If I insult someone to the point of where they physically attack me, they're still completely liable, criminally and civilly, for battery. And if I beat the crap outta that person, even though I egged him into the fight, I could claim self defense easily.
In certain situations, it doesn't matter how you're provoked. In this situation, she was on a public street and was grabbed by a man with a hundred pounds on her. Doesn't matter how she provoked him, she had a right to defend herself.