Liudmila Samsonova's Positive Connection with WTA Berlin

BERLIN, WEDNESDAY — Since competing in the professional arena in 2013, Liudmila Samsonova's achievements in women's tennis have not been particularly remarkable. However, as if having a special connection, Samsonova often achieves positive results in the WTA 500 tournament in Berlin.

The tournament at the grass courts of the Rot-Weiss Tennis Club in Berlin, Germany, from July 16 to 22, serves as one of the warm-up events for the Wimbledon Grand Slam. The WTA 500 Berlin is held during a three-week break between the previous Grand Slam on clay courts, the French Open, and Wimbledon. Therefore, top-ranked tennis players are maximizing this short break to adapt from the slower surface (clay) to the faster surface (grass).

In Berlin, Samsonova is among nine of the top ten women's singles players in the world rankings. The only one not competing in the German capital is the former world number one, who currently ranks seventh, Iga Swiatek.

In addition to the nine top-ranked tennis players, the tournament, which was held on clay courts from 1896 to 2008, featured Grand Slam champions, namely Naomi Osaka, Elena Rybakina, Marketa Vondrousova, Sofia Kenin, and Bianca Andreescu. Intense matches from the early rounds were inevitable.

Samsonova faced a tough opponent in the early two rounds. In the first round, she faced Osaka and won with a score of 3-6, 7-6 (3), 6-4 after competing for two hours and 36 minutes.

After defeating the former world number one with four Grand Slam titles, Samsonova faced the third seed, Jessica Pegula, who is the defending champion, on Wednesday (18/6/2025). Similar to the first round, she lost the first set but rallied in the following two sets.

Samsonova even faced match points on Pegula twice in the third set before finally winning 6-7 (8), 7-5, 7-6 (5). She played the match for a longer duration, three hours and 21 minutes. Her opponent in the quarterfinals will be Amanda Anisimova or Magdalena Frech who will play the second round on Thursday.

For Samsonova, the quarterfinals on Friday will be her second appearance at the WTA Berlin after she became the champion in 2021. At that time, when the WTA Berlin was held again after not being organized from 2009 to 2020, Samsonova won the title as a qualifying player.

Five years later, this Russian tennis player added four WTA titles, but has never won from a tournament above the WTA 500 level. Her best results in WTA 1000 events were as a finalist at the Canadian Open and the China Open 2023, but she lost to Pegula and Swiatek.

However, competing on grass courts, including at the WTA Berlin, presents a different story for the 26-year-old tennis player. The grass courts, which reflect the ball very quickly and low, become her comfort zone.

She has always won the finals of grass court tournaments, having done so twice, namely in Berlin 2021 and at the WTA 250 in 's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands, in 2024. Her winning percentage on grass courts (64 percent) is also better compared to clay courts (51 percent) and hard courts (58 percent).

A powerful serve has become her reliable weapon, which has always been a tennis player's asset when playing on grass courts. In her match against Pegula, Samsonova delivered 18 aces.

"I can't believe I can still stand here. It feels incredible. I just tried to fight until the end, pushing myself to find my best game rhythm," said Samsonova, who for the fourth time defeated a top ten-ranked tennis player in 2025. In another tournament, the world number 20 player defeated Jasmine Paolini, Emma Navaro, and Paula Badosa.

The three tennis players also competed in the WTA Berlin with varying results. Paolini, who was the fourth seed, was eliminated by the 2022 champion, Ons Jabeur, in the second round with a score of 1-6, 3-6. Meanwhile, Navarro lost to Badosa, also in the second round, with a score of 6-7 (2), 3-6.

The world number one tennis player, Aryna Sabalenka, has a great chance of securing a quarterfinal ticket alongside Samsonova, Jabeur, and Badosa. She won the first set against Rebeka Masarova 6-2. However, the match will be continued on Thursday because during the match on Wednesday midnight, the court became increasingly slippery, posing a danger to the players.

Another tournament taking place in Germany this week is the ATP 500 Halle for men's tennis. Daniil Medvedev and Alex Michelsen are the first two players to secure spots in the quarterfinals and will face each other. Other players have just completed the first round since June 16.

The top seed, who is the world number one tennis player, Jannik Sinner, defeated the home player, Yannick Hanfmann, 7-5, 6-3 and will face Alexander Bublik in the second round. Sinner is competing in Halle as the defending champion after losing in the final of the French Open to Carlos Alcaraz. Meanwhile, the second seed, Alexander Zverev, will face Lorenzo Sonego in the second round after winning against Marcos Giron 6-2, 6-1.

In the ATP 500 tournament in London, England, Alcaraz will face fellow Spanish player Jaume Munar in the second round. Alcaraz advanced to the second round after a tight contest against lucky loser Adam Walton, winning 6-4, 7-6 (4) in the first round.

The tournament is Alcaraz's preparation for a hat-trick of Wimbledon titles. He won Wimbledon in 2023 and 2024 after defeating Novak Djokovic in the final. (AFP)