TENERIFE/STARNBERG, October 17, 2021
Tenerife, the largest and most populous island of the Canary Islands, welcomes the players of the WTA Tour for the inaugural Tenerife Ladies Open this week. The WTA 250 hard-court event, organized by MEF Tennis Events, is being held at the Abama Tennis Academy in Guía de Isora, a municipality in the western part of the island.
Four players earned a spot in the main draw after Sunday’s final round of qualifying. Donna Vekic battled past Ysaline Bonaventure of Belgium 6-2, 4-6, 6-1 in two hours and two minutes. The 25-year-old Croatian will face No. 8 seed Alison Riske from the United States in the first round.
“It was a tough match but I knew it was going to be tough, because I have already lost to her two times,” Vekic said. “Even when I won the first set, I knew it was far from over and I had to keep fighting. I am happy that I found a good level in the third set again and managed to win.”
Vekic is experiencing a tough season, as she needed to undergo a knee surgery after the Australian Open. “I am still trying to recover. It has been a tough last couple of months. I was trying to find rhythm, trying to find wins. I hope that I can finish the year by winning a couple of more matches and to be in good position for the next season,” the World No. 99 said.
In other action, Aliona Bolsova Zadoinov of Spain caused the upset of the day by knocking out qualifying top seed and 96th-ranked Kaja Juvan of Slovenia 4-6, 7-6(6), 7-6(5) after nearly three hours of play. The World No. 178 will next challenge No. 4 seed Camila Giorgi of Italy.
Mandy Minella of Luxemburg, Romanian Jaqueline Adina Cristian, Stefanie Voegele from Switzerland and Chinese Xinyu Wang also earned main draw berths.
El #tenerifeladiesopen se despierta con Camila #Giorgi ☀️ @WTA | #meftennisevents pic.twitter.com/pscujOHEP3
— MEF tennis events (@meftennisevents) October 17, 2021
Tenerife Ladies Open – Sunday Results
Donna Vekic d. Ysaline Bonaventure 6-2 4-6 6-1
Jaqueline Cristian d. Lesley Pattinama Kerkhove 6-3 6-2
Xinyu Wang d. Anna Bondar 6-1 6-3
Stefanie Voegele d. Kirsten Flipkens 6-3 7-6(7)
