Colombian tennis player Mariana Duque has advanced to the second round of Roland
Garros, beating Russian Anna Chakvetadze against all odds.
The 19-year-old, born in Bogotá, faced a tough challenge against the seeded Chakvetadze, 26th on the women’s world ranking. Initially, things went as expected as the Russian won the opening set 6-3.
But Duque then began to improve her performance and went on to win the second set 6-4. In the first set, Chakvetadze could no longer compete with her opponent who finished it off with another 6-4 result, 2-1 in sets.
In the second round, Duque faces Slovakian Jarmila Groth, ranked 73rd. The Colombian herself currently occupies the 124th position.
The second round appearance will be Duque’s second after having managed to survive the first round at last year’s US Open as well.