EASTBOURNE debutant Caroline Wozniacki caused a major upset by beating number one seed Svetlana Kuznetsova in front of a large crowd on a windy centre court.
Danish Wozniacki, who is just 17 years of age, broke the tournament favourite's serve to take a 3-2 lead in the first set and never looked back.
The out of sorts Kuznetsova then served three double faults in a row before being broken again, allowi
ng Wozniacki to confidently serve out the set 6-2.
The highly rated world number 32 easily matched her Russian opponent in the rallies, forcing her into uncharacteristic mistakes.
The Dane picked up where she left off to begin the second set, breaking serve once more in the first game, causing an obviously rattled Kuznetsova to lose her cool and smash her racquet to the ground.
Wozniacki continued to keep the world number four on the ropes en route to a surprisingly comfortable 6-2, 6-2 victory.
A despondent Kuznetsova was clearly unhappy with her own performance, as well as the tricky centre court conditions.
"I've been practicing my serve so much and today I almost served four double faults (in a row), so it was pretty disgusting being out there," she said. "I wish I could play better but the first match on grass is very hard.
"The wind was not blowing one way it was going all around and you never know how the ball comes," she continued. "It was too much for me today."
Meanwhile, a beaming Wozniacki admitted to being surprised at how comfortable her victory was.
"I've been close to getting sets from some of the top players before but I've never actually done it," she said, "so I was really happy to close out the match today."
"Every time I go out for a tournament I try to win it," she continued. "I'm just going to try and win the next match and we'll see."
Wozniacki, whose world ranking is sure to rise, also confirmed the win was her biggest to date.
"Kuznetsova is a really great player, she's number four in the world right now, she's won a Grand Slam before" she said. "So, she's definitely the best player I've beaten so far."
Wozniacki's chances in Eastbourne were boosted moments after her match had finished as former Wimbledon champion Amelie Mauresmo was forced to pull out due to a thigh strain.
The full article contains 403 words and appears in n/a newspaper.
