From October 5 to 18, the National Tennis Center of Moldova will host two consecutive ITF World Women’s Tournaments. Tennis Tour category W15. The prize fund for each tournament will be $15,000. The preliminary list for the first tournament includes tennis players from Switzerland, Romania, Italy, Germany, and other countries. Participants include professional title holders, promising juniors ranked in the top 35 in the world, and Felicita Dorofeeva- Rybas , who holds Russian-Moldovan citizenship.
Tennis competitions The Europe National Tennis Center is preparing for the next stage of the international tennis season. First, from October 5th to 11th, the inaugural W15 Chisinau tournament will be held on its outdoor clay courts. The second tournament will begin the following day and conclude on October 18th. The official ball for the competition is Dunlop. Australian Open.
Two tournaments in a row are a convenient opportunity for the participants to spend several weeks in one location, gain additional match practice, and compete for ranking points. For Moldovan tennis players, this is also a chance to perform at a professional level in front of a home crowd.
The preliminary list for the first tournament is headed by 26-year-old Swiss Katerina Tsygurova , ranked 423rd in the WTA rankings. She has considerable experience competing in international ITF competitions. She is well-versed in clay courts and enters the tournament in Chisinau as the number one seed.
-
- Andreea Prisăcariu
-
- Marie Mettraux
-
- Felitsata Dorofeeva-Rybas
W15 Chisinau
Next in line is Romanian Andreea Prisăcariu, ranked 478th in the world. She has seven singles and eleven doubles ITF titles, and in May 2022, she climbed to 304th in the world rankings. In January of this year, Prisăcariu won the W35 tournament in Antalya, defeating Spain’s Carlota in the final. Martinez Sires. Thus, the Romanian tennis player already has experience successfully competing in higher-level competitions.
Third on the direct entry list is another Swiss player, Marie Mettro, ranked 511th in the WTA rankings. This season, she won the W15 tournament in Kuršumlija Banja, Serbia. For Mettro, the performance in Chisinau will be an opportunity to add to her collection of professional titles.
Among the participants is also the Italian Enola Chiesa, ranked 541st in the world, Germany’s Franziska Schidat , ranked 555th in the WTA rankings, and Maria Kalyakina, ranked 596th in the world and 49th in the ITF rankings.
Rybas deserves special attention. The tennis player, who holds Russian-Moldovan citizenship, is ranked ninth on the preliminary direct entry list. At the time of publication of her application, she is ranked 721st in the WTA rankings, 637th in the ITF rankings, and 11th in the world junior rankings.
This combination of rankings makes her performance particularly interesting. Felicita is already accumulating points on the adult tour, while simultaneously remaining one of the world’s strongest juniors. W15 tournaments offer her the opportunity to continue her transition to the professional level, gain additional match practice, and test her strength against more experienced opponents.
For Moldovan fans, her participation will be one of the main reasons to follow the competition. However, the final seeding and potential opponents for Dorofeeva and Rybas will only be determined after the tournament draw is finalized.
A significant portion of the preliminary field is made up of Romanian tennis players. In addition to Prisăcariu , the main draw also includes Bianca Elena Bărbulescu , Diana-Ioana Simionescu and Alesia Breaz . The list also includes Polish singer Zuzanna. Bednaj , Colombian Maria Erazo and Czech Michaela Bayerlova .
An interesting feature of the tournament will be the participation of three Romanian juniors, who received places in the main draw through a special Junior procedure. Reserved, intended for athletes from the top hundred of the world junior rankings.
Maya Ilinka Burcescu is ranked 25th among juniors and is already ranked 835th in the WTA rankings. Maria Valentina Pop is ranked 34th in the junior rankings, and Giulia Safina Popa is ranked 35th and 822nd in the WTA rankings.
For these athletes, W15 tournaments become an important step in their transition from junior to senior tennis. They have the opportunity to face opponents with significantly more professional experience and gradually adapt to the demands of the international tour.
Thus, tennis players at various stages of their careers will meet on the courts of the National Tennis Center: experienced professionals with ITF titles, young players already accumulating WTA ranking points, and juniors just beginning their journey in adult tennis.
Qualifying also promises to be interesting. First on the preliminary list is Belgium’s Lisa Cleijs , ranked 803rd in the WTA rankings. She is followed by Romania’s Sara Victoria Balan and Arina Gabriela. Vasilescu , as well as Poland’s Anna Hertel. The ranking difference between the players at the bottom of the direct entry list and the top qualifiers is relatively small, so the battle to reach the main draw could be quite intense.
Particular attention will be paid to Moldovan tennis players: all wild The organizers’ available cards for both the main draw and qualifying rounds will be awarded to Moldovan players. For young athletes, this is an opportunity to play at a professional level at home, gain important international experience, and compete for their first or additional WTA ranking points.
For the Moldovan Tennis Federation, hosting two consecutive W15 tournaments is an important step in developing the international competition calendar. In addition to offering an opportunity to see professional women’s tennis, such tournaments create conditions for local athletes to participate, earn ranking points, and gain experience competing at the international level.
According to the published fact sheet, qualifying for the first tournament will begin on October 4, with the main draw matches following on October 6. Thirty-two tennis players will compete in the singles, and 16 teams will participate in the doubles tournament. The competition director is Natalia Belibova.
The winner of the first W15 Chisinau tournament will be determined on October 11, after which the second tournament in the series will immediately pick up the baton. Two weeks of professional women’s tennis await, during which spectators will be able to see both experienced international tour players and promising young athletes looking to take the next step in their careers.
