HONG KONG.- The veteran American tennis player Venus Williamsformer world number 1 and winner of seven Grand Slams, suffered his 17th consecutive defeat on the circuit after losing this Monday to his compatriot Mary Stoianain the first round of the tournament Hong Kong.
The eldest of the Williams sisters, 46 years old, was defeated 6-2, 6-3 by Stoiana, a hitherto almost unknown player who is currently ranked 114th and who has never won a tournament.
Williams, despite having the support of the public, could not avoid another defeat in a series that has led her to fall to 597th place in the WTA ranking.
Venus has not won a singles match on the WTA circuit since July of last year.
Last week he lost in straight sets in the Guangzhou Open before the Austrian teenager Lilli Tagger.
Before that, Williams last played the US Open in August, where they lost in the first round against Sofia Keninagain without winning a single set.
Djokovic struggles to advance in Paris
The Serbian Novak Djokovic (11th in the world) suffered to defeat the Monegasque this Tuesday Valentin Vacherot (27th) in the first round of the Paris Masters 1000.
The former world number one won 6-7 (5/7), 7-5, 6-1 after more than two and a half hours of play, which allows him to continue dreaming of being in the Masters at the end of the season in Turin.
The seven-time winner of the Parisian tournament must, at least, reach the semifinals to aspire to be among the eight best of the season in the event in Italyfrom November 15 to 22.
This Tuesday he had to make an effort to come back against the Monegasque team, who had defeated him in their first match, in the semifinals of Shanghai in 2025.
With a set and a break down, Djokovic had a difficult time against a Vacherot who had just won his second title on Sunday at the Basel ATP 500.
“I knew when I entered the court it was going to be a very close match and it was,” Djokovic told reporters. “He is very confident and is one of the best servers we have on the circuit,” he added about Vacherot.
Deprived of seed status, “Nole” had not played a first round at the Paris Masters 1000 since 2005, when he was ranked 85th in the world ranking.
In the next round, the 39-year-old Serbian giant will face the Australian Rinky Hijikatacoming from the previous ones.
For the winner of 24 Grand Slam titles, it marked a return to the path of victory in category tournaments. ATP 1000 for the first time since their presence in the round of 16 in Indian Wells last March.
Among the Latin American representatives, the day brought lights and shadows.
Tomás Martín Etcheverry (31st) eliminated the Russian Andrey Rublev (22nd) by 6-4, 6-7 (4/7), 7-6 (7/3) and qualified for the third time in his career to the second round of the Parisian tournament on hard surfaces, where he will face the Australian Alex de Minaur.
Your compatriot Francisco Cerúndolo (20th), the best-placed Latin American racket in the ATP rankings, had to abandon due to injury against the Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech (68th) after having won the first set and lost the second.
The Paraguayan also said goodbye when he entered the fray. Adolfo Daniel Vallejo (56th), arrived at the main draw as a “lucky loser”, and couldn’t beat the American Learner Tien (19th): 6-3, 5-7, 7-5.
