Tennis-Teenager Andreeva ousts Tauson in three sets for Bad Homburg quarter-final spot
BAD HOMBURG, Germany, June 25 (Reuters) - Third seed Mirra Andreeva survived a first set slip-up to battle past Denmark's Clara Tauson 3-6 6-3 6-1 on Wednesday for a spot in the Bad Homburg Open quarter-finals. HT Image
With Wimbledon starting on Monday, Russian teenager Andreeva got a 109-minute workout on grass against the big-serving world number 23 before racing through the third set.
"I knew this match would be tough. This was the fourth time we played this season. This year we have played on every surface," Andreeva said
"I just tried to stay calm -- I don't know if I managed -- and fight for every point. I just fight."
Andreeva, seventh in the world, found herself in trouble when she was broken in the seventh game with power baseliner Tauson going on to win the first set.
The Russian, who kept punching her thigh in frustration throughout the match, initially had trouble controlling the Dane's powerful and accurate serve but did earn her first break of the match to go 4-2 up in the second set and level.
She did not have to wait long for another break and she got three in a row to cruise through the third set.
She will next face Czech Linda Noskova, who ousted Donna Vekic of Croatia, a Wimbledon semi-finalist last year, 2-6 6-2 6-4.
Russia's Ekaterina Alexandrova battled past Maria Sakkari in three sets to book her quarter-final spot where she will face fourth-seed Iga Swiatek of Poland.
The world number 18 broke the Greek once in the first set but it was enough to win it 6-3.
Both players held serve with Sakkari improving her own to level after a successful tiebreak. But she failed to convert any of her eight break points throughout the match and conceded the third set to Alexandrova who unleashed a total of 13 aces.
Beatriz Haddad Maia needed five match points before subduing Ukraine's seventh-seed Elina Svitolina 3-6 6-4 7-6(7) in a tight match, with the Brazilian next facing Italian second seed Jasmine Paolini. (Reporting by Karolos Grohmann, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
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