Seeded Players Successful Wednesday at Tevlin
November 18, 2009Dubois, Fichman and Pelletier move into second roundAll three of the seeded players in action at the $50,000 Tevlin Challenger on Wednesday advanced to the second round, including Canadians Stephanie Dubois (Laval, Quebec) and Sharon Fichman (Toronto).
Dubois squared-off against top Canadian junior Katarena Paliivets (Richmond Hill, Ontario) and the heavily favoured top-seed did not disappoint, defeating her younger compatriot 6-0, 6-2.
“I felt good about my game today,” said Dubois. “I was aggressive and played the way I wanted to. I kept going for my shots and made the points, but I need to improve my first serve moving forward for the next one.”
Fichman, the No. 4 seed, eliminated Russian Olga Puchkova in straight sets 7-6(1), 6-1. After a tight back-and forth opener, Puchkova appeared to struggle with an injury during the second set, making it a much easier affair for the hometown favourite. Fichman was equally as successful in her doubles match with partner Mashona Washington, reaching the semifinals with a win over Alina Jerjomina (Latvia) and Elizabeth Lumpkin (USA). Several more Canadians reached the final four in doubles including veteran Maureen Drake (Toronto) and National Training Centre (NTC) participant Marianne Jodoin (Varennes, Quebec).
No. 6 seed Sophie Ferguson (Australia) was an easy winner against Brazilian Maria-Fernanda Alves 6-1, 6-2 while Anna Tatishvili (Georgia), Kimberly Couts (USA), Alexandra Stevenson (USA) and Washington also advanced.
Thursday’s schedule is jam-packed with all of the second round singles matches on the schedule along with the doubles semifinals. Play begins at 10:00 a.m. at the Tennis Canada Centre of Excellence, the indoor facility located beside the world-class Rexall Centre in Toronto. Admission is free. Championship weekend at the Tevlin Challenger will be Web cast live via tenniscanada.com beginning with semifinal action on Saturday, November 21 at 11 a.m., followed by the singles final live on Sunday at 1 p.m.