Ekaterina Makarova Upsets Victoria Azarenka On Day 5 Of 2013 Mutua Madrid Open; Ana Ivanovic Outlasts Laura Robson

Ekaterina Makarova (click to enlarge)

Ekaterina Makarova showed guts and grit on day 5 of the 2013 Mutua Madrid Open, rallying from a lopsided 1st set against her and 1-3 down in the final set to upset world #3 Victoria Azarenka, 1-6 6-2 6-3. Vika came into the match at 18-0 for the year (not counting walkovers) but had not played in nearly 2 months due to an ankle injury. Nonetheless, Ekaterina is a dangerous foe under any circumstances. Technically, yes this is the highest ranked player Makarova has ever beaten. However, keep in mind that she ousted Serena Williams from the 2012 Australian Open. Serena’s ranking was low (seeded 12th at that Aussie Open) due to being out with an injury. So while this victory over Vika is Makarova’s biggest based on ranking, I would suggest knocking Serena out of a Major was a bigger victory.

Ana Ivanovic (click to enlarge)

A few days ago I worried that an Ana Ivanovic vs Laura Robson match would leave me in a quandary over my rooting allegiance. I am a bigger fan of Ana at the moment, but I want to see Laura keep rising. Ultimately, the match was as good as I could have hoped as a fan of both. Ana gets the win, coming back from a set down and 2-5 down in the final set to win, 5-7 6-2 7-6 (5). It was a tight match that Laura probably let get away. Still, coming off her big upset of Agnieszka Radwanska she showed, even in defeat, why so many pundits reserve such high expectations for her career.