Three days after her lost semi-final at the Open of Rouen, Alizé Cornet was back on the court. In Monastir, Tunisia, the Niçoise had many points to defend to maintain her ranking.
The draw was not kind to the Niçoise. By ending up against the tournament’s No.1 seed, Jasmine Paolini (27 years old, ranked 30th in the world), Alizé Cornet would have a tough challenge for this first round. Especially since the player from Marseille had many points to defend this week, having reached the final in Monastir last year.
The start of the match was complicated for both players. Breaks occurred repeatedly up to the middle of the first set, partly due to the Italian’s devastating forehand. As usual, Alizé Cornet fought for every point. With courage, she managed to hold on until her service game at (5-4). At 15-30 for Paolini, the Niçoise got frustrated when her first serve was called out by the line judge. “I’m being robbed,” she could be heard saying. This situation caused her to lose focus in the match. That was all the Italian needed to secure two set points. But she didn’t even have to push further as the Azuréenne committed a double fault (6-4).
Back to the battle
Alizé Cornet remained furious. Frustration was evident on her face. She let the first twelve points of the second set slip away. It seemed a miracle was needed for the French player to catch up on the score. Especially since opposite her, Jasmine Paolini was playing a powerful tennis game with a hand capable of subtly placed shots.
Games went by and the Maralpine gradually regained her composure. Against the wall, she tried everything on the service of the Tuscan player. She garnered two break points which were eventually dismissed. After that, the motivation was less present. Jasmin Paolini took advantage to conclude the match in 1h20 (6-4/6-2).
A disappointing performance for the Niçoise, who will drop further in the rankings next week. She is expected to find herself around the 150th place in the world, marking a decline of nearly 90 places since August.
