Here we go! Six Germans play for six places in the main draw

For one week, the ecotrans Ladies Open will be the big stage for the biggest stars in world women's tennis. Superstars such as Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff, Naomi Osaka and Angelique Kerber will be competing for the title on the grass at Berlin's Steffi Graf Stadium. On Saturday, June 15, the draw will determine who will compete against whom in the main draw from Monday.

But the grass-court spectacle begins tomorrow, Saturday, with the start of qualifying. Six places for the main draw will be played out on Saturday and Sunday. And six German players want to take advantage of this opportunity! One thing is certain: this weekend, the LTTC "Rot-Weiß" e. V. facility will host some thrilling tennis. 

The matches will be played from 10.30 a.m. in the Steffi Graf Stadium and on Courts 1 and 2. It will be a jam-packed tennis Saturday with twelve matches. The twelve winners will then play for the six main draw tickets on Sunday.

The German squad consists of Tamara Korpatsch (WTA rank 77/29 years), Ella Seidel (WTA rank 158/19 years), Noma Noha Akugue (WTA rank 175/20 years), Lena Papadakis (WTA rank 191/25 years), Mara Guth (WTA rank 553/20 years) and Anica Stabel (24 years). Noma Noha Akugue, Lena Papadakis, Mara Guth and Anica Stabel have received a wildcard to present themselves in Berlin.

It is worth taking a look at the German players for various reasons. Last year, for example, Noma Noha Akugue (20) narrowly failed to qualify against Jule Niemeier (who now has a wildcard for the main draw).

Will the Hamburg native make it into the main draw this time? It would be a coup. Because her opponent is the Czech Katerina Siniakova (WTA rank 42). But Akugue can deliver on the big stage. She showed that above all when she made it all the way to the final of the highly competitive European Open in Hamburg in 2023 and was only defeated there (by Arantxa Rus, who is also competing in the qualifiers in Berlin).
Before Akugue, Ella Seidel duels with Emina Bektas, and the German doesn't stand a chance against the American (WTA rank 96).
Tamara Korpatsch will be up against Yullia Starodubtseva. For the Ukrainian, the duel in the Steffi Graf Stadium is a home match, as she normally plays for the host club LTTC "Rot-Weiß" e. V..

Anica Stabel and Lena Papadakis will also be competing for the Red & Whites at club level. In their matches against Veronica Kudermetova (WTA rank 34) and Rebeka Masarova (WTA rank 103), they are certainly underdogs. This also applies to Mara Guth against China's Xinyu Wang (WTA rank 40).
But what does outsider mean?  Lyudmila Samsonova was also an outsider in Berlin in 2021. 
And she sensationally won the tournament after qualifying.