Wozniacki shows her steel in Istanbul win

Caroline Wozniacki gave another gritty example of why she retains a stranglehold on the world No 1 ranking with a 5-7, 6-2, 6-4 defeat of Agnieszka Radwanska in her opening match at the WTA Championships in Istanbul.

The Dane, who has spent 36 consecutive weeks on top despite failing to add a grand slam title to her CV, joined Petra Kvitova at the top of Red Group, overcoming a spirited display by her eighth-ranked Polish opponent who refused to buckle in a two-hour, 39-minute baseline battle.

Earlier, Kvitova had enjoyed a much easier 6-2, 6-4 victory against Russia’s Vera Zvonareva despite a late wobble.

The Czech left-hander, making her debut in the tournament after a memorable year which saw her win Wimbledon, was romping away with a messy match before Zvonareva staged a late rally.

From 1-4 in the second set Zvonareva broke serve twice in a row but her brief challenge soon faded as she dropped serve meekly before the new world No 3 Kvitova sealed victory with a neat angled volley.

“I was nervous because it was my first time playing at the Championships,” said Kvitova, who is the first Czech player to qualify since Jana Novotna in 1998.

Wozniacki was made to play catch-up against Radwanska who gained the initiative early with some beautifully-timed winners. Radwanska clubbed away a forehand to take a first set that lasted 64 minutes but after four consecutive breaks of serve at the start of the second she began to crumble.

With her father, Piotr, offering some animated words of wisdom at virtually every change of ends, Wozniacki reeled off four games from 2-2 to level the match and appeared to be in control in the deciding set when a stunning backhand winner to end a superb rally put her 4-2 ahead. However, she gifted the break back with a double-fault in the next game and Radwanska, who had her right shoulder taped, began to play some inspired tennis to drag herself back to 4-4.

Wozniacki squandered one match point but a tired-looking Radwanska forehand into the net at 4-5 ended a high-quality match which set the standard for the tournament.

Meanwhile, British No 1 Elena Baltacha is through to the second round of the $100,000 ITF event in Poitiers, her final tournament of the 2011 season.

Baltacha, ranked 58, beat Russia’s Valeria Savinykh 6-1, 6-1 to set up a meeting with French favourite Virginie Razzano.