on the Serbian's poor service game and blasted winners at every opportunity before she ended the world number one's misery 6-1 6-4 in just 82 minutes. The unconventional Bartoli, who despite being right handed plays two handed off both sides, had not advanced beyond the Australian Open second round in seven previous attempts. The 16th seed set up a quarter-final against a Russian, either Nadia Petrova or Vera Zvonareva. "I'm just so happy to be on Rod Laver Arena because usually at the Australian Open I'm playing that badly that I'm on court 21," the 24-year-old said in a courtside interview. "I think I played amazingly. The last game of the match was pretty tough. I just tried to play my game. I served so well and I'm very pleased to have won." Bartoli, blasting winners from both sides off the baseline, jumped out to a 4-0 first set lead and, while Jankovic held three break points in the fifth game, the Frenchwoman held her nerve to take a 5-0 lead. She held two set points in the sixth game but Jankovic was finally able to hold her serve. The 16th seed, however, was not to be denied the first set, which she clinched with a delicate drop push that left the scrambling Jankovic wafting at thin air. Jankovic won just 13 points on her own serve in the first set. Losing the set seemed to wake Jankovic up although neither player was too successful with their serve in the second set, each breaking the other twice in the first eight games. Bartoli set up her victory when she grabbed her third break of the set, and fifth of the match, with some superb scrambling play. The world number 17 then served out and thrust her arms skywards when she booked her quarter-final place. |
