Barthel bounces Kuznetsova from waterlogged Lugano

LUGANO, Switzerland - It took over three days, but Germany's Mona Barthel finally finished off a three-set victory over No.5 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova at the Samsung Open presented by cornèr on Thursday, advancing to the second round with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory.

Though the match first appeared on the order of play on Monday, rainy conditions over the first four days in Lugano ensured that the pair did not get on court until Wednesday, where they played two-and-a-half sets.

After play was again spoiled by rain on Wednesday with the German trailing 4-3 on serve in the decider, the World No.68 finished with a flourish upon resumption, winning all three games and 12 of the 14 points played. 

“Today I got out there and I felt sharp from the beginning," Barthel said after the match. "That was the key because you can't change the weather or the conditions. The courts were really good today, despite all the rain. It was a good match for me."

With a nod to the conditions on court, it was an unsettled beginning to the match on Wednesday as it began with six straight breaks of serve.

Though Kuznetsova fell behind each time, the two-time Grand Slam champion was the first to stamp her authority on the match.

The Russian won the last three games of the set from 4-4, pocketing her first set in three matches played since she returned from an injury break at Indian Wells.

Read more: Kuznetsova recovering from injury and planning for future

"[The delays] are always difficult, of course, because you lose a little bit the rhythm of the match. It is what it is, it’s tricky conditions," she added.

"There’s been a lot of rain here – but I’m really relaxed about it as I’ve got nothing else to do! I want to play tennis so whenever the rain stops I’m ready."

However, Barthel bounced back in the second set, after digging out of a 0-40 hole to begin it. The German secured the lone break of set two in the sixth game, and dropped just one point in her next two service games to send the match to a decider.

The German No.5 begins her clay court season this week in Lugano, after a strong showing on the terre battue a year ago.

Last season, Barthel won her fourth career title at the J&T Banka Prague Open as a qualifier and also reached the third round in Rome, where she lost to eventual champion Elina Svitolina.

Up next, she will face Croatia's Donna Vekic, who defeated qualifier Alexandra Cadantu on Wednesday, 6-0, 7-5,

“It's a little bit funny because at the beginning of my career I preferred hard court – indoor hard court, actually. Then it changed a little bit and last year I had a really good clay court season," Barthel said. 

"It's what I grew up in the summer, so that helps and I feel comfortable on it. I looked forward to it this year, even though I have a lot of points to defend, which adds some pressure. I just try to enjoy myself and play some good tennis.”