Pe’er’s impressive run ended by Wozniacki

Israeli unable to reach semifinals in Dubai as Dane reclaims No. 1 spot.

By ALLON SINAI, AP
shahar peer_311 (photo credit: ASSOCIATED PRESS)
shahar peer_311
(photo credit: ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Shahar Pe’er’s hopes of reaching the semifinals of the Dubai Championships for a second straight year were dashed on Friday following a 6- 2, 6-4 loss to Caroline Wozniacki, who regained the No. 1 ranking from Kim Clijsters with the quarterfinal victory.
Wozniacki went up 3-0 in the first set and was never seriously challenged, mostly due to the erratic play of the Israeli, ranked No. 11, who had 34 unforced errors – more than twice that of the Dane.
Wozniacki took a 4-0 in the second set, and closed out the match with an overhead smash.
“I played two games well in the first set and only last three or four games in the second set. Between that, I played pretty terrible,” said Pe’er, who beat Wozniacki in the last 16 in Dubai last year.
“I don’t think she had to do anything, just be there and put the balls in. I finished much better than I started.”
Pe’er will remain in the Persian Gulf in the coming week as she will be taking part in the Qatar Ladies Open in Doha.
The 20-year-old Wozniacki lost the top spot last Monday, but will officially reclaim it when the new rankings are released this week.
“Of course, it’s nice to be back to No. 1,” Wozniacki said after her win over Pe’er. “It’s a good feeling. I gave Kim one week. Hopefully, now I will have it for a few more weeks.”
On her Twitter page, Wozniacki highlighted her return to No. 1 which prompted Clijsters to tweet in reply: “Congrats :-) ha ha.” Wozniacki first rose to the top in October, replacing the injured Serena Williams, but she has yet to reach a Grand Slam final.
She lost to Li Na of China in the Australian Open semifinals in January.
However, she was among the most consistent players in 2010. She won the most tournaments and appears in good form in Dubai, easily beating an ailing Anna Chakvetadze and then dropping only one game in her thirdround match against Japanese qualifier Ayumi Morita.
“I’m playing good tennis,” Wozniacki said. “I feel when I’m playing on a high level, I’m tough to beat. So, I’m really pleased about the way I’m playing at the moment.”