Laura Mair Moves Into the Spotlight at the ITF Tournament
24.11.25
Laura Mair is moving into focus. The draw favored the 22-year-old, currently the second-best South Tyrolean player behind Verena Meliss. Under the supervision of Supervisor Pier Luigi Grana, Julia Peer and Noemi Basiletti drew the qualifiers. They handed Mair (WTA 586), who received a wildcard from TC Urtijei, a manageable first-round opponent. The player from Selva di Val Gardena will face Anastasiia Firman from Ukraine. The 18-year-old is ranked No. 831 in the world. Recently, Mair has struggled with switching from clay to hard courts. If she manages the transition, she could open with a successful start. The match begins tomorrow around 7 p.m.
The second round of qualifying produced some surprises on Monday. Germany’s Carolin Raschdorf defeated former world No. 20 Ana Konjuh. After nearly three hours, she beat the Croatian 6–4, 2–6, 7–6. Urszula Radwańska (also a former Top 30 player) narrowly escaped defeat. The Pole edged out Carlotta Moccia—the player who had defeated Lisa Peer—after a long battle, winning 6–4 in the third set. Weronika Falkowska remained dominant. Last year’s champion beat Mavie Österreicher in straight sets. She will now face Kathinka von Deichmann.
Noemi Maines is also in the main draw. The 19-year-old is from Trentino and has been training for several months at TC Rungg under coach Valerio Gasbarri. She has made several changes to her serve, forehand, and return. She sees these reflected in her game and says she has made “enormous progress.” In the first round on Tuesday, she will face wildcard player Camilla Zanolini, also part of the Rungg team. The first three main-draw matches have also been completed. Favorites prevailed: Australian Tina Nadine Smith (against Federica Urgesi) and Spain’s Eva Guerrero Alvarez (against Noemi Basiletti) both advanced. The third match, between Samira De Stefano and Raluca Georgiana Serban of Cyprus, went to a third set and was still ongoing at press time.
Tuesday will be demanding. Another 16 matches are scheduled. The highlight of the day comes in the evening: top seed Sofia Costoulas (WTA 150) will face Germany’s Noha Noma Akugue (WTA 302). The Belgian recently reached the semifinals of the WTA 125 tournament in Rovereto. Akugue impressed there with her hard, fast shots and reached the quarterfinals. The final match of the day is also intriguing: Silvia Ambrosio, the third TC Rungg player competing on Tuesday in Ortisei, will face young Italian Vittoria Paganetti. The match day begins at 9 a.m. and is expected once again to last until midnight.
