Nicole Vaidisova makes first WTA main draw since comeback, to face Ana Ivanovic in Monterrey

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Wilson Blade 9

Nicole Vaidisova used to be one of the most promising young players, but then while still on the rise she retired and got married in 2010. In 2013 she separated from her husband, fellow tennis player Radek Stepanek, then found a new beaustarted making a comeback and now at the Abierto Monterrey Afirme in Mexico we have big news — the 25-year-old Czech has made her first WTA main draw since returning to tennis. Has there been something in the stars for the Czech Republic lately? This week they have four names in the Top 20 and now Vaidisova is also making a breakthrough!

The former world No.7 shared this selfie on Instagram, saying:

So happy and proud to make it in my first WTA main draw tournament, it’s been so long.

In the Monterrey qualifying rounds Vaidisova got past Makoto Ninomiya, Lucie Hradecka and Arina Rodionova, while her first-round opponent will be top seed and defending champion Ana Ivanovic. Tough luck! But Vaidisova does have one victory over Ivanovic, in the 2007 Sydney quarterfinals. Their head-to-head record is 3-1 and one of those three losses was a three-setter in the 2007 Wimbledon quarterfinals. Vaidisova and Ivanovic used to be neck to neck before Vaidisova lost track, so even though she’s probably not ready to scare the Serb now, this match-up is surely exciting!

15 COMMENTS

  1. OMG! I few months back I was wondering/hoping she would make a comeback… she was always someone I considered extremely talented (a talent that went to waste)… and now she’s facing my girl, Ivanovic….. I’ll be staying late tonight, just to watch them play…

  2. Saudin, as expected, Nicole lost to Ana, but she did manage to win five of six games in the second set to go from 0-3 to 5-4, eventually, though, she lost 6-1 7-6(4).

  3. I saw some of the match, and I thought Nicole was pretty impressive despite losing. As the season goes on, I’m positive we’ll see her rise in the rankings and qualifying for more tournaments

  4. And I love it how Anna Chakvetadze tweeted: “Ivanovic vs Vaidisova in Monterrey! Like old times … :)”. If only she would return as well! 🙂 She’s the same generation.

  5. Great tweet from Chakvetadze, I could’nt agree more….. she did very well, and played some very very good tennis in that second set. Question: Are we more excited that it was her first match in a main draw in a very long time or that the first match she played in a main draw was particulary against Ivanovic?

  6. It was a good match even though Nicole lost to Ana. She was playing amazing in the qualies this week. I hope other international events grant her a wildcard. For me (as early as now), Nicole Vaidisova is my comeback player of the year. Congrats to Ana. I hope she defends her title.

  7. @Marija I’d die of happiness if chakvetadze returns as well 😀 I literally can’t say how happy i’m to see theses 2 playing each other again :’) I want her to be at her best again and challenge the top ( I’m especially waiting for nicole vs petra 😀 )

  8. Saudin, both things. We were excited that it was her first main draw appearance since comeback and it was icing on the cake that her first opponent was Ana.

    Sru, I also remember the times when Chakvetadze and Vaidisova ruled the tennis courts and I have special emotions for that period since that’s about the time when I started blogging 🙂 Chakvetadze is still connected to the tennis world, but she’s not mentioning a return. Tatiana Golovin also belongs in this category!

  9. It’s always exciting when a former pro comes back to the tour. Who knows, maybe Nicole inspired Anna and Tatiana with her performance? 😀

    She’s not the same generation, but did you see the tweet from Marion Bartoli? It sounds like she’s missing the game too! She’s hinting at a comeback

  10. Ga, Tatiana has been away for way too long. But who knows, never say never. About Bartoli, I’ve seen that tweet and all the media were reporting about it. Like she asked her fans if she should return or not. Has she made the decision? No new tweets after that.

  11. yea i remember those times too marija. happy times when i thought all of my fav’s were ruling the courts and all of a sudden within one year they sunk because of unfortunate circumstances (vaidisova’s marriage , anna got looted, ana’s confidence was playing hide and seek with her ). what happenend to tatiana is soo unfortunate she had such a promising career

  12. and about bartoli I always had feeling that she’d comeback but I thought she’d comeback to defend her title but she didn’t. May be if she does she’ll do it by FO or Wimbledon

  13. Sru, about Bartoli, I don’t know, I doubt that her chronic pain could miraculously just go away. If she comes back, I’m not sure for how long she’ll be able to sustain it. The physical demand is high, very high.

  14. Well regardless of whether any of them come back, they all seem to be enjoying life, which is fine with me 🙂

    It looks like Nicole got a wildcard for Miami! That will be really interesting, especially if she plays a big name player

  15. Ga, yeah, Nicole got a main draw wildcard! Laura Robson is coming back from injury and she got a wildcard into qualifying.

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