On the WTA schedule this week is the Saint-Malo Challenger, with several French players in the mix, including Niçoise Diane Parry and Valbonnaise Fiona Ferro. Unfortunately, neither of them managed to get past the first round.
New underperformance for Diane Parry
After her two early exits in Rouen and then in Madrid, Diane Parry entered the Saint-Malo Challenger tournament as the number 8 seed. Initially set to face Lisa Pigato, the Niçoise ended up playing Moroccan player, lucky loser, and world number 353, Yasmine Kabbaj.
In the first set, the French player lost her serve right at the start and quickly fell behind 3 games to 0. She managed to break back but was still trailing on the scoreboard. With a total of 69% of points won on her serve, Yasmine Kabbaj solidly closed out the first set with a love game, 6/3.
In the second set, Diane Parry also fell a break behind and was trailing 4 games to 0. The French player managed to catch up at the best moment, at 5 games to 4, after saving a match point on her opponent’s serve. She even had two set points but ultimately gave in during the tie-break, final score 6/3-7/6.
The challenging start to the season continues for Diane Parry with this new loss to a player much lower than her in the WTA rankings. Overall, her record for 2026 stands at nine wins and eight losses.
Fiona Ferro, hindered, is forced to retire in an all-French duel
After her title at the Oeiras Challenger last week, Fiona Ferro entered Saint-Malo full of confidence. Facing fellow French player Jessika Ponchet, the match was expected to be interesting. Unfortunately, after losing the first set 6/1 in just over 30 minutes, the Valbonnaise called for a medical timeout for hip pain. After just one game in the second set, Fiona Ferro was forced to retire.
