Alexandra Vasilyeva is competing in the W15 in Lawn Tennis, after battling an injury in recent years
TOURNAMENT. Alexandra Vasilyeva is competing in the W15 on Lawn Tennis. THE GAZETTE / JOEL KATZ
More than 20 countries were, and are, represented in the International Tennis Federation (ITF) tournaments that are being held at Lawn Tennis. Among them, Russia, hand in hand with Alexandra Vasilyevaone of the foreigners that garnered the most support these days.
22 years old, Vasilyeva, who currently does not have a WTA ranking (she was ranked 1249th), had to compete, precisely due to the lack of points in the professional circuit, in the W15 qualifiers in Tucumán. There, she won her two matches comfortably and made it to the main draw, where she debuted with a victory over Argentina’s Julia Caffarena, 6-4, 6-1.
“On which court does the Russian play?” asks a Lawn Tennis member. Of course, Alexandra’s exotic origin quickly raised curiosity; and as they watched her play, the people of Tucuman began to pour their support into her favor, recognizing her with applause at each point. A support that, of course, does not go unnoticed by Vasilyeva. “The people are extremely friendly and the club members are amazing. I thank you very much for your support,” she says, in dialogue with LA GACETA.
Why did you decide to come play in Argentina, so far from home and also far from Turkey, where you played your last tournaments? “I was five years ago as a tourist, I visited Buenos Aires and also saw the (Iguazú) Falls. I thought ‘why not play tournaments here?’. There are a series of tournaments and starting in Tucumán was a good idea,” said Vasilyeva, who after this tournament, she will move to Córdoba to play another W15. The decision, she says, was the right one; Here she feels very comfortable. “I’m very happy to have come,” she says.
Another reason that led her to come to Argentina was the surface on which the tournament is played: brick dust, different from the cement that predominates in Europe and, above all, in Russia. “I’m a powder player, I love it; I also came for that,” she acknowledged, praising the quality of players in the tournament. ”I learned that the players here play beautiful tennis and I think every match is very nice. “It’s amazing,” she said.
The most complicated thing for Vasilyeva is probably adapting to a climate very different from that of her native Russia. “The climate is difficult. In today’s game, at the beginning there was a lot of sun, the humidity was like 90%, I was dying,” she admits, laughing. “It’s very difficult because I’m not from here, but slowly, you get used to it,” she added. And despite suffering from it, she clarified that “the weather is nice and you can enjoy tennis.”
Today was not just another victory for the Russian: it was her first victory in the main draw of an ITF circuit tournament since October 2022, which allows her to add a WTA point. “It is very important for me to win, because it is my first main draw victory since the age of the dinosaurs,” she said, in a joking tone.
Its objective? Re-obtain WTA ranking, something valuable to be able to avoid, at some point, the previous stages of the tournaments, a very exhausting process. “I was injured in the last three years; I tried to heal without surgery, but in December I had hip surgery. My goal is to recover the points, because women’s tennis is harder than men’s, they are all extremely good. Then we will see how far I can go,” concluded Vasilyeva, who wants Tucumán to be the starting point of a new stage.
2024-02-28 16:31:32
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