The Russian's serve was erratic and her four aces were offset by a dozen double-faults, but Sharapova was much steadier with her ground strokes than Azarenka. The latter was not happy with her performance. She told the press she was disappointed with the way she executed the game. Azarenka did not play a match since losing in the quarterfinals at Wimbledon. She looked a little rusty on court. Azarenka even admitted maybe she lost because she hadn't played in a while. She continued to say she made too many mistakes and has to work harder next time.
Safina opened her bid for a second straight title with a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Daniela Hantuchova. The 23-year-old won last year's tournament, which propelled her in the rankings. Safina went from number 17 at the start of 2008 to number 1 in the rankings on April 20th. She took a quick 3-0 lead in the first set. The tennis player then got another service break to go up 5-2 and won it on her third set point after going to deuce five times. In the second set, Safina earned the last of her five service breaks to take a 4-3 lead.
The match lasted 89 minutes. It was Safina's fifth win in eight matches overall with Hantuchova, and her third win without a loss this year. Safina said it was a good match, but she thinks she can still improve her game. The number one player in the world took charge of her points. She acknowledged that at certain times she was more aggressive. She becomes the first player to qualify for the season ending WTA Championship in Doha, Qatar. The season-ending championships begin on October 27 and will be contested by the world's top eight singles players.
Safina has come under criticism from American number two seed Serena Williams for her top ranking despite not having won a grand slam. Williams has won the U.S. Open, Australian Open, and Wimbledon titles. In men's tennis, Andy Roddick won the 500th match of his professional career with a 7-6, 6-4 victory over fellow American Sam Querrey at the Washington Classic. He became the 36th player overall and fourth active player to achieve the milestone. Roddick told reporters that only a small number of players have reached that many victories. He also stated that he has done it with enough time in his career to add to it.
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