Nikole Bartůňková is ranked 289th in the world rankings, but among female players under the age of eighteen, she is the sixth female tennis player in the world. By the way, in addition to Bartůňková, there are also Brenda Fruhvirtová and Sára Bejlek among the elite six young tennis hopes of the world.
Against the seasoned Ana Bogdanová, the young Czech should have had no chance. The fact that Bartůňková scored her first ever victory on the WTA circuit in the first round did not change anything, when she beat the Ukrainian Dajana Jastremska. The 30-year-old Romanian belongs to a better ranking by more than two hundred places, which she intended to confirm in a duel with an opponent thirteen years younger.
TOP SIX BEST TENNIS PLAYERS UNDER 18 RANKING (on the WTA rankings) NAME NATIONALITY1. (46.)Mirra AndrejevováRussia2. (131.)Petra MarčinkováCroatia3. (138.)BRENDA FRUHVIRTOVÁCzech Republic4. (161.) Alina KorneováRussia5. (184.)SÁRA BEJLEKCzech Republic6. (289.) NIKOLA BARTŮŇKOVÁCzech Republic
However, after a nervous start, the finalist of this year’s junior Wimbledon proved why she belongs to the greatest talents in world tennis. She tormented her opponent both with powerful shots from the baseline and, following the example of Markéta Vondroušová, with stopballs or transitions to the net. She won the first set 6:4, and was able to keep up with the favorite in the second as well.
At first, the calm home audience clearly became nervous, and as Bogdanová’s critical moments increased, they reacted to the double faults of the Czech tennis player with unsportsmanlike applause. It was heard more and more frequently at the end of the second set, even after Bartůňková’s spoiled first serve.
The young Czech did not let the unsportsmanlike behavior of the fans put her off and continued to trouble Bogdanova with her precise play. In the end, the Romanian took the second set after a dramatic tiebreak 7:6, the third set had a similar course, which the favorite won in another close battle 7:5 and to the enthusiasm of the home fans, she advanced to the next matches.
Nikola Bartůňková will move to approximately 260th place after the tournament in Cluj.
