Jesika Struplova beat Polona Hercog 7-6, 6-2 at the WTA 125k in Ljubljana, edging a tight opening set in a tiebreak before pulling clear on return. Struplova won 31 receiver points to Hercog's 18 and converted two breaks to her opponent's one.
Struplova broke for 4-2 in the sixth game of the first set, but Hercog broke straight back at 4-5 in the ninth to force the tiebreak, which the Czech took. In the second set Struplova broke again in game three at 1-2 and once more in game seven at 2-5, while saving all three break points she faced.
The decisive number was the second-serve return: Struplova won 14 of 26 points (53%) behind Hercog's second delivery, against 6 of 19 (31%) the other way. Hercog hit all three aces of the match and saved five of six break points in the second set, but she could not hold on.