China Open, Beijing

Women’s Semifinal: [CR3] Petra Kvitova (CZE) vs. [CR21] Samantha Stosur (AUS)

There was a slim chance that Stosur could defeat Kvitova, if she played consistently, went for her shots, and capitalized on her opportunities. Stosur’s year has been disappointing, she has not made it to any finals because she is not playing with conviction.  There were too many easy balls that she sent either long or into the net. That inconsistency in play is her undoing. She knows what she needs to do; however, her execution is unreliable.

She is a fighter and the longer the match lasts, the greater the probability that her belief returns; however, there are no guarantees when you play higher ranked players.  Their objective is to win and win as quickly as possible.  Stosur made it into a match, winning the second set 7-5 and forcing a deciding set; however, inexplicably, her game deserted her and despite the fact that Kvitova was also struggling, Stosur lost 3-6, 7-5, 2-6.