Semenistaja loses in Hamburg WTA 250 first round

The WTA 250 clay court tournament has started in Hamburg, Germany. Latvia's second-ranked tennis player Darja Semenistaja (WTA 109) lost in the first round to Austrian Sinja Kraus (WTA 80) with a score of 6:3, 3:6, 2:6. Kraus was the favorite with bookmaker odds of 1.29.

In the first set, Semenistaja took a 3:1 lead after Kraus made two errors. The score leveled at 3:3, but in the eighth game the Latvian convincingly broke the Austrian's serve to lead 5:3, closing the set 6:3. In the second set, Semenistaja lost her serve twice, falling behind 0:4. She managed one break back but lost the set 3:6. Kraus received medical attention between sets.

In the third set, the Latvian failed to hold serve three times, trailing 0:5. She saved two match points, reduced the deficit to 1:5, but eventually lost 2:6. Their head-to-head record now stands at 0-3 in favor of Kraus.

Statistically, Semenistaja hit one ace and committed two double faults, while Kraus had 11 double faults. The Latvian's first serve points won percentage was 43%, second serve 45%, compared to Kraus's 50% and 52%. Semenistaja converted 6 of 16 break points, Kraus 8 of 13.

This loss extends Semenistaja's record against Top 100 players to 5-26. For her first-round appearance, she earns €2,663 and one WTA ranking point. In the unofficial live rankings, the Latvian is in 106th place.