At the end, before the fifth match point, thunderous applause erupted again in the packed Rothenbaum stadium in Hamburg. A last, well-intentioned attempt by the 10,000 fans to inspire Noma Noha Akugue to achieve a small tennis miracle in this final. Or at least to console. Because it just wasn’t supposed to be with the happy ending for the 19-year-old from Hamburg – she lost 0:6 and 6:7 against the experienced Dutch player Arantxa Rus.
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“I hope I can come back next year and then win the tournament,” said Noha Akugue disappointed. And yet she left the place as a winner. Number 207 in the world rankings went from zero to one hundred this week. She received a wild card at short notice, played her first WTA main draw ever and rushed straight into the final.
“Noma has the potential to make it to the top,” is convinced Andrea Petkovic, who was the last German player to make it to the Hamburg final in 2021 and worked with national coach Barbara Rittner during the tournament week with Noha Akugue.
Zverev in the men’s final
Alexander Zverev has reached the final at his home tournament for the first time. The German defeated the 19-year-old on Saturday French Arthur Fils with 6: 2, 6: 4 and was in top form. Zverev, seeded number four, reached the final without losing a set. The Serb Laslo Djere awaits in the final on Sunday. The world number 57. beat China’s Zhang Zhizhen 6-3, 6-2. (dpa)
The Hamburg native has been part of the DTB youth squad for five years, but she is currently missing a coach. “We’re looking for her,” says Petkovic, “and after this week some of the big coaching names are certainly more motivated to work with her.” Noha Akugue will be around 140th in the world rankings as of Monday, on the way to the top 100. “It’s a little surprising that it happened so quickly,” says Petkovic, “but it’s no coincidence either. She worked very hard.”
Noha Akugue probably got her fighting spirit and training toughness from her father, who was born in Nigeria and used to be a lightweight boxer. But he was also a fan of Steffi Graf and therefore introduced his daughter to tennis at an early age. “Noma is really tough, even in training. That’s not a wimp,” praises Rittner: “And she has taken a giant step mentally.”
Steffi Graf was the last German to win in Hamburg in 1992
But the step towards winning the first tournament – and succeeding Graf, who was the last to win in Hamburg in 1992 – was a bit too big. As number 60 in the world, the 32-year-old Rus routinely played the not very high-class final in her favor and consoled her opponent: “Congratulations Noma and remember: you’re still so young.”
Noha Akugue wants to be on the big stage, but big words are not her thing. She prefers to let her bat do the talking. And she likes to keep her feelings to herself during the game. “I’m a poker face in tennis,” says Noha Akugue, which is precisely why she’s a fan of four-time Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka. “She does the same thing.” for more.
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“I’ve now seen that I definitely have great talent,” says Noha Akugue, “and that I have what it takes to keep up with the good players.” Subconsciously she was probably always aware of that. Because the Hamburg native has never made a plan B if her tennis career doesn’t work out: “I believe that I can do it. Plan A is going through.”
2023-07-29 15:10:03
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