Week 2 - WTA International ($235K) - Hobart, Australia Hard

Reeltime · Satellite level

RE: Week 2 - WTA International ($235K) - Hobart, Australia Hard

tony_orient · ATP qualifying

Laura does nothing with the easy volley at deuce but then nails the difficult one to take the point!

4-3 and suddenly she has a bit of momentum

daisy · County player

Well done Laura - broke back for 3-3 and held to go ahead in the 2nd set.
Another break would be very useful right now.
Shame there aren't a few more spectators but if it's really so hot that'll put a few people off going I guess.

tony_orient · ATP qualifying

Laura secures at least a tie break - she has actually won more points in the match 73 - 72

Julia Carrot · All-time great

Laura's great tiebreak record rapidly going down the pan

1 - 4*

Peter too · Tennis legend

R1: ROBSON, Laura (GBR) 53 lost to STEPHENS , SLOANE (USA) 8 38 4-6 6-7(4)

daisy · County player

Stephens wins 6'4, 7'6(4). Shame Laura couldn't win that tie-break but I guess she'll now head to Melbourne.

Julia Carrot · All-time great

Retrieved a few points but then another unforced error and it was slipping away.

She COULD have won that match and hopefully will have learnt some useful lessons from it.

blob · All-time great

so much expectation for this season with the GB ladies, been a bit of a damp squib for them all so far for one reason or another
hope they all get in to their stride at the big one

tony_orient · ATP qualifying

A double fault and a lucky return at the start of the tie-break costing Laura.

It was a fairly close match and Laura was a bit unlucky to lose in straight sets, but she started slowly and that certainly didn't help. By the second set she was playing better, but she made too many errors trying to finish off the point.

The positive that she can take from today are that she did find more form as the match progressed, and mentally she stayed in the match even when a set and a break down.

Mervatron · Masters Series Champion

Bit shocked with that loss really but Stephens is another up and coming player.

Looks like Laura needs to get with it for the Aus open.

wolf · Tennis legend

You can see Laura's full match here - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U12zV7ax8J4&list=UUVZaOfurYLhPjwaYZjMhQBg&index=28

tony_orient · ATP qualifying

They also have Laura's post match Press Conference on the YouTube site: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kprKuKAl2gk&list=UUVZaOfurYLhPjwaYZjMhQBg

They could have waited till after Laura's interview to do the hoovering - at least that's what it sounds like.

Julia Carrot · All-time great

I found that very hard to make out what she was saying with all that din in the background - but at least she was smiling quite alot.

philwrig · Hall of fame

Finally watched the whole match and was expecting a horror show given the comments that I've read in various forums. Yes there were a number of careless errors, yes she doesn't quite look match sharp and yes there doesn't seem to be any improvement in her movement around the court, but I still saw plenty to encourage me. Let's not forget that Sloane is in very good form, she only lost 4 games in her R2 match and played an in form Serena very tough last week.

Getting extra practice in Melbs for next week is a positive and she said in her press conference her results leading up to the US open last year weren't great either. Draw is critical but she has the beating of at least 2/3 of the draw even if she doesn't improve much on this week.