By Bill Roumeliotis.
Greek tennis players, Despina Papamichail and Valentini Grammatikopoulou, went to battle in the first round of the Australian Open qualifiers in Melbourne, Victoria on Tuesday.
Papamichail advanced to the second qualifying phase of the AO by defeating Hungarian tennis player Reka Luca Jani with 2-0 sets 6-1, 6-0.
The Preveza tennis player qualified in the second phase of the AO qualifiers for the first time in her career with a great performance.
The Greek tennis player is now set to compete against Serbian Olga Danilovic in the second round to qualify for the finals.
In an exclusive interview with The Greek Herald on Tuesday, Papamichail said, “I want the Greek fans near me to come to the game, to support me and celebrate my success together.”
After qualifying, Papamichail wish came true as she recognised her Greek fans who were at the event in Melbourne and joined them for a group photo.
Grammatikopoulou faced Spanish Marina Bassols Ribera, No.18 on the board and No.123 in the world ranking, in the first phase of the qualifiers in the fight to the finals of the AO.
The Greek tennis player was prematurely eliminated after being defeated by Ribera with 2-0 sets 6-1, 6-1.
