Sam Stosur will look to get some claycourt wins under her belt ahead of the French Open after accepting a late wildcard into the draw at the WTA event in Strasbourg.
Strasbourg, France, 20 May 2017 | tennis.com.au
Stosur is a former champion (2015) at the red claycourt event, staged the week before the French Open.
The Queenslander is seeded sixth at this year’s edition and will open against China’s Duan Ying-ying.
This week she fell in the first round of the Italian Open in Rome after reaching the third round in Madrid, where she pushed eventual champion Simona Halep to three sets. She also fell in the first round in Stuttgart and second round in Prague.
Stosur reached the semifinals at last year’s French Open, capping a brilliant claycourt season during which she went 16-5.
Fellow Australian Daria Gavrilova is also in the draw in Strasbourg; seeded No.7, she will tackle American Louisa Chirico in round one.
Should she win her Rome quarterfinal on Friday over Kiki Bertens, Gavrilova would overtake Stosur as Australia’s No.1.
Stosur has held the position uninterrupted since October 2008.
Original author: Matt Trollope