The WTA 250 Thailand Open saw its top seed, Magda Linette, fall in her opener against Diana Shnaider, while Paula Badosa had to go the distance to see off a challenge by another 19-year-old, local wild-card Lanlana Tararudee.
Her level surprised me. I think she has a great future. Credits to her, she played well. I had to stay there, I had to wait for my moment. Paula Badosa
Shnaider posted her first victory of 2024 in some style, upsetting Linette, 6-4 1-6 6-1, with the 19-year-old’s forehand on the run on song as she took out the 2020 champion, and she will next face Badosa.
The Spaniard escaped Tararudee after a hard-fought contest, 3-6 6-4 6-1, in an hour and 57 minutes.
The Thai teenager, who was playing her second tour-level match, made a fast start, impressing with her backhand and net play in particular as she dominated the first set, but, serving at 4-5 in a tight second set, No 298-ranked Tararudee coughed up a pair of inopportune double-faults, and, with the momentum now in hand, Badosa took control of the decider.
“Her level surprised me,” the Spaniard said in her on-court interview. “I think she has a great future. Credits to her, she played well. I had to stay there, I had to wait for my moment.”
Elsewhere in Hua Hin, Viktorija Golubic was at her creative best in the 1st-round of the Thailand Open, dipping into her bag of tricks en route to defeating Brazil’s Laura Pigossi, 6-1 6-2.
The Swiss reached match point with a flourish, swishing her racket like a magic wand as she carved through a forehand approach.
Pigossi’s defence meant that Golubic still had to improvise once at the net, where she showed off her full array of volleys, and a high backhand was followed by a florid chop, laden with spin, and, finally, a reflexed backhand down the line was enough to get past the Brazilian.
Two come-backs were halted at the first hurdle, with former World No 12 Wang Qiang from China, returning to action following a 16-month hiatus, defeated 6-1 6-1 in her first match since Tokyo 2022 by her compatriot, No 5 seed Wang Xiyu, in 58 minutes, while qualifier Dalma Galfi from Hungary needed just 68 minutes to race past Australian wild-card Ajla Tomljanovic, 6-3 6-0.
Meanwhile, Japan’s Nao Hibino pulled off a remarkable turn-around to defeat Kamilla Rakhimova from Russia, 7-6(4) 6-0, after trailing 0-5 in the first set before winning 13 of the next 14 games.
The Japanese saved 3 set points in the opener, 1 when down 5-0, and 2 more down 5-4, all on her own serve.
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