Injury drama for Jule Niemeier, favorites fall - and now spectacular quarterfinal duels

The spectators gave a thumbs up. As encouragement. They didn't know then that the thumb was the problem. The thumb of Jule Niemeier! The player from Dortmund had impressed the crowd at the bett1open presented by ecotrans Group with her courageous play and, above all, her huge fighter's heart. But her so impressive Berlin performance ended with a shock on Thursday afternoon in the round of 16. 

At 5:5 and 15:30 in the second set, she had already fought off a match point against Marketa Vondrousova, the right-hander stumbled and fell on her right wrist. It was immediately clear that this could be something serious. After a break for treatment, she bravely played the tenth game of the set to the end. But after her first service attempt in the following game, she had to break off. Worse than the 3:6, 5:6 defeat are the probing questions: What are the consequences of the injury? Is her start at Wimbledon in jeopardy? Niemeier fought back tears, while the spectators in the Steffi Graf Stadium gave a chorus of encouragement. Together with a thumbs up! All the best, Jule! 

"I fell with my thumb on the handle of the racket and realized relatively quickly that I can no longer move my thumb," Niemeier explained afterwards. Needless to say, she canceled the doubles match scheduled for later in the afternoon alongside Noma Noha Akugue. What consequences does June 22 now have for Jule Niemeier in the 2023 season? That is still open. For the Steffi Graf Stadium continues to become a trapdoor for favorites. 

Defending champion Ons Jabeur (seeded fourth) was defeated by Niemeier in the first round. Wimbledon winner Elena Rybakina (seeded second) is also out. Now it's also away instead of winner's check for top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff (seeded fifth).

The four quarterfinals scheduled for Friday are nevertheless worth every anticipation!

Sabalenka was not at all up to scratch in the opening set against Veronika Kudermetova and lost 2:6. But she improved in the second set, nevertheless she still failed 6:7. Kudermetova, who is starting by wildcard, played refreshingly and has now won the second of five duels against Sabalenka.

Even before that, tennis fans on their sun-drenched courts had been wondering: How can a world-class player firmly established in the top 10 let a match slip away like that? Coco Gauff had made a good start in her round of 16 match against Ekaterina Alexandrova, leading 3:1, but the US player still lost 4:6 and even 0:6. "I made far too many unnecessary mistakes," Gauff was self-critical afterwards, although she took some comfort in the fact that her start to the grass-court season had also been bumpy last year. Alexandrova, on the other hand, was pleased: "Grass is and remains not my favorite surface. But playing on grass still suits me."

Parallel to Gauff's defeat, Sabine Lisicki also had to bow out of the tournament for good. In the doubles alongside Daria Kastakina, she lost 3:6 and 4:6 to Desirae Krawczyk/Demi Schuurs. However, it remains to be said: Sabine Lisicki gave a great performance at her hometown tournament in her home club. In the singles, she had lost in the first round to the reigning world champion Caroline Garcia, but the latter nevertheless said appreciatively: "If Sabine stays healthy, she can definitely move further up the world rankings again."

Maria Sakkari of Greece (seeded six) is also aiming for her first ever title on grass. Her round of 16 match against Aliaksandra Sasnovich (WTA rank 70) was the first meeting between the two. Sakkari lived up to her role as favorite from the first rally: 6:2 in the first set. An early break to make it 2-0 in the second set was the clincher, and Sakkari marched consistently into the last eight with a 6-1 win and was delighted: "I'm enjoying the city, it's a great tournament - and I couldn't be happier. It's also been a long time since I've won so clearly."

The action now resumes on Friday, starting at 11 am. It's going to be a racy quarterfinal day. Things get underway at 11 a.m. in the Steffi Graf Stadium.

Ekaterina Alexandrova will then take on Veronika Kudermetova. Alexandrova has already won the grass court tournament in Den Bosch this year and presents herself in splendid grass court form.

After that it gets even more prominent: World champion Caroline Garcia (seeded third) against Petra Kvitova (seeded seventh), who has already won in Wimbledon twice.

Maria Sakkari (seeded six) will then take on Marketa Vondrousova. Finally, lucky loser Elina Avanesyan and Donna Vekic will face each other.