At the Miami Open, advantage qualifiers

MIAMI -- Taylor Townsend was chatting with reporters Thursday after knocking off No.25 seed Elise Mertens at the Miami Open. She seemed surprised when told that one more win here on Saturday would vault her into a career-high ranking.

“I think everyone’s goal is to get as high ranked as possible,” Townsend said. She came into Miami ranked No.72.  “All I care about is that [the ranking] gets me in the main draw of the tournament. I don’t want to have to keep qualifying.”

She was laughing, as she often does, but the serious truth is that her best results have come in tournaments where she was forced to qualify her way into the main draw. This is the third time she’s played qualifying this year -- and the third time she’s won her first-round match. The victory over Mertens thrust her into the third round, her best result this year.

“I think it’s a mental thing,” Townsend said, “knowing you kind of earned your way in. Plus, you get a chance to work yourself into the courts and conditions.”

It’s a combination that’s worked marvelously here in Miami. Of the 12 players who prevailed in two qualifying matches, nine won their first-round matches -- all but one beating higher-ranked players. Greet Minnen, a lucky loser, is into the third round along with Townsend after a straight-sets victory over Lesia Tsurenko.

Over the next couple of days, no fewer than six qualifying winners will attempt to join them: Maria Timofeeva, Katie Volynets, Storm Hunter, Emiliana Arango, Nadia Podoroska and Claire Liu.

There’s a hidden force in sports, one that can’t be seen -- but is most certainly felt. It’s called momentum, and it’s an actual law of nature. And while heading into the main draw with two wins is a physical fact, there’s also a psychological benefit.

“You get to come through those tough matches and you have that belief in yourself, you’re feeling confident,” said Hunter, who defeated No.61 Martina Trevisan in the first round. “And then those players in main draw, they haven’t played yet -- they’re having that pressure of being in those moments without the recent experience.

“Qualifiers, being in that moment, you’re making decisions, backing yourself -- you get the sense that you’re doing the right thing.”

Being a qualifier in Miami, for a number of reasons, can offer a distinct advantage. While there were 10 qualifiers in the second round this year, the totals for the past two years was an astounding 11 each. Meanwhile, the three-year numbers at Indian Wells were: seven, six and nine.

Townsend explained why.

“Coming from Indian Wells, it’s cool, and we’re playing in long sleeves and tights,” she said. “Here, it was 90 degrees. I was like `Oh, my God, I’m dying.’ So it was great for me to get acclimated.”

Upon arrival from Indian Wells on Saturday, Townsend went directly to Hard Rock Stadium and hit on one of the outside courts for about 20 minutes. The next day she defeated Laura Pigossi 6-4, 6-4 and, on Monday, Emina Bektas 6-2, 5-7, 6-3. In the main draw, she was a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 winner over No.49 Lucia Bronzetti. The victory over Mertens was her fourth in five days.

“And it’s not just the temperature,” Townsend said. “The courts out there are a lot slower, not as bouncy. It’s [drier] in Indian Wells, so the ball flies through the air. We’re using different balls, Penn at Indian Wells, Dunlops here.

“My body had to adjust to all of that in real time. I struggled the first few days but was able to get two matches under my belt. Hey, I got through it. Now, I’m just chilling.”

That was the case for Anna Kalinskaya in Dubai, in one of the early season’s best qualifying stories.

The 25-year-old began the year ranked No.80 and was forced to qualify for the Adelaide International, where she defeated Top 10 player Barbora Krejcikova. A quarterfinal run at the Australian Open moved her up dramatically but too late for the main-draw entry deadline at the Dubai Duty Free Championships.

And so, Kalinskaya won her two qualifying matches to secure a spot in the main draw of the WTA Tour 1000 event. And then put together a sensational streak, beating three Top 10 players -- No.1 Iga Swiatek, No.3 Coco Gauff and No.9 Jelena Ostapenko -- on the way to the final. She took the first set against Jasmine Paolini but eventually fell in three.

“For me,” Kalinskaya said, “playing the matches is the best practice you get. You work on your mentality during the match, the pressure. Maybe you don’t feel as fresh as the top-seeded players, but if you want to be good, you have to pass through the qualifying.

“I’m happy to see so many qualifiers here doing well.”

Dayana Yastremska had a similarly surreal journey in Melbourne earlier this year. She won three qualifying matches -- and then five more on her way to the Australian Open semifinals, the best result of her career.

“It was crazy hard,” Yastremska said. “Now I am on a bye, and I respect myself a lot for earning that opportunity by fighting through qualies.”

For players ranked outside the Top 50, the qualies take on an even more critical role. The money and ranking points at stake can make a real difference. In Miami, those 10 qualifiers received $23,250 and 10 points for reaching the main draw. The rewards from the second ($34,500, 35 points) and third rounds ($59,100, 65 points) were substantial.

A good run like Kalinskaya’s or Yastremska’s can be the difference between breaking even for the season -- and coming out ahead.

Which is where Townsend finds herself at the moment. With a win over No.4 seed Elena Rybakina, she could move into the Top 60. Her career-high ranking is No.61.

She can thank those qualies.

“I feel like sometimes people underestimate the qualifying fields,” Townsend said. “It’s really, really high-level players. It’s not scrubs.

“You get to work out the kinks, figure out where you’re at and how you feel. My goal is to not have to do that … but it’s working right now.”