In the first round of Wimbledon qualifying, Lois Boisson, who advanced to the French Open semifinal, lost. Leylah Fernandez lost to Jasmine Paolini at the Homburg Open.
Tuesday’s first round of Wimbledon qualifying saw the elimination of French tennis player Lois Boisson, who had made an unexpected run to the semi-finals at Roland Garros. The 197th-ranked Canadian player Carson Branstine defeated her.
Boisson, the top French player and 65th ranked on the WTA Tour, lost her first grass-court match after almost two hours of play. Branstine prevailed 6-2, 6-7 (1/7), 6-4 at the finish of the match.
The Frenchwoman, 22, battled on grass, which is very different from her favorite clay courts, on a breezy Court 1 in Roehampton, where Wimbledon qualifying matches are played.
Boisson did not obtain an invitation from the organizers for the upcoming Grand Slam, despite her outstanding performance at the French Open earlier in June. She had thrilled the local audience as a wildcard entrant in Paris by making it to the semi-finals, upsetting sixth seed Mirra Andreeva and world number three Jessica Pegula en route.
Boisson’s Roland Garros career came to an end when American Coco Gauff defeated her and won the title.
Boisson was the first seed in Wimbledon qualifying because of her improved ranking.
Paolini Avoids the Fernandez Fear
In a thrilling round of 16 encounter at the Bad Homburg Open on Tuesday, second seed Jasmine Paolini defeated Leylah Fernandez 7-6(8) 7-6(6) after Fernandez saved four match points.
After a grueling 26-shot rally, Paolini saved a set point at 5-4 and won the first set 10-8 in a tiebreak.
When the Italian took a 5-2 lead in the second set, it appeared that she would win in straight sets, but Canadian Fernandez battled back into the match by saving a match point with an ace.
Fernandez saved all three to force another tiebreak, even though Paolini had more match points (6–5). In the breaker, Fernandez led 6-4, but Paolini hung tough, saving two set points before winning on her fifth match point.
After a two-and-a-half-hour match, Paolini won her first match on grass this season, despite only converting five of her 17 break points.
“Playing on grass is a lot of fun, but you have to get used to it and have confidence in your game; otherwise, it’s really difficult,” Paolini remarked.
“I also enjoy going on the net and performing drop volleys; it’s a lot of fun, but it can be challenging at times.
“It looks like a very slow clay court, but it was a great match, and I got my first win on grass this year after two and a half hours for two sets.”
