OK so I am getting close to the end of my posts on the Australian open for 2014 and this post will be on the ladies final which was between Li Na and Dominika Cibulkova. So let's take a look at it......
So this was a big match for both Li and Dominika as for Li it was her third final in Melbourne and she was looking to win her second major and her first title there and Cibulkova was trying to win her first major. As for the match the first set was a tense affair and both players were feeling the nerves with Cibulkova dropping serve straigh away, although she soon broke back to go 2-2. And as the first went on it went by serve until Li Na broke to go 6-5 only to be broken back by Cibulkova which saw the first set go to a tiebreak which Li na dominated to take the first set. In the second set however it was a different story altogehter as Li Na setlled herself and she started playing some great tennis, hitting her backhand to near perfection as she went for the lines. And in the end Dominika Cibulkova had no answer for Li Na who went on to hand her opponent a creamy bagel to end the match and Li Na grabbed her first Australian open title in 7-6, 6-0.
Well it has to be said that this was a match of two halves with the first set being a tense encounter and the second set being a cakewalk for Li Na. But Li Na deserves all the credit and she pulled out a great win in the end and to think that back in her second or third round match when she played Lucie Safarova she was two match points down, to go on and actually win the tournament really is quite something. And with that Li Na has also played her part in breaking the dominance of Serena Williams and its great to once again see other players win grand slams other than just the usual suspects. And Li Na now has the opportunity to go and win more slams as she has proven in Melbourne that she isn't a one trick pony and with the French open next up in May as she has already won there she has a good chance to win again. So we will see how things will pan out for the two time major champion but so far so good.
Li Na also has proved to be very popular down under with the crowds as she is noted for giving funny on court interviews and her acceptance speech was no different. In her speech Li Na thanked her husband and said that he is the most famous person in China and she thanked him for being her hitting partner, making drinks and being a nice guy, and she lastly added "and you are so lucky to have me!" which had all the Aussies laughing away. And that is also great to see that in Li Na we have a likeable engaging champion who can win over the crowds with her sense of humour as well her tennis, so I'm sure in 2014 she will continue to have a great season.
As for Domimika Cibulkova well she has had a wonderful tournament as she went in as the 20th seed and with little or no expectations of her reaching the final she worked her way through her draw and she even defeated Maria Sharapova enroute to the final. It was a pity for her that she couldn't get anything going after her efforts in the first set and at one point even some arse in the crowd shouted out to Li Na "Go on bagel her!" as the Slovak tried to rescue her last serve before she fell to the Chinese No.1 with a bagel after all in the second set. And whether or not she can go on to win a slam herself remains to be seem but she has certainly shown that she is a player to watch out for in the majors and her ranking will rise to No.11 just outside the top ten with this result.
Right well that's it for the ladies tournament at the 2014 Australian Open which has seen some dramatic upsets with all the favourites including Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka going out early. And it was also great to see a new champion's name etched onto that rather nice Daphne Ashbrook champion's trophy with Li Na, a favourite of the Aussies winning the title after three attempts to prove third time was a charm.
And so that's it for now, I'll be back soon with the men's final.
Bye for noww!
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