Ukraine’s Dayana Yastremska finished the first round of the Lyon tennis tournament in tears on Tuesday after beating Romania’s Ana Bogdan 3-6 7-6 (7) 7-6 (7) in three hours and five minutes. saving two race points. .
Recipient of the invitation two days before the Russian army invaded Ukraine, Yastremska, just 21 years old, former 21st in the world and now 140th, ended the game in tears and on her knees, feeling the applause of the Lyon audience.
Jastremska was able to overcome the emotion being very strong mentally in the main moments of the match.
“In those moments, I realized it was nothing compared to what was happening or the moments I went through to get here and it really does not matter,” he said.
A little tense, she left the first set to her opponent 6-3 before recovering during an undecided second set until the end in which she saved a match point at 5-6 before tying to play the decisive game she won 9- 7.
At the end of the last set, after losing three match points as they led 6-3 in the tiebreak of the third set, overcome with emotion, in turn saved another game with a ball at 6-7 before scoring the next three points. to win 9-7.
“I have never played such a match in my life with so much stress. I was really nervous. I tried to stay focused on the match, I was thinking point by point, but it was still difficult. I’m proud that I was able to win today. “I was very motivated,” he commented.
The actress left her country where she left her parents, through a trip that took her to Romania before going to Lyon, on Sunday, with her sister, Ivanna (15 years old), with whom she challenged the double, on Monday, for a first round match they lost.
Dayana Yastremska will face in the second round, on Thursday, the Spaniard Cristina Bucsa, winner on Monday from the French Alizé Cornet and from the qualifiers.
