Jessica Bouzas Maneiro stepped in for an injured Paula Badosa and delivered a win for Spain. Ranked No. 193 and making her WTA main draw debut, the 20-year-old defeated Olivia Gadecki 6-2, 6-2 to give Spain a 2-1 lead over Australia at the United Cup.
Albert Ramos Vinolas will face Australia's Jason Kubler in the final singles match of the tie. With Great Britain already confirmed as the winner of Group D, neither Spain or Australia will advance out of the group stage.
Spain's WTA No. 1 Badosa was ruled out of the match due to shoulder injury, giving Bouzas Maneiro a fantastic opportunity to earn her first WTA win. Gadecki, ranked No. 202, was also a late call-up, replacing an injured Zoe Hives.
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The match pitted two relatively inexperienced 20-year-olds against each other for pride and ranking points. The closest Bouzas Maneiro had previously come to the main tour was three failed qualifying campaigns, twice in Madrid and once in Tenerife.
In contrast, despite having played just six main draw matches on the WTA Tour, Gadecki can already count a Top 5 win to her name. As an 18-year-old, Gadecki stunned then-No.4 Sofia Kenin at the 2021 Phillip Island Trophy.
Bouzas Maneiro handled the occasion like a veteran. Serving at 77 per cent for the match, she won 70 per cent of her first-serve points while saving two of the three break points she faced. Gadecki struggled under the Spaniard's return pressure, getting broken five times in the 80-minute match.
from Tennis - ATP World Tour https://ift.tt/fmWUOl4
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