Burel, Semenistaja rebound from Wimbledon qualifying exit at ITF level
The watching world may have all eyes on Wimbledon this fortnight, but there’s plenty of tennis going on elsewhere on the ITF World Tennis Tour as players plot their future path towards an appearance on tennis’ grandest stage.
Clara Burel, who missed out on a place in the main draw at the All England Club for a third time after falling in the Wimbledon qualifying event, bounced back from that disappointment to win the joint-biggest title of her career on the ITF World Tennis Tour on Sunday.
The 22-year-old Frenchwoman defeated Australian Astra Sharma 6-3 7-5 in the final on clay at W60 Montpellier for her first title since October 2021.
It was her second W60 title overall, and the fourth professional singles crown of her career.
Burel, who became the world’s No. 1 junior in 2018 shortly after winning the title at ITF World Tennis Tour Junior Finals – is set to climb back into the world's top 100 after Wimbledon, with an eye on surpassing her career-high pro ranking of No. 74.
Latvian Darja Semenistaja won the other W60 title on offer this weekend, triumphing on home soil in both singles and doubles at W60 Liepaja.
The 20-year-old lefthander defeated American Jessie Aney 6-4 6-4 in the singles final, before teaming up with compatriot Daniela Vismane to win the doubles.
View this post on Instagram
Like Burel, the 20-year-old lefthander had also fallen in her attempt to qualify for the third Grand Slam of the year, ultimately losing out to Belgian Greet Minnen in the third and final round.
But, again like Burel, she bounced back to match her biggest triumph on the Tour with her performance this weekend, having also won at W60 Prague in May. Semenistaja has won 13 singles titles on the ITF World Tennis Tour overall (including a Tour-leading seven during the 2021 season). She also adds a maiden W60 crown to her six other ITF doubles triumphs.
Wang Yafan, meanwhile, improved to a 20-match winning streak on the ITF World Tennis Tour by claiming her fourth title in a row – and fifth of the year – with victory over Eudice Chong at W40 Hong Kong.
Keep up with all the latest results from the ITF World Tennis Tour here