Aiava rolls into Clare Valley semis
Fresh from her maiden Australian Pro Tour title in Perth, Destanee Aiava has reached the semifinal stage at the ITF $25,000 event in Clare Valley.
Clare Valley, SA, Australia, 3 March 2017 | David Packman
Destanee Aiava has taken another step towards claiming consecutive Australian Pro Tour titles after reaching the semifinals at the Clare Valley Tennis International on Friday.
After defeating Viktoria Kuzmova to win the Perth final last weekend, the Victorian teenager has repeated the dose, again ousting the Slovakian No.3 seed in straight sets.
While the 6-3 6-4 victory was not quite as comprehensive as the Perth meeting, in which Aiava only dropped two games, it remained an impressive display of power and poise.
“She played really well today, it was a bit tighter, but I got through,” Aiava said. “I’m just taking it one match at a time right now, I’ll see how I go tomorrow.”
The semifinal will see Aiava pitted against the tournament’s top seed, Brazilian Beatriz Haddad Maia, herself a straight sets winner over American qualifier Catherine Harrison.
Aiava, the No.6 seed in Clare Valley, had a glimpse of Haddad Maia in a losing doubles encounter on Thursday but admitted she still didn’t know much about her. “She’s the No.1 seed for a reason though,” she concluded.
The second semifinal will see in-form Czech Marketa Vondrousova take on French teenager Tessah Andrianjafitrimo after both posted comfortable victories.
In the concluding match on Friday, Haddad Maia stepped back on court to claim the doubles title with Australian Genevieve Lorbergs. The pair, who came through qualifying, had too much for third seeds Erika Sema of Japan and Canberra’s Alison Bai, winning 6-4 6-3.
The title marked a significant milestone for Lorbergs, the Melbournian playing in just her second ITF Circuit event. “If someone had told me I would win the doubles title at Clare, I would have told them they were joking,” Lorbergs said. “I’m absolutely ecstatic.
“It was a bonus to partner with one of the most passionate people I’ve ever met. Beatriz is just amazing on court and has such a great spirit. I certainly fed off her energy.”
Live scores of all Australian Pro Tour events are available through www.tennis.com.au/protour/scores and for a live stream of selected events visit www.tennis.com.au/protour.