MIDLAND -- Russian Olga Puchkova overcame a sloppy first set Tuesday night to record a 1-6, 6-2, 6-3 win over 19-year-old American Alexa Glatch on the first day of Dow Corning Tennis Classic at the Midland Tennis Community Center.
“She really picked up her game after that first set,” Glatch, one of eight Americans in the main draw, told the crowd following the evening’s featured match.
Puchkova took control of the third set quickly going up 4-2 and serving for a 5-2 lead. But Glatch pressured Puchkova into several unforced errors and broke her serve to bring it to 4-3. Puchkova held serve and then broke Glatch to move on in the USTA $75,000 event. Puchkova will next face another young American, No. 8 seeded Vania King, who also needed three sets to beat Sunitha Rao of India, 1-6, 6-4, 6-4. King turned 20 last week.
In the evening’s featured doubles match, Eleni Daniilidou of Greece and Jasmin Woehr of Germany upset No. 3 seeded Chin-Wei Chan of Taipei and Natalie Grandin of South Africa, 6-3, 6-2.
The big upset of the day came when Evgeniya Rodina of Russia knocked off No. 2 seeded Melinda Czink of Hungary, 6-1, 2-6, 7-6 (5), in an exciting third-set tiebreaker. It was the third consecutive time Rodina, ranked No. 155 in the world, has beaten Czink, ranked No. 83 in the world.
“I knew I could do it because I had done it two times before,” said Rodina, who had to come back from down 4-2 in the third set and again broke Czink in the 10th game when Czink was serving for the match at 5-4. “She never had match points but it was close.”
Rodina next faces the winner of the Natalie Orlova-Carly Gullickson first-round match on Wednesday. On Tuesday, Orlova won one of the four coveted qualifying spots into the main draw with a straight-set win over Kai-Chen Chang of Taipei. Gullickson is the son of former major league pitcher Bill Gullickson and one of eight Americans in the main draw.
Top-seeded Alla Kudryavtseva takes the court today in the second match on Stadium Court. She faces 19-year-old American wild card Lauren Albanese, who on Sunday lost in the final of the Rancho Mirage $25,000 USTA Pro Circuit event.
Also playing a first-round match on Wednesday will be new U.S. hero Julie Ditty. On Sunday in Surprise, Ariz., Ditty led the U.S. Fed Cup team to a 3-2 quarterfinal win over Argentina in the clinching doubles match. Ditty, the No. 3 seeded player at Midland, plays Yuliana Fedak of the Ukraine in a day-session match.
Between the two evening featured matches, longtime friend of the Midland Tennis Community Center Hal Cook was honored. Cook was the first managing director of the Midland Community Tennis Center and instrumental in its opening 35 years ago this year.
WEDNESDAY’S MAIN DRAW SCHEDULE
Stadium Court, starting at 10 a.m.
WS: women’s singles; WD: women’s doubles; WC: wild card; Q: Qualifier; LL: Lucky loser
WS: Lucie Hradecka, Czech Republic (5) vs. Ekaterina Ivanova, Russia
Followed by WS: All Kudryavtseva, Russia (1) vs. Lauren Albanese (WC)
Followed by WS: Julie Ditty (3) vs. Yuliana Fedak, Ukraine
Followed by WD: Lucie Hradecka, Czech Republic-Michaela Pastikova, Czech Republic (4), vs. Ahsha Rolle-Meng Yuan, China (WC)
Court 5 starting at 10 a.m.
WS: Shenay Perry (WC) vs. Irina Camelia-Begu (Q)
Followed by WS: Madison Bregle (Q) vs. Stephanie Foretz, France (4)
Followed by WS: Carly Gullickson vs. Natalia Orlova, Russia (Q)
Followed by WD: Maria-Fernanda Alves, Brazil-Riza Zalameda vs. Christina Fusano-Alexa Glatch
Court 3 starting at 10 a.m.
WS: Katie O’Brien, Great Britain, vs. Michela Pastikova, Czech Republic (LL)
Followed by WS: Rika Fujiwara, Japan, vs. Valerie Tetreault, Canada (Q)
Followed by WS: Chin-Wei Chan, Taipei, vs. Anna Gerasimou, Greece
Followed by WD: Ekaterina Ivanova, Russia-Yevhenila, Ukraine, vs. Melinda Czink, Hungary-Lindsay Lee-Waters
EVENING FEATURED MATCHES
Stadium Court, starting at 7 p.m.
WS: Michaella Krajicek, Netherlands, vs. Eleni Daniilidou, Greece
Followed by WD: Vanessa Henke, Germany-Darija Jurak, Croatia, vs. Liga Dekmeijere, Latvia-Mashona Washington (2)
