Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships 2016: WTA Scores and Results from Wednesday
Ana Ivanovic continued her impressive form at the 2016 Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Wednesday, defeating defending champion Simona Halep 7-6, 6-2 in the second round.
Halep kept apace with the Serbian in the first set, but Ivanovic quickly moved through the gears to outclass her strong opponent.
Julia Goerges and Caroline Garcia both advanced with Ivanovic, knocking out Barbora Strycova and Carla Suarez Navarro respectively from the competition in three-set battles.
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There was also an impressive straight-sets win for Italy's Sara Errani, who defeated Yaroslava Shvedova 6-3, 6-0.
Here are Wednesday's full results from Dubai:
| Ana Ivanovic | 7-6, 6-2 | Simona Halep |
| Sara Errani | 6-3, 6-0 | Yaroslava Shvedova |
| Andrea Petkovic | 6-3. 6-2 | Jelena Jankovic |
| Elina Svitolina | 7-6, 6-3 | Garbine Muguruza |
| Barbora Strycova | 2-6, 6-3, 6-1 | Julia Goerges |
| Caroline Garcia | 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 | Carla Suarez Navarro |
| Madison Brengle | 0-6, 7-6, 6-3 | Petra Kvitova |
| CoCo Vandeweghe | 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 | Kristina Mladenovic |
All stats via DubaiDutyFreeTennisChampionships.com
Wednesday Recap
Ivanovic looked explosive in her first-round match against Daria Gavrilova, dropping only one game in a dominant straight-sets success, but she had a tougher day against Halep in Dubai.
Halep is the current world No. 3, according to BBC Sport, and the 24-year-old was expected to defeat Ivanovic, who has slid down the rankings to No. 17.
However, the former world No. 1 was in top form as she beat her younger opponent, overpowering her to make it through the round.
The two opponents were well-matched in the opening set, as they both dominated on their service points. However, Ivanovic railroaded the Romanian in the tiebreak, winning 7-2, and never looked back.
Ivanovic steamed ahead in the second set, as the defending champion surprisingly faltered.
The Serb maintained her service game, while Halep could only win 43 percent of points on her first serve.
Ivanovic successfully broke her opponent three times and closed out the win with a 6-2 final set, ending Halep's hopes of retaining her championship crown.
Tennis TV gave a further breakdown of the stats:
Errani also gave a magnificent display on Thursday as she joined Ivanovic in the next round.
The Bologna-born star, who has previously been in the top five of the world rankings, showed her best form as she dumped Shvedova out.
Shvedova has steadily dropped down the standings in recent years, and her Italian opponent exposed her weaknesses.
The match lasted just 59 minutes as Errani powered home, accurately landing 85 percent of her first serves as she exerted pressure.
Errani broke Shvedova's serve three times in each set as she cantered to the win, dropping only three games in the whole match.
The contest of the day was between Ivanovic and Halep, as two of the fan favourites on the women's tour clashed in a sumptuous battle.
Ivanovic proved she still has the weaponry to beat the very best in the world, and her rivals for the championship will have noted her destructive performance against Halep.
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