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11 October 2015 Ana Ivanovic vs Camila Giorgi

Page history last edited by Vassago 8 years, 5 months ago

TENNIS BOXING FROM TOKYO

Posted by Vassago on October 11, 2015, 10:26 am

Event: Pan Pacific Open
Venue: Ariake Coliseum
Location: Tokyo, Kanto Region, Japan

BEFORE: The Italian women tennis circuit still dwells on the US Open final where veterans Flavia Pennetta and Roberta Vinci defied all the odds securing the nation's first WTA Grand Slam title but Macerata-born Camila Giorgi wants to let everyone know that's the future of the game: "Flavia wrote herself into the record books and Roberta's upset of Serena Williams will be remembered for decades but looking ahead I can see myself on top of the charts as well! Ana Ivanovic's been there and done that yet she's almost too old to become successful anymore! And I'll prove that by knocking her out tonight!"

Calling a 27 year Ivanovic "too old" sounds pretty naive however the Serbian has not tasted Grand Slam success since her lone triumph in Roland Garros back in 2008 and she's made more headlines hooking up with football (soccer) world champion Bastian Schweinsteiger lately than through her tennis results. However with Serena Williams calling the season a day, Maria Sharapova getting injured and long-time nemesis Jelena Jankovic struggling for results, she's destined to return to the spotlight of the game even if she's forced to soak up the verbal abuse from the Italian newcomer.

Camila Giorgi wears a floral violet & green schemed bikini and red gloves. Blonde hair tied in a high ponytail. Ana Ivanovic wears a red bikini set and black gloves. Black hair tied in a loose braid. The fight is scheduled for ten rounds in the welterweight division.

Round 1:
Ivanovic's well known for her offensive approach but there's no other ultra aggressive woman on WTA tour like Giorgi who's always "all guns blazing" and never applies any defensive tactics to her presence. She gives away several inches on the tall Serbian but rips into her midsection seconds into the fight and forces Ana into quick retreat and a mid distance response. Footwork comes to the fore for the blonde who ducks underneath a high hooking swing and keeps thumping the brunette's midriff to make Ana squeal in discomfort thereafter; the facial assault is limited and Giorgi's keen to freeze her opponent out through a repeated body stalking which works really well in the opening round. Since Camila's a newcomer on the boxing scene, Ana doesn't know much about her and remains on the back foot learning the blonde's tactics the hard way. She doesn't look much concerned though and the Tokyo crowd awaits when she unloads the vastly superior reach to tame the Italian fury; still Giorgi smacks the brunette's ribs in confident fashion and pumps herself up during the interval refusing to even sit down on her stool.

Round 2:
More midsection clubbing gives Camila the early advantage and Ana keeps missing the high response which enables the smaller girl to dominate the opening minute thanks to superior precision and the ammount of her attacks. Ivanovic has to seek respite in open field but is bullied around by the blonde who doesn't hold anything back and seems keen to deliver the knockout punch at every moment available. The efforts to wear Giorgi down at this stage are too premature so Ana has to live with the high tempo stalking and only uses the longer reach to keep the aggressive opponent at bay before checking her up with single hand leather on the cheeks. Camila ducks low again and harpoons the liver area but jumps away just as Ana was set to knock her cold with a huge uppercut; another miss in close range has the Serbian scowling in anger but Giorgi silences her with a late flurry of jabs on the breadbasket and Ivanovic wobbles against the turnbuckle right at the bell looking puzzled for the first time tonight when the Italian gives her a long stare before turning back to her corner.

Round 3:
A series of serviceable jabs marks Ivanovic's return to this fight just as Giorgi begins to swing & miss worryingly often in the opening round to cease the early advantage. The taller of the two girls easily enforces the long awaited mid distance approach and buries her shots straight into the blonde's face slowing her down even further. Camila seeks another offensive jump to close her opponent down but eats too many of the Serbian leather to make it happen and is bumped off on her heels after an improved response that has Ivanovic clubbing her face almost without any resistance in the second minute. Like it or not, Giorgi has to circle back but she's agile enough to avoid getting trapped on the ropes; Ana outworks her with more meancing swings and allthough she doesn't score as many punches on target as before, she's certainly caught the Italian's attention now.

Round 4:
Giorgi's one-dimensional tactics brings her more success in the opening minute when she clubs the brunette's ribcage but she fails to escape a punishing reply upstairs that has Ivanovic working the looping drill to sink the blonde on her heels after a well timed series catches her on the temples. The Italian winces in pain for the first time tonight but more importantly almost loses her footing in a desperate effort to escape the heat and is whacked across the mouth on the follow up. That makes Ivanovic really vocal in her pursuit and she keeps swinging upstairs to bump the blonde into a tight earmuff cover. Both women trade leather in the middle of the ring but Camila's always destined to come up short in mid distance and she's fortunate enough not to get pounded back to the corner when Ana gasses out in her efforts come the last thirty seconds of the round. Still, the former Grand Slam champion is back in this fight and shutting down Giorgi's ulltra aggressive display.

Round 5:
Camila tries to resume the ribcage pounding but is caught on the top of her forehead just as she closed right within the brunette's striking range. She wobbles on her heels and eats a quick left hook on the mouth that squashes her lips and makes her gurgle for air. Ana whacks a right hand on the breadbasket and moves into snapping the blonde's ponytail around her neck after the guard gets badly exposed in the proccess. Giorgi can't avoid the ropes anymore struggling for balance and she has to soak up a huge pressure from the vocal brunette who groans as she drives more looping hooks that find the temples. Camila sinks on her knees and is rooted to the spot but can't tame the barrage from the back foot and remains buried deep butt-in-ropes as Ana launches that massive arm span into her favor and digs repeated punches on the face come the final minute bruising the brave blonde rather badly... Giorgi is slapped back & forth on her feet and now the rookie begins to truly feel the heat as she is dumped on the turnbuckle with eyes closed at the bell having been thoroughly worked over by a superior opponent. She doesn't give Ana another mean look this time whereas the brunette punches the air in delight for the first time tonight having undone all the blonde's work from the opening two rounds.

Round 6:
Giorgi simply has to bide some time now as she's under a constant pressure from her opponent; those facial punches surely made the Italian think better of it but she's unable to dominate the ducking & weaving game and is swiftly pounded back to the ropes again with Ana flying in with more leather abuse. Camila's ponytail begins to swirl around repeatedly and she bellows out into another deep earmuff seemingly unable to find a 'Plan B' now that her aggressive stalking has been fully neutralised by the older opponent. Ana leans on her and digs more shots upstairs to expose the guard even further but she only channels the knockout option when she buries a left/right series around the elbows and pierces the midriff to make the Italian scowl in pain. The pillar-to-post beating eventually drops Camila's arms to protect the aching midsection but a quick uppercut change shuts her eyes and enables Ana to crash into her face with more bruising reality, the bell saving Giorgi from a looming demise...

Round 7:
Ana sets up the home runner and is helped by the fact Camila doesn't have much left in her quality & physically-wise. She wanders back to center of the ring only to get caught with another vicious series on the cheeks and is immediately whipped on her heels whereas Ivanovic bumps her into the ropes moments later with another drilling combo on the nose... the blonde ponytail begins to swing around one more time and Camila's unable to tame the onslaught, her arms are dropped low and barely protect her breasts opening a highway for the brunette's punching skills... the Italian's head is knocked around without any resistance come the minute mark and when the battered girl screams out it's almost all over, she slumps onto the ropes and has to grab one of them in order to stay upright and turns to the side spitting out her mouthguard in the proccess... Ana wants to nuke her one last time to add to the misery but ref charges in and hauls her off the wounded prey... he gives Giorgi a quick five count but notices the hollow look in her eyes and stops the bout on the spot, the brave Italian doesn't even protest the call and walks back to her corner staring at the canvas... TKO7 Ana Ivanovic!!!

AFTER: This was a solid return to the ring for the former Roland Garros champion who simply mauled the Italian newcomer into a stoppage victory. Some die-hard Ivanovic fans would have liked to see a jaw-dropping knockout instead but at the end of the day, every single pro athlete will take the 'W' home. Ana does indeed look really happy with that result and dwells on the Ariake Coliseum support sporting that recognizeable smile that every WTA fan is aware of. Now that she's shrugged off the rust, it's gonna be really curious where the 27 year old from Belgrade goes next? It's too early to predict that here in Tokyo.

Meanwhile Camila slumps down on her stool and needs an ice pack to address all the bruising. She looks annoyed more than disappointed and stares down at the victorious Serbian without a single word before exiting the ring and heading straight back to the locker room. The Italian rarely shows any emotions on the tennis court and her ice cold demeanour is transferred to the boxing ring as well. Despite swallowing the bitter pill of defeat, she looked impressive out there in the early rounds and her trigger happy, near suicidal style will see her getting more action in the future for granted. It's a sharp contrast to the endless defence of the likes of Caroline Wozniacki or Jelena Jankovic and the recent WTA polls indicate the fans prefer the baseliners over the counterpunchers hand over the proverbial fist. That's a good sign for Camila and her entourage.

Final result: Ana Ivanovic def. Camila Giorgi TKO7.