GRAN CANARIA, August 1, 2024
Lena Papadakis continued her fine run of form in Maspalomas by reaching the quarterfinals of the ITF W100 DISA Gran Canaria on Thursday. The 25-year-old German, who battled through the qualifying draw of the clay-court event, edged out No. 5 seed Leolia Jeanjean of France 7-5, 6-2.
Papadakis sent down four aces and capitalized on six of her nine break-point opportunities to secure victory in one hour and 44 minutes.
“I like the heat and when the balls are bouncing high. It’s fun to play here in these sunny conditions,” said the World No. 646, who arrived on Saturday and is feeling comfortable during her first visit to Gran Canaria. “We took the bus to Maspalomas and had a walk on the beach. It wasn’t as crowded as I thought it would be. It’s really nice here and the people are very friendly.”
Papadakis, who likes to walk and listen to true crime podcasts in her free time, is based in Berlin and practices at the LTTC Rot-Weiss. She is coached by her husband Christopher, who also travels with her on tour. Despite losing in the first round of qualifying to Rebeka Masarova at the Berlin Ladies Open that was hosted by her home club, the WTA 500 event in June remains one of the highlights of her season so far. “I faced a tough opponent but it was a fantastic experience, playing on grass is always special,” she said.
Papadakis: Focus has shifted to doubles
“In general, I am pleased with my season. My focus has shifted to doubles. That’s where I can enter bigger tournaments. That’s why my singles ranking has dropped and I need to play more of the smaller events. However, I am open and excited about what is yet to come.”
Papadakis, who is sitting on a career-high doubles ranking of World No. 149, is currently building a team with US-American Jessie Aney. Both are also competing in Gran Canaria, where they have already reached the semi-finals.
“We know each other from the club in Berlin. We plan our tournaments together and it works out very well,” Papadakis said. “That’s a great thing because it’s often difficult to find the right partner.”
What are the tandem’s goals? “We want to climb up the rankings as high as possible, trying to compete in the Grand Slam tournaments.”
Next up for Papadakis in singles at the ITF W100 DISA Gran Canaria will be No. 4 seed Nuria Parrizas-Diaz of Spain, who beat Italian teenager Giorgia Pedone 6-2, 6-2 in one hour and 13 minutes.
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Top two seeds remain solid
Meanwhile, the top two seeds from Spain advanced to the quarterfinals without dropping a set. Jessica Bouzas Maneiro defeated Seone Mendez of Australia 6-3, 6-2 in one hour and 17 minutes. “I am happy with my performance today and hope to continue like this,” the tournament’s No. 1 seed said afterwards.
Bouzas Maneiro will next play sixth favourite Polina Kudermetova of Russia, who was a 6-1, 6-4 winner over Swiss Jil Teichman.
No. 2 seed Marina Bassols Ribera, who finished runner-up to Julia Grabher in Maspalomas last year, remained untroubled against Dutch qualifier Demi Tran. The World No. 119 broke her rival’s serve five times to prevail 6-0, 6-3 in 66 minutes.
“I played well today. It was tough to close out the second set but I went point by point. I am very happy to be here again and I gained more confidence,” said Bassols Ribera, who opposes eighth-seeded Croatian Lea Boskovic in her upcoming match.
Spaniard Andrea Lazaro Garcia and Fanni Stollar from Hungary round out the final eight.
