WTA Berlin: Lisicki in the semifinals, cake for partner Andreescu
In the singles there is nothing left for the German players at the WTA Tour 500 tournament in Berlin. In doubles, however, Sabine Lisicki grabs the title
by p.m
last edit:
Jun 16, 2022, 07:44 pm
Coco Gauff (USA) continues to rock the bett1open. On Thursday, she advanced to the quarterfinals of the WTA 500 tournament with a 6-0 and 6-4 win over Xinyu Wang (China). Karolina Pliskova (Czech Republic) is a very strong opponent there on Friday. Barbara Rittner, tournament director of the bett1open, says: "With her smooth, precise shots, Pliskova is also totally uncomfortable for any opponent to play on grass." Gauff herself is aware of this, which is why she was happy: "When I arrived here in Berlin , I thought I wasn't in good shape to play on grass. But now I'm stepping up. I moved a lot better today than yesterday.” The bett1open, endowed with 757,000 US dollars, will run on the LTTC “Rot-Weiss” facility until Sunday.
Incidentally, the spectators found it very pleasant that Gauff ended the duel with Wang so quickly that the fans made the pilgrimage directly from the Steffi Graf Stadium to Court One. Because there Sabine Lisicki, the only remaining German in the tournament, fought alongside Canadian Bianca Andreescu in doubles for a place in the semi-finals. What worked, and how! 7-6, 1-6 and then 10-7 in a match tiebreak against Asia Muhammad (USA) and Ena Shibahara (Japan). Lisicki converted the first match point right away - and that too on the 20th birthday of her doubles partner Bianca Andreescu. The spectators happily belted out a birthday song for her, and Barbara Rittner even gave her a birthday cake.
Ons Jabeur reaches into his bag of tricks
But back to the gripping competition in the individual. Ons Jabeur claims to be the first player from the African continent to become number one in the world of tennis. After all, she is already number one on the seeding list at the bett1open. There she won her round of 16 against Alycia Parks (USA) in straight sets 6:2 and 7:6 (10:8). Jabeur did not act flawlessly, but still presented himself strongly in the decisive moments. Barbara Rittner, the tournament director of the bett1open, is enthusiastic about the Tunisian's game - as are the spectators in the stands of the Steffi Graf Stadium. Rittner praised: “Of all the players, Ons has the biggest bag of tricks up its sleeve. You never know what will happen. Thanks to her feeling for the ball, her game is a feast for the eyes.” In the quarter-finals, Jabeur now has to deal with Aliaksandra Sasnovich.
Belinda Bencic has been waiting for a tournament victory on grass since 2015. At that time she had succeeded in Eastbourne, England. At the bett1open in Berlin, however, the Swiss Olympic champion continues to present herself in RASENd good form and continues to perform like a title candidate. Now she has reached the quarterfinals here with a 6:4, 1:6, 6:1 win against Ana Kalinskaya. In very hot, mid-summer temperatures, Bencic kept a cool head in the decisive moments and ultimately won confidently.
Gauff against Pliskova on Friday
In the last round of 16 on Thursday, Veronika Kudermetova beat Ludmila Samsonova 6:3, 6:7 and 6:1.
On Friday from 11 a.m. all four quarter-finals will be played in the Steffi Graf Stadium.
The duel between Maria Sakkari (Greece) and Daria Kasatkina will kick off. After that, Belinda Bencic expects Veronika Kudermetova. The cracker between Coco Gauff and Karolina Pliskova starts at 3 p.m. at the earliest, before the game between Ons Jabeur and Aliaksandra Sasnovich rounds off the tennis day.
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