Ferra wins second career WTA title with victory over Kontaveit at Palermo Open

Fantastic Fiona Ferro wins Palermo Open in a great WTA final

A superb forehand, solid serves, occasional yet surprising drop shots and in general a more energetic game secured the victory for the 23-year old French player, who won 6-2 7-5 against of Estonian Anett Kontaveit in what turned out to be a really entertaining final in the first WTA tournament since lockdown.onna

Both players played great tennis, but Ferro took advantage of an extraordinary forehand, pushing Kontaveit on the defence whenever she had the change.  The French player played aggressively and managed to find good angles even when defending herself against by Kontaveit’s solid long shots, winning the first set 6-2.

In the second set, Kontaveit broke Ferro’s serving game twice, only to find herself on the defence against Ferro’s forehand, which only seemed to improve during the course the match. The Estonian failed to keep her lead and instead suffered a break herself at 5-5, allowing Ferro to serve for the game, something she did extremely well, without giving in to the emotions of the moment.

With this victory, Ferro obtains the best ranking of her tennis career; she was ranked as no. 53 in the world before the tournament started and has since climbed to no. 44 with the victory in Palermo.

THE CHAMPION ???#PLO20@WTA pic.twitter.com/BsJZrsYscc

— Palermo Ladies Open (@LadiesOpenPA) August 9, 2020

The road to the final

Ferro made it through to the final in a somehow surprising victory in the semi-finals against Italian Camila Giorgi; the French player seemed defenceless against hard-hitting Giorgi in the first set, which she lost 6-1. In the second however, the Italian favourite Giorgi made too many mistakes, allowing Ferro to get back into the match. In a painstaking third set Ferro eventually won 7-5, crushing the last hope of an Italian victory in this historical tournament, after no less than three Italian players had made it through to the quarterfinals on the red clay in Palermo.

Anett Kontaveit had made it through to the finals beating Croatian Petra Martic 6-2 6-4 in the semifinals, resisting the Croatian’s mix of dropshots and great kick serves. In the quarter-finals, Kontaveit beat German Laura Siegemund in three sets, 3-6, 6-3, 6-3.

COVID precautions

Only a very limited number of spectators were allowed to follow the matches and all were required to wear masks at all times, while guards from the Italian Civil Protection made sure rules were followed. One player tested positive for the virus upon arrival in Palermo, whilst current top seed Donna Vekic was heavily criticised for posting pictures of herself sightseeing, although players were expected to stay in their rooms between matches and practice.

The next professional tennis event on the schedule is the Prague Open, followed by Western & Southern Open, before the US Open. The US Open is set to be the first grand slam since the pandemic, which is currently scheduled in New York for 31th August.

Princess Fiona ?@fioferro wins a second career WTA title capturing the crown over Anett Kontaveit 6-2, 7-5 at @LadiesOpenPA#PLO20 pic.twitter.com/6notROv4bQ

— wta (@WTA) August 9, 2020

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