Ukrainian tennis player Julia Starodubtseva has advanced to the second round of Roland Garros 2025 by defeating Germany's Tamara Korbach.
Starodubtseva entered the main draw of Roland Garros as a lucky loser. Despite losing in the final qualifying round, she received another chance due to the withdrawal of Romanian player Sorana Cîrstea.
In the tournament's opening round, Starodubtseva faced Tamara Korbach, who had successfully navigated three rounds of qualifying. This was their second encounter; the first took place in 2024, where Julia won in a three-set match.
How did the match between Starodubtseva and Korbach go?
- Starodubtseva lost the first set to Korbach 2:6, with a pivotal sixth game where the German player made the first break of the match.
- In the first set, Julia made twice as many unforced errors as Korbach (16 to 8), and the number of winners was also in favor of the German player (8 to 5).
- However, the second set ended with a victory for the Ukrainian, 6:1, as she made four breaks and converted a set point in the seventh game on her second attempt.
- In contrast to the first set, Starodubtseva made fewer unforced errors in the second (13 compared to Korbach's 19), and she dominated in winners, producing four times as many (12 to 3).
- Ultimately, Starodubtseva defeated Korbach, breaking her in the decisive 10th game and winning the match 6:4.
- The match lasted 2 hours and 11 minutes. Despite the win, Julia had a higher number of unforced errors (36 to 32) but also more winners (19 to 12).
WTA. Roland Garros 2025, First Round
Tamara Korbach (Germany, Q) — Julia Starodubtseva (Ukraine, LL) 1:2 (6:2, 1:6, 4:6)
What does Julia Starodubtseva's victory mean?
- She reached the second round at Roland Garros for the first time in her career. Julia made her debut at the French Open in 2024.
- She matched her personal best performance at Grand Slams, having reached the second round at Wimbledon in 2024.
- Julia is the third Ukrainian tennis player to advance past the first round of Roland Garros 2025, alongside Elina Svitolina and Dayana Yastremska.
