One of our early “matches to watch” at Wimbledon 2011 lived up to its billing on Court 1, as second-seeded Vera Zvonareva was pushed to three sets by young American Allison Riske. Riske had previously found her greatest successes on tour thus far on the grass courts of Birmingham, with her dictating style of play paying dividends on the slick lawns.
Wimbledon 2011 Results: No. 2 Vera Zvonareva Survives Scare From American Allison Riske
Riske started inauspiciously in her first ever match against a top ten opponent, dropping the first set 6-0 to the 2010 Wimbledon runner-up. But Riske shook off her nerves admirably, using her big serve and aggressive groundstrokes to assert herself in many of the rallies, surprising the No. 2 seed by taking the second set 6-3.
Ultimately experience won out, as Zvonareva’s consistently deep, safe shots drew enough errors to break Riske in the eighth game of the third set. Zvonareva served out the match shortly thereafter, booking a spot in the second round against fellow Russian Elena Vesnina. Ironically, Zvonareva and Vesnina were doubles partners during Wimbledon 2010, becoming the most recent team to beat Venus and Serena Williams on their way to an eventual runners-up finish.
Stay tuned to this StoryStream for more results from Day 1 of Wimbledon 2011. Get live scores at Wimbledon’s official website, and watch matches online for free on ESPN3.
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