Dubai: Vivian Heisen of Germany and Diana Popescu of Romanian secured contrasting wins to earn their places against the top two seeds on the opening day of qualifying for the 18th Al Habtoor Tennis Challenge (AHTC) at the Habtoor Grand Beach Resort and Spa on Saturday.
Heisen dug in deep for a 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 win over Ani Vangelova, while Popescu eased her way past Karolina Pondusova at two ends of the qualifying draw. Heisen will run into top seed Cristina Sanchez-Quintanar of Spain, while Popescu will take on second seed Sandra Samir of Egypt, a former winner of the ITF Junior Tournament held at the Al Wasl club here.
Meanwhile, Alexandra Dulgheru of Romania has been confirmed as the top seed in the main draw of the competition that will get under way on Monday. Currently ranked No. 57 on the WTA Rankings, Dulgheru had achieved a career high singles ranking of No. 26 in April 2011. The top four seeds will be unveiled at a press conference to be held on Sunday.
Other emphatic winners on the opening day included UAE-based Magali De Lattre of Portugal and Russia’s Angelina Gabueva with identical 6-0, 6-0 wins against Sheril Roy and Alona Shubina respectively.
Meanwhile, Fatma Al Nabhani of Oman will be in action on Sunday when she takes on Sofia Sabljarevic of Serbia in their second round of qualifying.
The AHTC, founded by Al Habtoor Group Chairman Khalaf Ahmad Al Habtoor, will conclude with the singles final on Saturday [November 14].
