She wanted to pinch the “ass cheeks”. And she did it sensationally!
Laura Siegemund (34) is the last German with the Eliminated at Australian Open in Melbourne but she leaves with her head held high. She lost to French Caroline Garcia (29) in the third round 6:1, 3:6, 3:6. Nobody could have expected such a strong fight in advance.
After all, Garcia, fourth in the world rankings, and Stuttgart, number 158, to which she had slipped after a long injury break, faced each other. But there was no sign of that. It only got ugly at the end when Siegemund was late for the second time and lost the first serve shortly before the end of the match.
Spectacular images Lindsey Vonn drives the Streif – at NIGHT!
Even before the match started, the French fans were shouting “Allez, Caro” through the arena. But Siegemund silenced them from the first ball. She played with great concentration and made very few mistakes.
Surprisingly, the favorite couldn’t counter the powerful game of the Germans and so the outsider took the serve from her twice. The 6:1 after 35 minutes seemed almost sensational and the German supporters rubbed their eyes in amazement. One of the best sentences of her career.
This performance was all the more incredible, since Siegemund actually wanted to focus on the doubles from this year and also aligns her tournament schedule accordingly. But on Friday she and her Belgian partner Kirsten Flipkens (37) were eliminated in the first round.
So again the main focus on the individual – at least in Melbourne. Until the middle of the second set, things continued as they did in the first. It was now a gripping exchange of blows in which Garcia was getting stronger. Her fan choir could now be heard loudly again and she managed the first break in the match to make it 3:2.
Laura Siegemund demanded everything from the French Caroline Garcia and delivered an outstanding game
Siegemund had nothing more to oppose and so she lost the second round 3:6. That seemed to inspire the DJ on the court, which was packed with 5000 people. He recorded “Sweet Caroline” somewhat unfairly. A goosebump moment when you’re French. The majority of the 5000 sang along. He didn’t have a Laura song in stock.
That seemed to spur her on. Although she immediately gave up her service to make it 0:1 in the decisive round, she promptly managed the re-break. The stadium raged. The thriller continued until Siegemund lost her serve for the second time in the set – 3:4.
Caroline Garcia was relieved. It was hard work against Laura Siegemund
That was the final decision, because she couldn’t counter anymore. In doing so, she came close, despite all the odds towards the end. In the last game, she came up late for the second time and was deducted the first serve by the Spanish referee.
Starting with the second, she scored the point anyway, but couldn’t convert the cue ball to make it 4:5. Instead, there were discussions with the chair referee. “You wouldn’t have done that with Rafa,” she yelled at him.
What was meant was Nadal, who always takes a long time to serve. After 2:10 hours, Garcia converted her second match point to 6:3. With that, all Germans in Melbourne are out.
