11/11/2020 17:01
Clarín.com
sports
Updated 11/11/2020 17:01
A month after her dream step at Roland Garros, Nadia Podoroska returned to the courts.
And she did it with a victory at the WTA tournament in Linz, Austria.
Rosario, sixth favorite and 48th in the world, defeated Romanian
Irina Camelia Begu
6-4 6-4
(76th) and advanced to the round of 16 of the International category tournament, which will be the last of her great season .
In that instance, she will face - this Thursday, at 10.30 in Argentina - the Italian
Camila Giorgi
, 75th in the ranking.
Podoroska - who spent two dreamy weeks in Paris, where she reached the semifinals of a Grand Slam for the first time after having passed qualification - needed an hour and 45 minutes to overcome Begu, who is her doubles partner.
The duo will also play this Thursday for the pass to the semis of the couples competition before the Czechs
Lucie Hradecka
and
Katerina Siniakova
.
The Argentine came out to pressure from the beginning of the match and went ahead 3-1 with a break.
Then the Romanian recovered and managed to equalize the score 3-3.
But Podoroska continued to play aggressive tennis, again breaking his rival's serve and going ahead 5-4.
In the next game, he had to lift three break points against before closing the set.
. @ nadiapodoroska moves 🔛
She takes it, 6-4, 6-4 over Begu at #WTALinz 🇦🇹 pic.twitter.com/hc46CjRvNK
- wta (@WTA) November 11, 2020
Begu didn't give up, breaking first in the second set and forcing Podoroska to fight her from below.
Rosario did it without problems.
First he recovered the break and equalized the set 3-3.
And then he took the reins of the party, which closed solidly.
Her next rival will be Giorgi, an Italian with Argentine roots (she is the daughter of a former Falklands War fighter) who defeated the Spanish
Sara Sorribes
in her debut 6-3, 5-7 and 6-4
.
Podoroska was left with the only duel they played in the past on the WTA circuit, in the round of 16 in Moscow 2016.
To eighths!
😁😁😁 @ WTALinz pic.twitter.com/SasBdMRBiJ
- Nadia Podoroska (@nadiapodoroska) November 11, 2020
The Linz tournament, which is played on indoor hard courts, marked Rosario's return to action after an unforgettable Roland Garros.
In the French Grand Slam, she started from qualifying, scored eight consecutive victories - including one in the quarterfinals against
Elina Svitolina
, world number five - and said goodbye in the semis against the Polish
Iga Swiatek
, who was later crowned champion.
Argentina thus became the first player in the history of the tournament who, after emerging from the classification, managed to get among the four best in the main draw.
His time in Paris, in addition to giving him a great boost of confidence and allowing him to take his tennis to a new level, allowed him to climb 83 places in the ranking - he went from 131 to 48 - and to get into the top 50 for the first time. .
FK