WTA Bad Homburg: Angelique Kerber gives Petkovic a difficult start
Angelique Kerber made the draw for the WTA tournament in Bad Homburg - and Andrea Petkovic and Laura Siegemund did not give the easiest opening tasks.
by PM / tennisnet
last edit: Jun 20, 2021, 08:52 am
A radiant Wimbledon winner, a unique trophy - and a lot of anticipation for the long-awaited premiere of the Bad Homburg Open: a day before the start of the new lawn event, a touch of Wimbledon wafted through the historic spa gardens.
On Saturday afternoon, tournament ambassador Angelique Kerber trained on the neat facility for the first time - and was enthusiastic about the atmosphere: “The result of hard months of preparation is visible, and it makes me very happy. I was there from the start and involved in the planning. I saw how much heart and soul was invested, especially in this challenging time that we all had to go through, ”said the three-time Grand Slam winner, who braved the humid temperatures at a photo shoot in front of the TC Bad Homburg clubhouse and a little later carried out the draw at the Francois Blanc casino.
Kerber meets a qualifier in the first round. A total of eight players still have the chance to qualify for the main draw on Sunday. Including Anna Zaja (29) from Sigmaringen and the two young German hopes Nastasja Schunk (17) from Mainz and Julia Middendorf (18) from Vechta.
Another highly talented player received a wild card from the organizer and a difficult lot in round one: Mara Guth from Usingen is playing against 24-year-old Nadia Podoroska. The Argentine is currently in 40th place in the world rankings and surprisingly reached the semi-finals at the French Open in Paris last year.
Mara Guth is looking forward to her lawn premiere
For 17-year-old Mara Guth it will be the first match in a grass tournament. A special task in front of a local backdrop in Hesse. Once in motion, Angelique Kerber pulled off the next interesting match: 33-year-old Laura Siegemund from Filderstadt meets Grand Slam winner Sloane Stephens. The American won the US Open in New York's Arthur Ashe Stadium in 2017 and is currently 67th in the world rankings.
A real highlight awaits all German tennis fans in the quarter-finals: Angelique Kerber could meet her good friend Andrea Petkovic in the round of the last eight. The Darmstadt native will face Sorana Cirstea in the opening match at her home game in Hesse. The Romanian is number six in the first edition of the Bad Homburg Open. The game between the local hero and Cirstea will be the first "top game of the day" (Sunday 6:00 pm) on the Center Court of the TC Bad Homburg in the beautiful spa gardens.
Kerber is particularly curious about the setting at the premiere of this “very special” event for her: “I am very happy that we can receive spectators in Bad Homburg. And I'm excited to see what kind of feedback the fans will give us during the week. ”Very important to the 2018 Wimbledon winner is the feel-good factor in the spa gardens, where the first tennis court was set up on the mainland in 1876. "I want everyone to feel good - players and fans," emphasized the 33-year-old.
Top player Simona Halep has to retire
There was one downer shortly before the start of the tournament: Simona Halep had to cancel her participation due to persistent calf problems. The world number three from Romania had already trained several times on the facility in the past few days. “I'm very disappointed and sad about not being able to take part in the Bad Homburg Open,” said the two-time Grand Slam winner, who was full of praise for the atmosphere: “It's really beautiful here, the conditions are excellent , and I really enjoyed my time in Bad Homburg. "