The Romanian tennis player Jaqueline Cristian qualified on Tuesday for the round of 16 of the WTA 500 tournament in Linz, Austria, with total prizes of 802,237 euros, after defeating the Argentinian Nadia Podoroska in two sets, 6-3, 6-4.
Jaqueline Cristian (25 years old, the 89th in the WTA), entered the main draw as a "lucky loser", won after an hour and a half, agerpres reports.
The Romanian is now 3-1 in the matches versus Podoroska (26 years old, no. 67 in the WTA), whom she defeated in 2017 at Surprise (USA), with 6-4, 6-3, and in 2023 in Madrid, with 6 -1, 6-4. The only victory of a South American player was achieved at Roland Garros, in 2020, in the qualifiers, with 6-0, 6-4.
In the qualifiers, Jaqueline Cristian defeated the American player Caty McNally (22 years old, no. 171st in the WTA), 6-3, 6-3, but then she was outclassed by the Danish Clara Tauson (21 years old,the 91st in the WTA), with 6 -2, 6-0.
Jaqueline Cristian secured a cheque for 11,823 euros and 73 WTA points, and in the round of 16 she will face the American Jodie Burrage (24 years old, no. 102 in the WTA, who beat the French Varvara Gracheva 6-4, 6-0