JANKOVIC PLAYS LEPCHENKO

Jelena Jankovic will play against Varvara Lepchenko of USA in the second round of the ongoing Sony Open tennis tournament. It would be the first match in the tournament for the Serbian as she had received a bye in the opening round.

The 2014 season has not proved to be a bad one for Jankovic so far. In almost all the major competitions in which she has taken part this season, she has done well unlike her opponent who has been struggling in the recent times.

Lepchenko had climbed the world rankings in 2012 with some fine performances, but, she lost that momentum in the following year and she has looked quite patchy this year too.

Lepchenko’s most impressive quality is that she never plays defensively. No matter what the conditions are and who the opponent is, she knows only one way and that is to attack. She is very strong at playing forehand shots.

Lepchenko would also like the surface at Miami. It would be quick and thus, the ball would come on quite nicely.

Inconsistency is a big drawback in Lepchenko’s game though. She plays brilliantly in one set and then, in the next set, she looks quite ordinary. It has happened with her a number of times in the past.

As far as Jankovic is concerned, she is a bit ahead in terms of skill if compared to Lepchenko, but, her overall record against the American is not encouraging.

Talking to the reporters yesterday about Miami, the Serbian said, “Everything about this place is so nice. The surface, the spectators, the environment, it’s amazing to be back here.”

Jankovic’s form this season certainly makes her the favourite to win the contest, but, Lepchenko can’t be written off completely; that’s for sure.