Pliskova draws inspiration from Serena win

Dubai - The Czech fought back from a 5-1 deficit in the third set against the American

Former world number one Karolina Pliskova's stunning third set fightback against Serena Williams in her quarterfinal win was one of the highlights of the Australian Open last month.
The Czech fought back from a 5-1 deficit in the third set against the iconic American, saving four match points to reach the semifinals only to lose to the eventual champion Naomi Osaka in another three-set battle.
"I think I played some good matches. Going to the semifinal in a Grand Slam is always super positive," the world number five told reporters on the opening day of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
"I beat some good players. The matches were actually very hard, especially, of course, against Serena, then against Naomi, too. I think was a good match.
The 26-year-old player revealed what she needed to do to have another deep run at the Dubai championships.
"Well, it's going to be a tough week because so many top players are playing here. There are no easy rounds here. From the first round, it can be very tough. It's going to be important to start well," said Pliskova who reached the Dubai final in 2015.
"But I'm going to be happy if I pass my first round as I was not feeling 100 per cent. I will try to do everything to get through my first round match and then anything is possible," said Pliskova begins her campaign on Tuesday against the winner of Monday's first round match between Slovakian Dominika Cibulkova and Spanish qualifier Lara Arruabarrena.
rituraj@khaleejtimes.com