The fireproof Sorribes submits Giorgi after almost 4 hours

Sara Sorribes is subscribed to epic, marathon matches. This course has already demonstrated it in front of Jennifer Brady in the past WTA 1,000 in Miami (“You’re a fucking animal”, the American went on to say), in which it was his best performance in a tournament of this category in his career. But today, at the Foro Italico in Rome, the woman from Castellón went one step further to make her debut with a memorable victory against the Italian. Camila Giorgi. After 3 hours and 53 minutes of battle, and recovering from an adverse 0-4 in the final set, Sara took the victory by a score of 7-6 (4), 6 (7) -7 and 7-5 . The prize for such a feat, if he manages to regain his privileged physique in the next few hours, will be to face the current champion of the Mutua Madrid Open in the second round: Aryna Sabalenka.

The first set was an intense 78-minute battle, full of alternatives. Sara hit first with an exit break, but soon managed to remake the Italian. After a very long third game in which he managed to avoid a new break from the Spanish, Giorgi gained confidence to take the first set even until the end. But Sorribes turned the tide at the decisive moment, saving three set balls against in the 10th game and then resolving the heat in the tie-break.

In the next set he changed the script. The Castellón lost part of its characteristic consistency and it was Giorgi who took advantage of an initial succession of breaks. After 1-1, the transalpina got the set back on track with a partial 1-4, but Sara’s courage came out from that moment. Giorgi got lost in lamentations, too pressured by her father’s protests from the stands, as a result of two decisions of the chair judge that favored the Spanish (a repeated point and a ball from Giorgi that bounced out). However, Sara rowed to sink onto the shore. Between the eighth game and the tiebreaker, the Castellón saved up to seven set balls against, but played too contemplative the decisive points and ended up delivering the sleeve with a double fault.

In the epic third set, Sorribes’ patience and resistance prevailed over Giorgi’s forcefulness and aggressiveness. After a 0-4 in favor of the Italian, the Castellón imposed her best strategic version, in addition to a physical and mental strength available to few players on the WTA circuit. He countered the successes of his rival (who finished with more than 50 winners) by planting a defensive wall in the back of the court, which ended up completely unhinging Giorgi. With a 7-1 run, she sealed the comeback and, so far, the longest match of the season on the women’s circuit. It’s time to keep dreaming.