Daria Saville's stunning three-year first in tennis resurgence
Aussie tennis star Daria Saville has continued her remarkable surge up the tennis rankings, despite her falling to opponent Maria Sakkari in the Round of 16 at the Berlin Championship.
Saville was no match for Sakkari as the World No.6 ran away with the match 6-1, 7-5 to move into the quarter-final.
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But there was a huge consolation for the Melbourne player as Saville could celebrate returning to the WTA's Top 100 for the first time since August 2019 after a debilitating battle with injury.
The 28-year-old, who was ranked as low as World No.627 at the start of February, has risen over 500 places in four-and-a-half months, featuring tremendous performances in Indian Wells and Miami.
She was also the Australian singles player, man or woman, to advance the furthest in the recent French Open.
Before losing to Sakkari, the Aussie tennis star booked her place in the last 16 of the tournament in Berlin, after a brilliant come-from-behind victory over Switzerland's Jil Teichmann.
Saville will join 45th-ranked Ajla Tomljanovic as the only other Australian woman in the Top 100, when she moves to World No.95.
Daria Saville's wild wardrobe blunder
While the Aussie made the Last 16 in the Berlin tournament, her campaign was briefly disrupted due to a wardrobe disaster.
Aussie revealed before the tournament she had lost her shoes on the autobahn on the way to Berlin.
“Was travelling to Berlin by car and my only grass court shoes flew on autobahn including my tennis bag and some other stuff lol. I still have rackets tho,” Saville wrote on social media.
It’s funny but also not funny cause I don’t have grass court shoes for when I play on Saturday 🥲 pray for me pic.twitter.com/yrYUpzSI2M
— Daria Saville (@Daria_gav) June 8, 2022
In Saville said she was lucky to be able to borrow a pair of old shoes from Aussie compatriot Storm Sanders prior to her victory over Lisicki - which was the 28-year-old's first win on grass since 2019.
After seeing Saville progress past Teichmann in her superb comeback win on Monday, Sanders took to social media to hail the "good luck shoes" that she'd bestowed upon her fellow Aussie.
with AAP
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