Viktorija Golubic fights her way into the 2nd round in Osaka.
Picture:
Keystone
Viktorija Golubic reaches the 2nd round at the WTA 250 tournament in Osaka. The Zurich native beats the Canadian Bianca Andreescu 6:3, 4:6, 6:4.
Two days before her 33rd birthday, Golubic defeated Andreescu, an opponent with whom she has very pleasant memories. The last duel, which the current world number 60 also won and tied the score at 1:1, took place three years ago in the final tournament of the Billie Jean King Cup. It was a victory with which Golubic contributed to a historic Swiss triumph. Two days later, the team led by captain Heinz Günthardt won the most important team competition in women’s tennis for the first time.
However, in Andreescu, Golubic also defeated an opponent who had reached the top of the rankings at breakneck speed. She was only 19 years old when she won the US Open six years ago as an outsider. She beat Belinda Bencic in the semi-finals and the American Serena Williams in the final. However, Andreescu also got to know the darker side of the sport. Injuries, some of them serious, and correspondingly long forced breaks set her back time and again and prevented the daughter of Romanian parents from showing off her talent. After her coup in Flushing Meadows, she had climbed to number 4 in the rankings, but is currently only ranked number 170.
The final phase in Osaka was a tough one. Golubic served for victory at 5:3 in the third set, but gave up the advantage again after breaking to 4:2 – only to clinch the match in her favor with another service break in the final game.
In the second round, Golubic will face the Czech number 5 seed Marie Bouzkova (WTA 41) or the Japanese wild card recipient Ena Shibahara (WTA 184).
