Ok, I posted the videos up in the Videos 2009 forum/thread, so hopefully those work. Pictures to follow, and i'll edit this post when I finish uploading them. (EDIT: 1R pictures are up in the Pictures thread; too tired to upload training pics, so i'll do it another day)
Practice Session
I went to her practice session first and she was really hitting the ball nice and clean and hard. I only got to see the last 20-30mins of her practice and from what I saw, all was good. I didn't see Eduardo Nicolas, so either he was hiding in the shade, or he left before I arrived. It was basically her and Portas hitting up. From my time there, Portas was telling her to add more spin to her forehand, and to straighten her arm during her serving.
I haven't noticed anything different in her service motion, and I've posted the vids up, so maybe someone with a keen eye can have a look and comment. Anyway, she was really working hard, and I hope it all pays off for her.
Oh, and I got to snag her autograph as well! YAY!
Match Report
Alright, so I went to watch the whole match, and Daniela is playing solid tennis. During the first two games when she was down 0-2, the majority of those points were due to Daniela's errors. There were a few long rallies in those points and Daniela would just spray the ball long. It wasn't really hitting the net, more just going over the baseline.
From then on, she tightened her game. There were the occasional loose groundstroke, but she was more consistent and really assertive. Both girls were hitting the ball hard and flat, but Daniela was hitting the ball cleanly and a bit harder. She was able to get the first strike in most points and dominate it. What really impressed me was Daniela's defence, cos Zakapalova was getting quite a lot of balls back and hitting hard in the first set, and Daniela managed to get the ball back in court and find the right ball to strike.
Daniela was aggressive on return, moved reasonably well, and was really fighting for it. I got a bit nervous during the first set when she was leading 5-2, and then 5-3, and I didn't want another match where the other player catches up, so I was glad she closed out that first set. The first set was tighter than the scoreline suggests, as I'm sure most of those games went to deuce.
Second set was more of the same, but not as tight. Daniela was really playing well, aggressive, getting the first strike, and Zakapalova was hitting more errors. I think the heat got to Zakapalova, and worked in Daniela's favor, cos Zakapalova was netting some balls and pulling the trigger too early in some points.
Overall, it was a clean performance from Daniela. It certainly isn't her best, but it was good and definitely morale boosting. If she can be even more consistent and patient in points, I'm sure she'll do well again. I know the videos I posted don't really do justice to what I've written, but I only filmed a few points and was unlucky in not filming her better points.
Btw, is Zakapalova more of a hard-hitter or a counter-puncher? I ask because there were a quite a few points when they were trading groundstrokes and hitting at near same pace (Daniela's slightly faster). If Zakapalova is a counter puncher, it would be a bit worrying as Daniela would get blown off the court by someone who hits harder, ala Safina, and therefore she may not get a lot of balls back in court like she did today??
