The Polish tennis player has begun defending her title! A demanding challenge awaits her.

Ranked 30th on the WTA rankings, Magdalena Fręch began her WTA 500 campaign against Italian qualifier Lucrezia Stefanini. The Łódź native, seeded fourth, received a bye in the first round.

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Stefanini, ranked 148th in the world, has already eliminated three opponents in Mexico - two in the qualifying rounds, and in the main draw she defeated American Sloane Stephens, returning to the courts after a long break, 6-4, 4-6, 6-1.

Fręch started her match against the Italian with a break, but soon lost her serve. However, she didn't concede a single game in the first set, even though most of it was long and close, and despite the 6-1 score, the set lasted 46 minutes.

In the second set, the Pole lost her serve first, but quickly recovered. With the score at 2-1, play was interrupted by rain for over half an hour.

Upon returning to the court, the Italian won three games in a row. In the final seconds, it seemed that last year's winner, who—as the organizers reminded us—returned to the court after 361 days, had mastered the situation despite her difficulties, but a tiebreak was necessary.

She was already leading 4-1, only to lose the next five points. Fręch rose to the occasion – first saving two set points, leveling the score at 6-6, and then securing her victory with two more points in the 134-minute match.

Coach Andrzej Kobierski's player will battle for a semifinal spot on Saturday morning (CET) against Nikola Bartunkova, ranked 228th overall. The 19-year-old entered the tournament thanks to a wild card awarded by the organizers and has already defeated two qualifiers. This will be the first matchup between the Pole and the Czech.

Fręch is defending her title in Mexico, along with the 500 points she earned last year. Therefore, after subtracting her previous win, she has dropped from 30th to 52nd place in the virtual rankings. To climb back up, she must win more matches. Her first victory moved her up to 46th.

The two top-seeded players – Belgian Elise Mertens and Russian Vieronika Kudermetova – have already been eliminated from the event. Latvian Jelena Ostapenko (No. 3) has not yet started her competition due to delays in the program due to inclement weather.

Magda Linette was eliminated in the first round, retiring in her match against Colombian Emiliana Arango after losing the first set 0:6.

Katarzyna Piter is also competing in the doubles competition. She will pair with Belgian Magali Kempel on Friday to play against Frenchwoman Elsa Jacquemot and Russian Polina Kudermetova for a place in the semifinals.

Go to Polsatsport.pl