WTA Gdynia: 3:55 hours marathon match, Tamara Korpatsch in the semifinals
Ekaterine Gorgodze and Kristina Kucova pounded the yellow felt balls around their ears for almost four hours at the WTA clay court tournament in Gdynia (Poland). The German Tamara Korpatsch is in the semifinals.
by Stefan Bergmann
last edit: Jul 23, 2021, 08:05 pm
Those who wanted to see this match from start to finish really needed a seat: In the quarter-finals of the WTA Tour 250 event in Gdynia, Poland, the Georgians Ekaterina Gorgodze and the Slovakian Kristina Kucova matched an incredible 3:55 hours for a semifinal ticket. In the end, the 31-year-old from Bratislava was the winner with 6: 7 (4), 7: 6 (7), 7: 6 (3). The two played a total of 299 points in just under four hours and together made 43 breakballs.
Kucova even had to fend off four match points in the second round in order to get into the round of the last four with all his strength and nerve exertion. The two fighters outbid the longest women's match of the year to date by four minutes. At the WTA 1000 tournament in Rome, the Spaniard Sara Sorribes Tormo and the Italian Camila Giorgi played a total of 3:51 hours, which in the end the Iberian with 7: 6 (4), 6: 7 (7) and 7: 5 could win.
Second WTA semifinals for Korpatsch
Overall, the clash between Kucova and Gorgodze is the fifth longest WTA match in the history of the Open era. The two share the rank with Kerry Reid and Pam Teeguarden, who tested their shoes and rackets for just as long at the 1972 French Open. The longest women’s match is and remains the legendary game between Vicky Nelson-Dunbar and Jean Hepner. They faced each other in Richmond in 1984 for 6:31 hours and played a 29-minute rally in which the yellow felt ball passed the net tape 643 times.
From a German point of view, however, there is also a great success to report from the Bay of Danzig: Tamara Korpatsch has reached the semifinals with a two-sentence win over Anna Bondar. The Hamburger defeated the Hungarian after 1:52 hours of play 7: 5 and 6: 3. And Korpatsch will most likely go into tomorrow's game more rested, as she will meet the previously sung about Kristina Kucova. For Korpatsch it is the second semifinal participation on the WTA Tour level after Lausanne 2019.