Fiona Ferro delivered a courageous yet insufficient performance against Zhang Shuai this Friday in Brisbane during the first round of the qualifiers. Defeated in three sets (2-6, 6-3, 4-6), the French player, ranked 366th in the world, nonetheless competed with the Chinese veteran, ranked 81st in the WTA rankings, for nearly two hours of play.
Starting on the right foot: that was the mission of Fiona Ferro, who is among the eleven players who traveled to Australia aiming to secure a qualification for the first Grand Slam of the year. Benefiting from the last-minute withdrawal of Elina Avanesyan, the Valbonnaise was invited to try her luck in the WTA 500 Brisbane qualifying tournament. An opportunity not to be missed. Especially since the Azuréenne seems to be in great shape, as she mentioned to L’Équipe at the end of the year: “I didn’t want to play without being at 100%”, she confessed. Proof that a return among the top players on the circuit (formerly world No. 39) seems possible, Fiona Ferro will use her protected ranking to climb in the WTA rankings and return around the 170th world position, which will open the doors to many more prestigious tournaments. “Initially, I was supposed to play team matches and two ‘15,000’ in Monastir, but wild cards were freed up in Angers and Limoges. It was good to face top 100-level players quickly. I found that I lacked a bit in terms of level of play. But physically, it held up and with all the training matches during the break, I have more reference points. I can’t wait to see how it goes.”
The first answer thus came last night in Brisbane against Zhang Shuai (36 years old, world No. 81). A former top 30 member who had all the difficulty in the world to return to the highest level after a long period of absence. A bit like Fiona Ferro who, unlike the Chinese player, is only 28 years old!
Despite a complicated start to the match, Fiona Ferro knew how to respond in the second set, relying on better return quality and regained service effectiveness. She notably converted 50% of her break points (3/6) and won 56% of points on the opponent’s second serve, an area where she dominated Zhang Shuai.
Solid in defense, the Valbonnaise saved 13 break points out of 18 (72%), proof of her tenacity in key moments. But she lacked sharpness in the final sprint, winning only two of the last ten points of the match.
Fiona Ferro did not disappoint against a much higher-ranked player. While the qualification eluded her, her performance suggests promising potential for the rest of the season. She is now expected in Melbourne to compete in the Australian Open qualifiers in a few days starting January 18. To qualify, she will need to win three matches compared to two for Diane Parry, who benefits from a better ranking but will also have to go through the qualification stage.
