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Safina follows Melbourne nightmare with another
Dinara Safina, who upset herself with the poverty of her performance in the Australian Open final last month, followed it with one which she considered even more threadbare in Dubai.
Dinara Safina, who upset herself with the poverty of her performance in the Australian Open final last month, followed it with one which she considered even more threadbare in Dubai on Tuesday.
The world No 2 from Russia was beaten 6-4, 6-2 in her opening match of the Dubai Open by Virginie Razzano, a French player ranked 56 places lower and who almost failed to qualify directly for the tournament.
Safina lost the first four games, pulled it back far enough to make Razzano serve the first set out, but then fell limply away again in the second, apparently quite unable to impose her forceful game on a middle level opponent.
"This was worse than the Melbourne final," Safina agreed.
"I have been practising great and feeling good, but sometimes this just happens.
"Sometimes you are feeling good and practising great and you expect to play like that in a match, but sometimes it takes you a little while to transfer form into a match.
"When it's not your day you can't pick one thing which is wrong. You can't put any pressure on any shot - it's just one of those days.
