Alona Bondarenko def. Nathalie Dechy 5-7 6-4 6-0

:eek: where did that come from?

Well done Alona! :D

Horrible final set collapse from Dechy though :o

Who'd have thought it'd be Bondarenko v Peschke in the semis? :eek:

Bagel, bagel, here we come again...

Blimey, this doesnt make pierce's loss so bad now ;)

Well, beating Srebotnik was more of an accomplishment than beating Dechy.

Nathalie :sad:

:worship: ALYONA :worship:

Good job Alona! You're really on a roll!

well... Nadia :help: .... :(

Well done, Alona. At last in TOP-50. One more win and you will be in TOP-50 at once.

Alona :)

Alona :yippee: :yeah: super :) ;)
but Nathalie collapsed badly in the third set

cool, Alona v Kveta in semis :cool:

:scared:

Nat :help:

alona, the frenchies killer this week :scared:

Oh Nathalie no! You looked so lovely in that pretty Lacoste dress when you beat Petrified. I was so looking forward to seeing it again. I know elegance and grace doesn't win titles, but if it did Nathalie would have several Grand Slams by now.

Alona :)
yes,although i am a big nati fan,congrats to alona!! :worship: she was the better player today.this girl has some raw talent!! :kiss:

nati,i hope next week goes better for you,cherie... :kiss:

Alona :yeah:

Alona is the best Bondarenko sister ever :D :yeah:

& gives bagels!!! cmon!!!

Alona :woohoo:

Pf, Nath.

Well done Alyona!!! :woohoo: :hatoff:

What a useless player Nathalie is... :haha: :haha: :haha:

There's something exasperating about the way Dechy plays (when she's on, needless to say). I think it's the way in which she forces her opponents to constantly take risks while taking very few herself. Dechy's opponents know she will pounce on any short ball, entering the court to hit a winner or at least open an angle that will allow her to take over the point, so they are always tempted to go for bigger shots in an attempt to overpower her - and that is more difficult to do than it seems, given Dechy's good footwork and tactical savvy. But apart from those occasions in which she feels it's safe to attack, Dechy's game is rather conservative, and based on consistency rather than on flashy shotmaking. This makes it seem as if she's being clearly outplayed even when she has the match firmly under control.

The intensity with which the supremely fit Bondarenko plays the rallies is reminiscent of Davydenko. She can run fast, retrieve almost anything and hit hard (which she can do with consistency and from both sides) for a whole day if need be. Bondarenko is pedal to the metal, and tough luck if you can't keep up with her.

The first two sets were very high quality, with many lengthy, hard fought rallies, very consistent baseline play from both players and many great winners from both sides.

In the end, Bondarenko managed to keep up this level for three sets; Dechy didn't. By the middle of the second set it was visible that Dechy was running out of gas, and was constantly hitting moonballs to try to slow down Bondarenko's frantic pace.

Alona :kiss:

:eek: Nathalie :sad: