• WTA

Baltacha upsets odds to oust Voegele

ESPN staff
May 20, 2013
Elena Baltacha was victorious in Brussels © Getty Images
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Elena Baltacha showed impressive levels of resilience as she outlasted Switzerland's Stefanie Voegele to reach the second round of the Brussels Open on Monday.

Baltacha, a wildcard for the event in Belgium, survived a painfully tight first set to claim the lead, before roaring back from a second set deficit to secure a 7-6(9) 7-5 victory in a match that lasted just seconds shy of two hours.

Baltacha, the world No. 234 going into the tournament, entered the contest as a resounding underdog against the world No. 58 Voegele - but she quickly set about proving the form book wrong, edging a fraught tiebreak to claim a set that saw just two breaks of serve.

Voegele had won the only previous meeting between the pair, however - and it looked like order would be restored when the Swiss engineered an immediate break in the second stanza before moving ahead 4-1. However, Baltacha would not fall apart - rallying back with successive breaks before clinching a memorable victory.

Baltacha will now face Varvara Lepchenko in the second round, after she defeated Bojana Jovanovski in three arduous sets.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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