To win a Grand Slam title, it takes more than a big shot or a lucky break in the draw. A player needs focus in every match. Today on the second Sunday of the French Open, two players showed how focus, and the lack thereof it, can make or break you.
While Nadia Petrova showed clarity and heart in finally defeating Venus Williams after four tries, Andy Murray seemed to let less than ideal court conditions derail his chance at Parisian glory.
Nadia Petrova, who many people wrote off as someone with a strong game but a weak mind, proved that her dramatic win over local favorite Aravane Rezai was no fluke as she defeated Venus Williams in convincing fashion today. Petrova, who had not beaten Williams in four other encounters, seemed at ease on the court as she closed out a 6-4, 6-3 over the world No. 2. After reaching the French Open semifinals in 2003 and 2005, Petrova’s career has had many ups but mostly downs due to her fragile yet explosive mentality that has seen the former world No. 3 go through eight coaches in the last six years. But starting with a quarterfinal run at this year’s Australian Open, the Russian star seems more at ease with herself and her game. When asked about playing Williams after her dramatic win over Rezai, Petrova talked about her newfound focus by saying, “Every match I take very seriously. I set a goal that I just want to leave everything possible out there and walk off either as a winner or as a loser. I don’t want to have any regrets walking off the court.” Even if Petrova goes down to fellow Russian Elena Dementieva in the quarterfinals in a match Petrova promised will be “a battle to the death”, Petrova’s revived focus is refreshing to see and will give her an extra edge in the second half of her career.
Meanwhile, Andy Murray, who seemed to be finding his game at the right time, allowed a late start and less than ideal court conditions to get the better of him as he suffered a 4-6, 5-7, 3-6 defeat to Tomas Berdych. Although Murray conceded that conditions were tough for both players, including an hour long rain delay that could have stopped play altogether, it was Berdych who weathered the storm while Murray appeared more and more frazzled by the surroundings, the crowd and Berdych’s strong play. By the end of the match, when Berdych secured a break to go up 4-3 in the third, everybody sensed Murray was done.
Why Murray didn’t handle the situation better or at least fight hard enough to force the match into another day will be debated for at least a week until the grass court season starts up. Although many will cite Berdych’s power game as the main factor, Murray has battled mentally all tournament starting with his five set win over Richard Gasquet. The clay season has not been to kind to the Scot as he now enters the pressure cooker that is Wimbledon with all the expectations that brings with it. But Murray himself has to know he’ll need his focus more than ever if he has any chance of finally winning that elusive first Grand Slam title.
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