With two very balanced sets, Caroline Garcia confirmed the condition of seed 1 and debuted with victory in the WTA 250 that happens on synthetic floor in Lyon. She overcame Czech Tereza Martincova, by 6/4 and 7/6 (7-4), saving home tennis that had suffered two defeats the day before.
“It’s always important to win a tough first round and I know I didn’t play so well at times, but I managed to stay aggressive the whole time,” analyzed Garcia, who entered as one of the favorites at the Australian Open but didn’t make it past the round of 16 . “I’m just thinking about this tournament right now, but losing in Melbourne hurt,” she admitted.
However, she recognized that being the head 1 at home brings extra weight. “You have to get on the court and try to ignore the pressure, stay focused. I’m happy to be able to play here in Lyon, not everyone gets the chance to play in a tournament at home, with friends and family by their side.”
Two other heads advanced to the second round. The Chinese Shuai Zhang, second favourite, took the North American Madison Brengle, 6/3 and 6/2, and the Montenegrin Danka Kovinic, head 7, took the Swiss Viktorija Golubic, 6/1 and 6/4. Eighth entry Anna Blinkova withdrew when she was already trailing compatriot Erika Andreeva, 6/7 (3-7), 6/4, 4/0.
Ingrid falls in doubles
Ingrid Martins, from Rio de Janeiro, took advantage of yet another opportunity to compete in WTA-level tournaments. She partnered with the American Angela Kulikov, but the two were beaten in the debut by the Spanish Cristina Bucsa and the Dutch Bibiane Schoofs, partials of 5/7, 6/4 and 10-6.
