The Rouen Open started this Monday with a beautiful victory by Fiona Ferro. A 250 tournament in which Alizé Cornet had to withdraw due to a triceps injury.
This was supposed to mark the return of Alizé Cornet to France. In good shape at the beginning of the month for her return to competition, the Nice-native is now paying for three months of intensive efforts to get back to the top level. Already diminished ten days ago at the Bisbal d’Empordà tournament, Alizé Cornet nevertheless responded positively to the selection of the French tennis team last week. After playing two doubles with Diane Parry, she aggravated her triceps injury during her lost singles match on Friday.
A physical setback that forced her to withdraw from this tournament which was supposed to mark her comeback from retirement. “It is with great disappointment that I unfortunately have to withdraw from the Open de Rouen tournament,” regretted the former world No. 11, confirming her injury. “I was looking forward to returning to Rouen to celebrate my return to the circuit, but my body did not handle well the sequence of these first two weeks back.”
However, her return is not compromised. It is just an unfortunate setback. “I hope to return as soon as possible to continue having fun,” she concluded. Her next appointment should be next week for the qualifiers of the WTA 1000 tournament in Madrid. An ambitious goal considering her recovery from a muscle injury. However, the qualifiers of the Rome tournament ten days later seem more appropriate.
Fiona Ferro back on the professional circuit
She had more or less disappeared from the radar in recent months. After a nearly seven-month break and a loss against Jil Teichmann in the Rome qualifiers, Fiona Ferro has quietly made her comeback. The Alpes-Maritimes-native has been playing in smaller tournaments, looking to regain her sensations. She returned to the ITF in Macon at the end of February (lost in the round of 16), then the ITF in Helsinki, Finland (lost in the quarterfinals) before arriving at the WTA 250 in Rouen. Invited for the tournament qualifiers, she earned her place in the main draw by defeating her compatriots Emeline Dartron and Manon Leonard. Both players are far from the Top 100 like her. The former Top 50 member has now fallen to the 376th place worldwide.
Now it’s time to climb back, initially to return to WTA tournaments and possibly secure a place in the qualifiers for Roland-Garros. To do so, the Azuréenne faced the No. 4 seed, American McCartney Kessler (25 years old, 43rd in the world). A player having a very solid season with a final in Austin, notably.
However, the WTA of Rouen is played on clay courts. A surface favored by Fiona Ferro, unlike the American. This did not prevent McCartney Kessler from immediately taking the lead and dominating most of the first set. But Fiona Ferro managed to fight back and force a tie-break. Despite obtaining a set point, the Valbonnaise dropped the first set (7-6) 10-8.
This was not enough to discourage the Frenchwoman. Fiona Ferro managed to gain a double break advantage at the start of the second set. A solid lead she maintained with great solidity on her serves. She won the second set (6-2).
The match was re-ignited and highly contested. McCartney Kessler believed she had taken a decisive advantage by breaking at (3-1). But struggling on each of their serves, the two players made the match very suspenseful. Fiona Ferro managed to come back to 3-2 and eventually converted a new break opportunity at (5-6). The Alpes-Maritimes-native thus won her round of 16 in the wee hours of the night. Victory in three sets (6-7/6-2/7-5) in a little less than three hours of play. In the next round, she will face the winner of the all-French duel between Margaux Rouvroy and Jessika Ponchet.
In the meantime, another Alpes-Maritimes-native invited by the tournament will be seen. Diane Parry will face Romanian Jaqueline Cristian tomorrow late in the day.
