Two Porsche Team Germany players have progressed to the last round of qualifying at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix - Annika Beck and Mona Barthel. Both have to win once more on Monday to capture a place in the strong main draw field at the long-standing Stuttgart tour-nament.
Annika Beck, 20, was taken to three sets by the Czech Republic’s Eva Birnerova before win-ning 6-0, 1-6, 6-3 and was then followed into the qualifying finals by Mona Barthel. The Ger-man comfortably beat compatriot Antonia Lottner, a member of the Porsche Talent Team Germany, 6-1, 6-2. Currently the world No. 85, she will play Croatian Alja Tomljanovic for a main draw berth. Annika Beck will now face Katerina Vankova in the final round of qualifying after the Czech defeated Anna-Lena Friedsam to prevent an all-German qualifying final. The 20-year old Porsche Talent Team Germany player lost 1-6, 6-4, 7-6 (4) to Vankova despite being 3-0 up in the third set. Annika Beck, the number 2 seed in qualifying and world ranked No. 49, will go into the match on Monday against Vankova (No. 287) as the favourite.
The two other finals for the right to compete alongside the world’s top players in the main draw will be between the Latvian Diana Marcinkevica and Katerina Siniakova (Czech Repub-lic) and Giola Barbieri (Italy) against Johanna Konta. The Briton had to go the full distance – 6-7 (4), 6-2, 6-4 – to get past the German Anna Zaja.
