Second Grand Slam tournament start, second first-round exit: Things are not going as planned for Angelique Kerber on the big tennis stage after her maternity leave.
Tennis player Angelique Kerber was eliminated in the first round of the French Open. The former world number one had to admit defeat in her opening match to the Dutchwoman Arantxa Rus with 4:6, 3:6. This meant that the 36-year-old also missed the second round in her second Grand Slam tournament after returning from her maternity leave.
There, the three-time Grand Slam tournament winner would have faced a top duel with title co-favorite Jelena Rybakina. The world number four from Kazakhstan won her first match against the Belgian outsider Greet Minnen with a clear 6:2, 6:3.
Kerber played too cautiously on the clay court on Court 2, which she doesn’t like much. “She has to get the handbrake off her arm,” said former national coach Barbara Rittner on Eurosport during the first set. Kerber rarely had anything to counter the dynamism and power of her opponent, who was three years younger than her. After 1:25 hours, Rus converted her third match point to earn a well-deserved victory.
Before Kerber, four German players – Eva Lys, Laura Siegemund, Jule Niemeier and Tatjana Maria – had already failed to reach the opening hurdle at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris.
Source: Stern
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