Following up Naomi Osaka’s first-round win over Sara Errani, fellow WTA mothers Angelique Kerber and her close friend Caroline Wozniacki advanced to the third round.
The German defeated tenth seed Jelena Ostapenko 5-7 6-3 6-3 in a sunny mid-day match over two hours long. Having played only a handful of matches since returning to the tour as a mother, the former Wimbledon champion was relaxed and relieved meeting with press after the match. She said, “it feels good to play a match like this and to win against such a top player. She won two titles this year already. That gives me a lot of confidence for the next matches.”
The transition back to the stadium has not been an easy one: “I’m showing myself that hard work pays off, that I just have to make the transition from the practice court to the match court. This is what I felt before this tournament, that I need a lot of matches, especially matches like this, playing against the top players, and that I have the feeling that I’m strong again in important moments.”
The current world No.607 told Women’s Tennis Blog that while Ostapenko’s aggressive style is a real challenge, she also hopes to have a few more grinding opponents with long rallies to test her match fitness.
Traveling with her daughter has affected the…
