Marino Begins Her March
Published September 12, 2011 11:59
QUÉBEC CITY, Canada - Fourth-seeded Rebecca Marino came out on top in a Canadian derby at the Bell Challenge on Monday, beating Stéphanie Dubois in the first round match, 62 64. The only other seed in action was No.7 Irina Falconi, who made the third round at the US Open and continued her winning ways with a 63 63 defeat of fellow American Alison Riske.
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"She didn't give me a very easy time," said 50th-ranked Marino, who sent down 14 aces and won 93 percent of points on her first serve, but nonetheless found herself down 3-0 in the second set. "I stayed positive and persevered. I'm glad I was able to get out of that little hole and finish the match off."
She added: "I always enjoy coming back here, just because it's where I got my first WTA match win a few years ago. And everyone is so nice - it kind of holds a special place in my heart."
In other opening day action, young Brit Heather Watson beat veteran Anne Kremer of Luxembourg, 62 64, and Michaella Krajicek held off Canadian wildcard Marie-Ève Pelletier, 76(1) 63. Hungarian lefty Melinda Czink, who won the title here two years ago, survived a three-setter with Germany's Kathrin Woerle, 64 16 63.
Young Americans Gail Brodsky and Ashley Weinhold secured main draw berths with wins in the final round of qualifying, as did France's Julie Coin and Russia's Elena Bovina, who was the champion here in 2002. Brodsky meets wildcard and former Canadian No.1 Aleksandra Wozniak in the first round, with the winner to bump into Marino.
"I would like Aleks to win," Marino confessed when asked about the potential match-ups. "It would be really nice just to get the both of us out there... you'd be guaranteed a Canadian through to the next round!"
The doubles competition also got underway with the upset of second-seeded Sofia Arvidsson and Marina Erakovic; they were beaten by Jamie Hampton and Anna Tatishvili in a match tie-break, 46 76(5) 108. Top seeds Raquel Kops-Jones and Abigail Spears cruised past Lauren Albanese and Madison Brengle, while Czink and Andrea Hlavackova also advanced.
Singles top seed Daniela Hantuchova plays her opener on Tuesday against 18-year-old Ajla Tomljanovic of Croatia. No.2 seed Lucie Safarova and defending champion Tamira Paszek, who is back as the No.3 seed, are also on the schedule.
Watch all the action from Québec City and Tashkent with WTA Live!
"She didn't give me a very easy time," said 50th-ranked Marino, who sent down 14 aces and won 93 percent of points on her first serve, but nonetheless found herself down 3-0 in the second set. "I stayed positive and persevered. I'm glad I was able to get out of that little hole and finish the match off."
She added: "I always enjoy coming back here, just because it's where I got my first WTA match win a few years ago. And everyone is so nice - it kind of holds a special place in my heart."
In other opening day action, young Brit Heather Watson beat veteran Anne Kremer of Luxembourg, 62 64, and Michaella Krajicek held off Canadian wildcard Marie-Ève Pelletier, 76(1) 63. Hungarian lefty Melinda Czink, who won the title here two years ago, survived a three-setter with Germany's Kathrin Woerle, 64 16 63.
Young Americans Gail Brodsky and Ashley Weinhold secured main draw berths with wins in the final round of qualifying, as did France's Julie Coin and Russia's Elena Bovina, who was the champion here in 2002. Brodsky meets wildcard and former Canadian No.1 Aleksandra Wozniak in the first round, with the winner to bump into Marino.
"I would like Aleks to win," Marino confessed when asked about the potential match-ups. "It would be really nice just to get the both of us out there... you'd be guaranteed a Canadian through to the next round!"
The doubles competition also got underway with the upset of second-seeded Sofia Arvidsson and Marina Erakovic; they were beaten by Jamie Hampton and Anna Tatishvili in a match tie-break, 46 76(5) 108. Top seeds Raquel Kops-Jones and Abigail Spears cruised past Lauren Albanese and Madison Brengle, while Czink and Andrea Hlavackova also advanced.
Singles top seed Daniela Hantuchova plays her opener on Tuesday against 18-year-old Ajla Tomljanovic of Croatia. No.2 seed Lucie Safarova and defending champion Tamira Paszek, who is back as the No.3 seed, are also on the schedule.
