Peng Proceeds, Govortsova Goes in Opener

Top seed Peng Shuai, No.3 seed Sorana Cirstea and No.6 seed Monica Niculescu all won their first round matches at the Tashkent Open on Tuesday. But there was disappointment for local fans as Akgul Amanmuradova, seeded seventh, fell.
 
On paper at least, the biggest upset of the day was No.2 seed Olga Govortsova's loss to Ksenia Palkina, a qualifier from Kyrgyzstan who showed great maturity to defeat the Belarusian 76(5) 46 75. Palkina, 18, recovered from a break down in the decider to clinch the match against the world No.44 after more than two-and-a-half hours. 
 
"I'm really stunned with my win, I went to the court to win and I believed in myself," said Palkina, who is currently ranked No.203.
 
"At 1-3 in the third set I felt that I would lose, but the crowds cheered for me and I knew I had to win and it all changed from that moment. It's my first upset on the WTA Tour and at my favorite event too," she added.
 
Amanmuradova, runner-up at the Tashkent Open three years ago, was disheartened by her 76(5) 63 loss to 17-year-old Urszula Radwanska, the 2007 junior Wimbledon champion. "I'm frank in telling you that I could not handle the pressure of my country people, I had my chances at 3-1 in the tie-break, but could not take it," the 24-year-old said. "I'm angry at myself; at this level it is a crime to lose such an advantage."
 
But for Radwanska, who lost in the second round to Serena Williams at this year's Wimbledon, the win was a breakthrough as she seeks to emulate elder sister Agnieszka.
 
"It's always difficult to play a star in their country, but I've watched Akgul playing Agnieszka in Rome earlier, and I'd made a plan to play her," Radwanska said. The Polish teen said breaking Amanmuradova's difficult serve in the very first game made it easier for her to handle it for the rest of the match.
 
Peng defeated Arina Rodionova 64 61, Cirstea scraped past Ekaterina Dzehalevich of Belarus 76(4) 75, while Niculescu's path was cleared when Olga Savchuk retired early in the second set of their match.