Tribune News Network
Doha
Veronika Kudermetova won a nail-biter over Barbora Krejcikova in the first round of the $780,637 Qatar TotalEnergies Open, while former champions Karolina Pliskova and Elise Mertens came through qualifying at the Khalifa International Tennis & Squash Complex on Monday.
Kudermetova held off former Roland Garros champion Krejcikova 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (5) in an exciting first round.
“There were crucial moments but I am so happy to have managed to win this match. Thanks to the crowd for their support, you really helpedme,” said the Russian in her on-court interview after the win.
Kudermetova needed exactly three hours to win her second straight match against the Czech, whom she had defeated 6-3, 6-3 in the first round of Cincinnati last year.
Overall, Kudermetova leads their pro head-to-head 2-1, as well as triumphing in both of their junior encounters back in 2013.
Throughout, Kudermetova’s form was steadier. The World No.11 struck fewer winners, 27 to Krejcikova’s 41, but kept her unforced error count down to 18 compared to her opponent’s 25. Kudermetova was also rock-solid behind her first serve, winning 74% of those points.
In the home stretch, Kudermetova also remained calm in the face of an attempted comeback. The 25-year-old missed a point to hold for 5-2, and Krejcikova would ultimately force a deciding tiebreak after finding some of her best forehands of the day. But once there, Kudermetova’s groundstrokes proved less wayward, and she converted her second match point with a backhand one-two punch -- overruled as a winner after initially being called out.
Kudermetova has now won all four tiebreaks she has contested this year, and her last six dating back to Tokyo in September. She will next face either Abu Dhabi runner-up Liudmila Samsonova or wild card Sofia Kenin.
Earlier, Karolina Muchova advanced 6-2, 6-2 past Roland Garros semi-finalist Martina Trevisan in just 79 minutes. Two former champions also successfully navigated the qualifying rounds. 2017 titlist Karolina Pliskova defeated former US Open finalist Leylah Fernandez 6-2, 7-5 and 2019 winner Elise Mertens battled past Elena-Gabriela Ruse 6-4, 2-6, 6-4 to return to the main draw.
Results
Singles Round of 32
Karolina Muchova, Czech Republic, def. Martina Trevisan, Italy, 6-2, 6-2.
Veronika Kudermetova (8), Russia, def. Barbora Krejcikova, Czech Republic, 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (5).
Victoria Azarenka, Belarus, def. Ipek Oz, Turkiye, 6-1, 6-1.
Singles Qualifying
Karolina Pliskova (1), Czech Republic, def. Leylah Annie Fernandez (7), Canada, 6-2, 7-5.
Rebecca Marino, Canada, def. Marie Bouzkova (2), Czech Republic, 7-5, 6-1.
Elise Mertens (5), Belgium, def. Elena-Gabriela Ruse, Romania, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4.
Viktoriya Tomova, Bulgaria, def. Madison Brengle, United States, 6-3, 6-3.
