Nadia Podoroska celebrates a point during her match with Christina McHale Crédito: AP Photo/Andy Brownbill
Good news from Melbourne: Nadia Podoroska successfully debuted at the Australian Open. The main Argentine tennis player appeared on court 14 of Melbourne Park, and with a solid production, she defeated the American Christina McHale by 6-4, 6-4.
Already installed in the second round, the Rosario, 45th in the WTA ranking, will face the winner of the duel between the Chinese Yafan Wang and the Croatian Donna Vekic, who starts as the 28th seed.
Podoroska, que plays for the first time in the main draw of the Australian Open, was the dominant throughout the match. He totaled 22 winners, more than doubles as McHale (10), although he also finished high on the unforced error count (34-26). She could have won the match with more margin, as she led 5-2 in the second set and at that time had four match-points, but the American resisted and reduced figures. However, Podoroska did not miss the difference and managed to seal the victory in time.
“It was a good game for me, I was a little nervous at the beginning. As the games went by, I felt that she was somewhat erratic, some doubts appeared, that was why she hoped that I would err a little more. I was clear about my strategy, and when I did it, it paid off. The rest was managing my nerves and staying focused on what I had to do, “Podoroska said of her analysis of the encounter.
The rosarina comes from reaching the quarter-finals at Melbourne’s WTA 500 last week, in a contest in which she had the pleasure of eliminating the Czech Petra Kvitova, number 9 in the world ranking. On this occasion, in front of McHale, he again showed his aggressive game from the back, with rights with a lot of weight and speed.
After reaching the semi-finals of Roland Garros at the end of last year, Podoroska experienced a strong rise in the ranking (from 110 to the Top 50), which allows her to start 2021 fully installed in the main tournaments of the women’s circuit. She is the first Argentine to compete in Melbourne since the 2015 season, and the first to win a match in the main draw since 2012: that year, Paula Ormaechea came in from the standings and beat Simona Halep in three sets, then fell to the Polish Agnieszka Radwanska.
Nadia Podoroska disputes for the first time the main draw of the Australian Open Credit: William WEST / AFP
“With respect to another time that I was here to play qualifying, the big difference is that I have been playing for several days. We had two weeks of quarantine, almost always playing on the same court, with the same ball and the same conditions, and that It’s good for all the players. On that side it gives me confidence, because last week I played and I know that my ball can hurt. Around there I was more nervous today, but I was able to solve it, so I have to keep focused on what I have to do, “said Podoroska.
Like several players, Argentina commented that “now you play with another ball, which feels more alive faster. But those conditions are good for my game, so I try to keep improving. I keep concentrating more on my game. Obviously, out there I adapt something according to the rival, but I always focus on what I know I do well. “
The Rosario, who will turn 24 this Wednesday, will also participate in the Australian Open doubles event, a contest in which she will have the Romanian Irina Camelia Begu as her partner. The debut will be against the Croatian Dorija Jurak and the Serbian Nina Stojanovic.
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