Kirilenko stumbles at the wire

So what, the Chinese seemed to say, as she battled through a second set tie-break with her unorthodox game, complete with a double handed forehand, absorbing the effect of two match points there, and strolled through the decider 3-6, 7-6 (7), 6-1.

“In the first set, I could not catch the ball. In the second, I hit more spin and stayed in the point as long as I could. Maybe she was tired in the third set — she missed a lot of balls,” said Yan.

Having been so close, yet not quite there, seemed to have taken a toll on the Russian’s mind, and this time, the Indian sojourn was not to end in a trophy for the 2007 Sunfeast Open champion. “I was quite upset about the second set, and she played very well in the decider,” was Kirilenko’s verdict.

Zi Yan has largely concentrated on doubles till now, and enjoyed a fair amount of success, picking up the Australian Open and Wimbledon titles in 2006. Now, though, ,she is playing more singles with an eye on the Beijing Games.

“This year the Olympics are in China, and with a view to that, I am playing more singles. Winning a Grand Slam is also important, but since this is the year of the Olympics, that is probably my priority for the year,” she added.

There was no good news on the Indian side, though, as wild card Isha Lakhani won only four games in her 6-2, 6-2 loss to Romania’s Agnes Szatmari.

Seventh seed Vera Zvonareva fought off a tough challenge from Romanian qualifier Monica Niculescu, coming back from a set down to win 4-6, 6-3, 6-1. In another Russian-Chinese battle, this one ending with a Russian victory, Anastasia Rodionova defeated Tiantian Sun 4-6, 7-6, 6-4.

Williams stutter, but through

Their outfits were impeccable, as always. Their game, however, could have done with a bit more work....