Agnieszka Radwańska Courtesy of Agnieszka Radwańska

Urszula and Agnieszka Radwańska were both knocked out of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, California in the same stage last week. Urszula, who is currently ranked 37th in the WTA rankings, had the toughest match as she faced top seed and defending champion Victoria Azarenka. The Belarusian was in complete control for most of the match, making 80 percent of her first serves in a fantastic display, allowing her to win comfortably, 6-4, 6-1.

Urszula’s defeat was somewhat expected, given the quality of her opponent. But her sister, who was seeded third, was expected to handily dispatch with Maria Kirilenko, ranked 15th in the WTA rankings.

The 24-year-old, who made the Wimbledon final last year, has been in mixed form so far this year and she came out of the blocks slowly in this matchup, losing six games in a row after winning the opening game. Ms Radwańska rallied in the second set, securing the only break to win 6-4 and level the match at 1-1. But her 26-year-old opponent proved too strong in the final set, winning 7-5 to secure a major upset and leave Ms Radwańska contemplating another defeat.

“Every time we play against each other it’s so difficult. You know every time it seems like deja vu, the score is the same, everything the same,” Ms Kirilenko told reporters after the match.

“Just today I was a little bit more lucky. I mean I lost to her for like the last four times I think. So it was kind of a similar match, like previous ones. I’m happy that I won.”

David Ingham