Unseeded McCartney Kessler upset No. 1 seed Beatriz Haddad Maia of Brazil, 5-7, 7-6 (3), 7-5, in the first round of the Lexus Nottingham Open in Nottingham, England.
In a nearly three-hour match, Kessler — ranked No. 42 in the world — led 6-5 in the third set, then broke Haddad Maia’s serve to clinch the victory on her first match point. Kessler won 72 percent of her first-serve points and converted five of her 10 break points.
No. 8 seed Katie Boulter cruised on home soil in a quick 6-2, 6-2 victory over New Zealand’s Lulu Sun. Boulter was one of four Brits to win on Tuesday. Francesca Jones defeated countrywoman Harriet Dart 7-5, 6-4; Sonay Kartal took down France’s Leolia Jeanjean 6-3, 6-4; and Mingge Xu, a 17-year-old from Wales, surprised Katie Volynets 6-3, 6-3.
No. 6 seed Magda Linette of Poland, Rebecca Sramkova of Slovakia and Cristina Bucsa of Spain also advanced.
Berlin Tennis Open
Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic staved off No. 7 seed Madison Keys 7-5, 7-6 (6) during the first round.
Neither player broke serve in the second set until the tiebreaker, when Vondrousova ran out to a 4-0 lead. The Australian Open champion rattled off five straight points to eke ahead, but Vondrousova pulled back in front and won on her second match point.
Vondrousova, the 2023 Wimbledon champion, has plummeted in the world rankings to No. 164 amid an injury-shortened 2024 season. Her next opponent will be Russia’s Diana Shnaider, a 6-2, 6-4 winner over Croatia’s Donna Vekic.
Russia’s Liudmila Samsonova, the 2021 champion in Berlin, rallied past Naomi Osaka of Japan 3-6, 7-6 (3), 6-4. Other winners Tuesday included Amanda Anisimova, China’s Xinyu Wang and Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan.
–Field Level Media
