‘s-Hertogenbosch (Netherlands) – The first of the WTA 250 matches at ‘s-Hertogenbosch was a victory for the main favorites. But while Veronika Kudermetova and Victoria Azarenka won their matches quite easily, tournament number 2 Liudmila Samsonova made her grass season debut with a 3:40 battle. World number 15 Samsonova beat German qualifier Lena Papadakis on Monday by 7/5, 6/7 (5-7) and 7/6 (7-3).

Samsonova, who has a title on the grass from Berlin in 2021, had her ups and downs in the service games of the first match. She fired 11 aces and committed 10 double faults. But despite facing 14 break points, she only conceded two breaks, and managed to break her opponent’s serve three times. The Russian could face fellow 20-year-old Polina Kudermetova or China’s Yue Yuan in the round of 16.

3h40m on grass!! 🥵@LiudaSamsonova exceeds the Papadakis qualifier and in the #LibemaOpen last 16 pic.twitter.com/9vFLQKP0CL

– wta (@WTA) June 12, 2023

Kudermetova advances, Azarenka saves five set points
Main seed Veronika Kudermetova, world number 14, led the match against American Alison Riske 6-3, 3-0 when her rival withdrew with a knee injury. Her opponent in the round of 16 is Canadian qualifier Carol Zhao, 163rd in the standings, who beat Belgian Ysaline Bonaventure by 7/6 (7-3) and 7/6 (7-4).

Former world No. 1 Victoria Azarenka, currently 19th in the standings, beat Serbian qualifier Natalija Stevanovic, 231st, by 7/6 (7-5) and 6/3. Azarenka saved five set points in the first set and didn’t see serve threatened in the second set, only winning one break. After the match, the 33-year-old experienced tennis player was visited by her 6-year-old son, Leo, on the court.

Family fun in Den Bosch 👩‍👦@vika7 | #LibemaOpen pic.twitter.com/I1QsuQC0ch

– wta (@WTA) June 12, 2023

Also Monday, the Belgian Greet Minnen beat the French Jessika Ponchet. Her next rival could be Belarusian No.7 Aliaksandra Sasnovich or Italian Lucrezia Stefanini. The North American Emina Bektas, from the qualifiers, beat the Hungarian Dalma Galfi. She could face Belgium’s Elise Mertens, who will make her debut on Tuesday against Australia’s Priscilla Hon.

Another attraction of the round will be the return of Venus Williams to the circuit. The 42-year-old veteran and former world No. 1 had not played since January in Auckland. Recovering from a hamstring injury, she enters the court at 9:30 a.m. to face the Swiss Céline Naef.