Former Roland Garros finalist Sara Errani and semifinalist Tamara Zidansek were among the players to advance to the third and final round of the qualifying event at the tournament on Wednesday.
Errani, who finished runner-up to Maria Sharapova in Paris 12 years ago, stormed through her second round match against French wild card Alice Tubello, 6-2, 6-1. The top seed in qualifying, now 37 years old, will face Romania’s Elena-Gabriela Ruse for a spot in her 14th main draw in Paris.
Meanwhile, 2021 semifinalist Zidansek came from a set down to defeat 2023 Hamburg finalist Noma Noha Akugue, 4-6, 6-4, 6-1, to set a final round match against sixth-seeded American Hailey Baptiste, who was a winner against Austria's Sinja Kraus in a match that was twice interrupted by rain.
Of the eight Top 10 qualifying seeds that reached the second round, seven will play for a main-draw place. The lone upset was authored by 2021 US Open junior champion Robin Montgomery, 19, who defeated No.4 seed Brenda Fruhvirtova in a match between teenagers.
Montgomery came from 4-1 down in the second set, and the same score in the eventual tiebreak, in a 6-3, 7-6(5) win. Montgomery will face France’s Leolia Jeanjean for a main-draw place. The Frenchwoman’s previous pedigree at her home Grand Slam includes a third-round effort in 2022.
2022 US Open junior champion Alex Eala, already the highest-ranked player from the Philippines in Hologic WTA Tour history, now hopes for a Roland Garros main-draw debut. The 18-year-old defeated another member of the class of 2005, Aussie Taylah Preston, from a set behind to earn a spot against Julia Riera of Argentina, who has lost just seven games in her two qualifying matches.
Other notable names bidding for a main-draw place are 2022 Wimbledon quarterfinalist Jule Niemeier of Germany, the fifth seed; Canadian 19-year-old Marina Stakusic, one of the heroes of her country’s first-ever Billie Jean King Cup title last fall; former World No.21 Jil Teichmann; and Slovakia’s Rebecca Sramkova, who just reached the fourth round of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia last week.
