The slippery Pole

May 2009 | by Ross Hudson

Agnieszka RadwanskaAgnieszka Radwanska was already closing in on the world's top 10 when she arrived at Devonshire Park in 2008, and shocked many by cruising to the final before a topsy-turvy final success over Nadia Petrova.

The Polish teenager was a surprise semi-finalist and was anticipated to bow out graciously in the final four to resurgent French ace Marion Bartoli. But Radwanska pulled off an impressive 7-5, 6-3 triumph to march into the Eastbourne final.

With Russian powerhouse Petrova standing between Radwanska's biggest title triumph, the Pole's never-say-die attitude resulted in a thrilling final after she fluffed tournament points to register victory in straight sets.

Petrova nicked the second set on a rollercoaster ride of a tiebreak, with 13 proving lucky with a 13-11 win. But the tenacious teenager bounced back to take the tournament title and make it four wins in as many WTA Tour finals by serving out the final set after just one break of serve in the ninth game.

Agnieszka RadwanskaRelieved to see off Petrova in her only tough match of the week, Radwanska said: " I heard some Polish accents in the crowd, calling out support for me. There does seem to be a lot of Polish people in Eastbourne, especially in restaurants as most staff seem to be Polish."

But Radwanska proved to be a popular winner with the majority of fans, not just the local Polish population. Although she doesn't possess any big shots in her repertoire to potentially dominate opponents.

Experts have compared her style to ex-world no1 Martina Hingis for her uncanny ability to read the game and play just about every shot in the book.

And although in recent times the reigning Eastbourne champion has gone on to win the US Open - Svetlana Kuznetsova in 2004, Kim Clijsters in 2005 and Justine Henin in 2007 - Radwanska was outclassed by Venus Williams in the fourth round. And she was beaten by the other Williams sister, Serena, at 2008 Wimbledon.

But the Polish ace is no fool and achieved some notable scalps at grand slam events, including Maria Sharapova (2007 US Open),  Kuznetsova (2008 Australian Open and 2008 Wimbledon), and became the first Polish woman to reach the world's top 10.

Agnieszka RadwanskaHowever, 2009 has been much tricker as Radwanska is no longer an unknown quantity. Although most defeats have been at the hands of the big stars who are ranked higher than her. 

And two defeats this year stand out, a first round loss to Kateryna Bondarenko at the Australian Open followed by an opening round reversal in Dubai to younger sister and qualifier Urszula - although whether that was a major disappointment is debatable.

"I've been practicing for 14 years already, with my sister," said Radwanska after capturing the Eastbourne title. And asked whether Urszula be as good as her, she snapped: "She's trying to be."

When asked whether she would prefer be a multi-millionairess or win Wimbledon, Radwanska paused before her clever return of words revealed: "Well if I win Wimbledon I will be a multi-millionairess!"

There does seem to be a lot of Polish people in Eastbourne, especially in restaurants

- Agnieszka Radwanska