WTA Championships Day 3: Williams-Kvitova battle headlines a loaded day

(3)Agnieszka Radwanska v (8)Angelique Kerber (Head-to-head: Radwanska leads 5-3)

For World No. 4 Agnieszka Radwanska who’s trailing Maria Sharapova by just one point in the rankings, it was always an arduous task this year , given she was clubbed with two WTA Championships winners in the same group. Her best chance of being still in contention for the semi-finals was a triumph over 2011 winner Petra Kvitova, something she had done last year. But the Czech came out of the blocks swinging big and didn’t give the Pole much of a breathing space. Against Serena she was more intent on mixing it up and was effective for a brief period but missing a horde of break points did her in. Today is perhaps the best chance for redemption for a desperate Radwanska.

In her most recent face-off with the German No. 1 Angelique Kerber in Beijing, Radwanska came out trumps in a tight two-setter. But a week before that in Tokyo, Kerber had emerged victorious over a weary and listless Radwanska who had just come off a title run in Seoul.

This one too can go the distance given Radwanska might just face the effects of a long season that saw her winning 56 matches. Kerber couldn’t produce anything of note in her first round-robin match as she was subdued and overpowered by a ruthless Serena Williams. But in this match, she has more options if she can get her forehands going. Kerber has great defense and her lefty forehand-down-the-line caused havoc on Radwanska in Tokyo. Being more aggressive would work but the more experienced Radwanska with her myriad tricks and her ability to defuse power would want to end the year with a win.

Prediction: Radwanska wins in three sets.