Sixteen double faults and a win anyway
Alycia Parks got through. Barely. And only after a match that makes very little sense on paper. The American beat compatriot Varvara Lepchenko 6-3, 1-6, 7-5 in the first round of the Guadalajara Open overnight.
Her numbers tell their own strange story. Parks landed 44.2% of her first serves, 38 from 86. Sixteen double faults. Ten aces too, because of course. A serve that gives with one hand and takes back with the other.
She trailed 5-3 in the third. Then she took the last four games. Survival, not control.
The match was never supposed to happen. Parks was drawn against Egypt’s Mayar Sherif, who pulled out for an undisclosed reason. Lepchenko came in as the alternate.
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Boisson falls on three break points, Parry waits
Lois Boisson went out in three sets to Hungary’s Panna Udvardy, 6-4, 6-7 (6), 6-2. The decider hinged on break points: Udvardy saved all three she faced and converted two of her three. In a draw this tight, that is usually the whole match.
Diane Parry, the No. 4 seed, has not started yet. She opens in the second round against American Peyton Stearns, who brushed past Colombia’s Emiliana Arango 6-3, 6-2.
The other seeds held. Indonesia’s Janice Tjen, seeded fifth, beat Czech Darja Vidmanova 7-6 (6), 6-2. Spain’s Cristina Bucsa, the sixth seed, closed the day by overpowering Bianca Andreescu 6-4, 6-3.
The draw is already getting nasty
For Parks, the next one looks a good deal harder. Waiting is Czech Sara Bejlek, the No. 3 seed, who had a first-round bye and arrives fresh.
A long opening scrap against a rested opponent. The Mexican schedule is not handing out favors. If the serve stays where it is, the bill comes due fast.
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