Australian Ellen Perez defeats world No.101 Tamara Korpatsch to qualify at a WTA 500 tournament in China.
Zhengzhou, China, 9 October 2023 | Leigh Rogers
Zhengzhou, China
Ellen Perez has qualified for the singles event at a WTA 500 tournament in Zhengzhou.
The 27-year-old Australian secured her spot in the main draw with a 6-4 5-7 6-4 victory against world No.101 Tamara Korpatsch in the final qualifying round.
“I felt like I did a good job to kind of get the better of her in the first set,” Perez said after scoring her biggest singles win in a year.
“I got a 4-1 lead in the second and then she started to play really well. I think she played some of her best tennis when she was behind.
“The best thing I think I did was not panic when I lost that second set and just kind of went back to what I knew I was doing well and was working. It got really close in the end, but I’m really happy with the way I fought and playing the way I wanted to play.”
Perez, who is currently ranked No.456 in singles and No.25 in doubles, described qualifying as “satisfying”.
It is Perez’s biggest singles victory ranking-wise since October 2022 and marks the first time she has won back-to-back singles matches since May.
“I’ve always believed that I could play really good singles, it’s just the case that my doubles got so high that my singles kind of had to take a little bit of a back seat,” she said.
“When you’re playing a lot of doubles and you’re not getting a lot of opportunities in singles, you kind of feel like you lose that touch and feel for it a little bit. So it’s been a battle but anytime I do get the chance, I love to play singles.”
Perez now faces world No.28 Anhelina Kalinina in the opening round.
Aussies in action – Zhengzhou
RESULTS
Women’s qualifying singles, final round
Ellen Perez (AUS) d [6] Tamara Korpatsch (GER) 6-4 5-7 6-4
COMING UP
Women’s singles, first round
[Q] Ellen Perez (AUS) v Anhelina Kalinina (UKR)
Women’s doubles, first round
Ellen Perez (AUS)/Nicole Melichar-Martinez (USA) v Timea Babos (HUN)/Lyudmyla Kichenok (UKR)
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