Elise Mertens battles past teenager to reach Lugano quarter-finals
Elise Mertens managed to overcome both the rain and Czech teenager Marketa Vondrousova to reach the quarter-finals of the Samsung Open in Lugano.
The pair toiled for over two-and-a-half hours through rain drops before the Belgian second seed progressed with a 6-2 5-7 7-5 victory.
With play affected by the weather for a fifth straight day, plans to complete both the second round and quarter-finals on Friday were put on hold.
However, Kirsten Flipkens and Camila Giorgi did manage to complete respective upset second-round victories over Aliaksandra Sasnovich and Alison van Uytvanck.
Sasnovich looked to be in total command of Flipkens prior to Friday’s first rain delay, leading by a set and enjoying a double-break advantage upon resumption in the second set.
But the Belgian number three won six of the next seven games to tie the match before advancing 4-6 6-4 6-2 into her first quarter-final of the season.
Vera Lapko joined her fellow Belorussian Aryna Sabalenka in the final eight with a 6-2 6-3 win over fellow qualifier Danka Kovinic.
Germany’s Mona Barthel followed up taking the shock scalp of Svetlana Kuznetsova on Thursday with a 6-3 4-6 6-4 victory over Donna Vekic.
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