At a glance
- Anna-Lena Friedsam won the all-German affair against Jule Niemeier to reach the final round of qualifying.
- Valuable for the Porsche Talent Team’s Julia Stusek and Eva Bennemann.
- The qualifying finals will determine who fills the last four berths in the main draw which will start on Monday.
- German Tamara Korpatsch draws high-class match-ups in the first round of the main draw.
On the opening day of the Porsche Tennis, Germans Julia Stusek and Eva Bennemann from the Porsche Talent Team both missed out on advancing but gained valuable experience for their future careers. The same applied to Victoria Pohle from the local TEC Waldau Stuttgart club – she was given a qualifying wild card – who, despite putting on an excellent display, was defeated by the No. 1 seed Turk Zeynep Sonmez in her first ever WTA 500 tournament.
In her opening match, Anna-Lena Friedsam only encountered stiff opposition in the first set against her compatriot Jule Niemeier, the 2022 Wimbledon quarterfinalist before progressing to the final round of qualifying. German Julia Stusek from the Porsche Talent Team impressed at times against the No. 4 seed Aliaksandra Sasnovich but was however eventually beaten 6-1, 6-4. Her teammate Eva Bennemann made life difficult for the American Alycia Parks, especially in the first set, but went down 7-6 (1), 6-3 in the end.
The other qualifying matches also produced attractive tennis. After losing the first set, France’s Oceane Dodin overcame Kathinka von Deichmann (Liechtenstein) 6-7 (2), 6-4, 6-3. Vera Zvonareva defeated the No. 3 seed Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva from Andorra 6-3, 6-3. Viktoriya Tomova from Bulgaria beat the Frenchwoman Amandine Hesse 6-1, 6-4. The Czech Gabriela Knutson downed Clara Monnet (France) 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (6). It was evidence of just how tough competition is for the vacant places in the main draw of the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix.
High-class main draw ties
All eyes in the afternoon were on Court 2, the venue for the drawing of the main draw which has produced several potentially enthralling first round encounters in a superb field. One match of particular interest is the one between Porsche Friend Eva Lys and Paula Badosa. The Hamburg-born German, currently the world No. 75, will be up against the former world No. 2 from Spain who has received a wild card for the main draw. The duel is made all the more interesting as the two are good friends and practiced together in the Porsche Arena on Saturday.
Another exciting tie promises to be the one between Alexandra Eala from the Philippines and the Canadian Leylah Fernandez. The 20-year-old Eala caught the eye for the first time last year when reaching the semifinals of the WTA 1000 tournament in Miami. Fernandez was the runner-up at the 2021 US Open. Other first round highlights include the game between the Latvian title-holder Jelena Ostapenko and Mirra Andreeva, who comes to the Porsche Arena as the world No. 10.
From a German point of view, the first round is also full of interesting matches. Local hero Laura Siegemund, the 2017 Stuttgart winner, will start her campaign against the Pole Magdalena Frech. Tamara Korpatsch, a wild card recipient, will kick off against Diana Shnaider. Ella Seidel will face Elise Mertens, the world No. 20 from Belgium. Awaiting Noma Noha Akugue is a qualifier.
Saturday’s results
Qualification, Court 1
[4] A. Sasnovich vs [WC] J. Stusek (GER) 6-1, 6-4
[2] A. Parks (USA) vs E. Bennemann (GER) 7-6 (1), 6-3
[7] A. Friedsam (GER) vs J. Niemeier (GER) 7-5, 6-1
[1] Z. Sonmez (TUR) vs [WC] V. Pohle (GER) 6-3, 6-4
Qualifying, Court 2
O. Dodin (FRA) vs [8] K. Von Deichmann (LIE) 6-7 (2), 6-4, 6-3
V. Zvonareva vs [3] V. Jimenez Kasintseva (AND) 6-3, 6-3
[5] V. Tomova (BUL) vs A. Hesse (FRA) 6-1, 6-4
G. Knutson (CZE) vs [6] C. Monnet (FRA) 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (6)
Sunday’s order of play
Qualifying Court 1
From 11.00 am
[2] A. Parks (USA) vs [5] V. Tomova (BUL)
[1] Z. Sonmez (TUR) vs [7] A. Friedsam (GER)
Qualifying Court 2
From 11.00 am
[4] A. Sasnovich vs O. Dodin (FRA)
V. Zvonareva vs G. Knutson (CZE)
Porsche in tennis
The Porsche Tennis Grand Prix is the flagship of the Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG‘s worldwide involvement in women’s tennis. First played in 1978, the Stuttgart WTA tournament stands for tradition and innovation, just like the Porsche brand. As the most loyal sponsor of women’s international tennis, Porsche has accompanied the WTA’s oldest indoor event right from the start. Porsche has also been a premium partner of the ‟Deutsche Tennis Bund” (DTB – German Tennis Association) since 2012 and is committed to fostering up-and-coming players in the Porsche Talent Team.
