Gajdosova upset at Brisbane International
Facing a lucky loser instead of second seed Maria Sharapova, Jarmila Gajdosova was nonetheless ousted from the Brisbane International in three sets.
Brisbane, Australia, 2 January 2013 | AAP
She might have dodged a bullet thanks to world No.2 Maria Sharapova’s withdrawal, but Australia’s Jarmila Gajdosova was still shot down on Wednesday in the second round of the Brisbane International.
Gajdosova, 25, had done her best to overcome a difficult 2012 by snapping up a wildcard and ousting world No.16 Roberta Vinci in the first round of the season-opening event.
And her luck appeared to have turned around when she avoided Sharapova in the second round after the reigning French Open champion pulled out with a collarbone complaint.
But Sharapova’s replacement – lucky loser Lesia Tsurenko of the Ukraine – crashed the party at Pat Rafter Arena by ousting the Slovak-born Aussie 1-6 6-1 6-4 in just over 90 minutes.
Gajdosova had been the last of the four-strong Australian women’s contingent left standing in the Brisbane International.
The former world No.25 endured a horror 2012 in which injury ensured her ranking slipped 150 places to relegate her to No.183 – but it paled in comparison to her off-court fortunes.
Her nightmare year culminated in the death of her mother Jarmila due to throat cancer in September.
The power-hitting Gajdosova looked to be in control in the second-round clash with the world No.116 Tsurenko after cruising through the first set in just half an hour.
But the tables were quickly turned by the Ukrainian as she fed off the Australian’s string of unforced errors to book a quarterfinal showdown with Slovakian surprise packet Daniela Hantuchova.