The German tennis talent Ella Seidel has reached the main round of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time – and is facing a very difficult challenge. The 18-year-old from Hamburg will face defending champion Aryna Sabalenka from Belarus in round one of the Australian Open in Melbourne.
During the short training session in the Rod Laver Arena on Saturday afternoon, around 15,000 spectators were still missing from the stands, but Seidel was able to develop a feel for the Center Court of the Australian Open alongside national coach Barbara Rittner.
“I’m overjoyed and can hardly believe it. A little dream and a wish has come true,” said qualifier Seidel, who convincingly won 6-0, 6-4 against the American Hailey Baptiste on Friday had already caused a positive surprise before the start of the first major tournament of the year (from Sunday). But she is now a complete outsider against Sabalenka, second in the world rankings.
“I had already joked before: It would be really cool to play against Sabalenka. In retrospect, it would have been cool if it had only happened in the second or third round.”
—Ella Seidel
On her way to the main round, Seidel, number 174 in the world, also eliminated the American Elizabeth Mandlik, who was 56 positions higher in the world rankings. “At first I just wanted to be there. The fact that I qualified exceeded my expectations,” emphasized the North German.
Sabalenka is a “hammer mega chunk” for Rittner
In Australia, Seidel will be personally looked after by national coach Rittner. And the 50-year-old praises her protégé highly: “Ella is developing very well. She is simply a very meticulous and disciplined player who is sometimes even a little too hard on herself.”
“Ella is in a really good mood. And it will definitely be a great experience for her.”
— National coach Barbara Rittner
There is still “a long way to go” for Seidel, emphasized Rittner, who has long since recognized the potential in the 18-year-old. “I really enjoy working with her, we have a very good relationship,” emphasized the ex-professional and added: “I would like to intensify our collaboration.”
Rittner described the upcoming opponent Sabalenka as a “hammer mega-hunk”. She too would have been happy if Seidel had initially had an easier opponent. “Because she’s in a really good mood. But it will definitely be a great experience for Ella.”
Seidel in the night session in the Rod Laver Arena
Seidel herself, who started playing tennis as a six-year-old, also thinks so. She started at Klipper THC, where her father Lars was a youth officer for a long time. In 2021 she was recognized as Hamburg’s female sports talent, and the following year she became German champion.
On Sunday in the night session she will now play on the big stage: The match against Sabalenka will take place in the Rod Laver Arena, the center court in Melbourne Park: “I’m taking it that way, I feel good here and I’m looking forward to it Night session,” explained Seidel and added: “It’s super cool in such a big arena. I’m very excited and will give it my all.”
It is not yet clear when exactly the match will begin. In the “preliminary program” a certain Novak Djokovic contests his first round duel.
Teammate Lys fails in the qualification
Eva Lys, with whom Seidel plays in the Bundesliga at the Hamburg club on the Alster, narrowly missed qualifying for the tournament. The Hamburger lost to the French Leolia Jeanjean 6:2, 6:7 (4:7), 3:6 and missed a match point in the second set. This means that a total of eleven German players will be competing in the first major of the year.
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Sports current | 01/13/2024 | 12:17 p.m
