 |
| |
|
 |
 |
|
|
Venus ousts Pratt to reach quarters Posted: Saturday January 18, 2003 8:56 PMMELBOURNE, Jan 19 (Reuters) -- Second seed Venus Williams ended home hopes in the women's draw of the Australian Open on Sunday, dispatching a brave Nicole Pratt 6-3, 6-2 to reach the quarterfinals. Pratt showed flashes of inspiration against the American but ultimately proved no match for her on the main Rod Laver Arena court. "I know Nicole's a really good player, and she was having a great tournament here so I am glad to get through and into the quarterfinals," Williams said. "The second week might be a little easier because I will know what's coming," she added. Pratt was appearing in the fourth round of a Grand Slam for the first time in 31 attempts. Williams is a winner of four slams. The gulf in class certainly existed, but Pratt bridged it with some courageous rallying and powerful serving. She broke Williams in the third game for a 2-1 advantage and was 40-0 up for a 3-1 lead but was not able to convert. Once Williams had been let off the hook, she pulled away. The American wrapped up the opening set confidently and quickly found a groove, silencing the partisan Melbourne crowd. Midway through the second set, Pratt could only smile at her predicament. Playing some of the best tennis of her life, she was still unable to hurt Williams, who hit unreachable clean winners onto the lines -- 35 in total for the match. But 54th-ranked Pratt hung in, hoping for a lapse in Williams' concentration. It came as the mercury soared courtside and Pratt grabbed a break. Again she was unable to hold onto it, and Williams broke back before easing towards the finish line in 77 minutes. She now faces No. 7 Daniela Hantuchova.
Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. |
|
|||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
