Tennis star Tagger: “I can learn more from defeat”

“I was very focused, that was the key,” said Potapova. “I just thought from point to point, even if everything didn’t always work out. I’m glad I succeeded.” The 25-year-old Potapova has already won the tournament in Linz once – in 2023, but as a Russian.

One sentence wasted

The loser was naturally disappointed. It was particularly painful for Tagger that she lost the first set 6:7, which she thought she had almost won. “Of course it’s a shame. The first set was quite close, I almost lost it a bit myself,” she said in her first reaction. “It’s a shame about the second one, I might have let myself be a bit intimidated.” But the 18-year-old also saw the positive in the defeat: “That’s part of it, you learn from it.”

Lilli Tagger’s assessment of Linz is definitely positive. She first defeated the former world number 2 Paula Badosa (ESP), then with a great performance she eliminated the Russian Liudmila Samsonowa, who was seeded number 3 in the tournament.

With the two victories against well-known opponents, Tagger moved into the top 100 of the world rankings – and she secured a starting place in the main competition of the French Open, which begins on May 24th this year. Last year she played in the junior competition at Roland Garros. “That was the goal,” Tagger said. “But now it’s important to learn from the match. I can learn more from the defeat than from the two games we won before.”

A new situation

There was great interest in Linz, and Lilli Tagger received a lot of attention. For the first time, the tournament was sold out on Tuesday. Everyone wanted to see Tagger, the promise for Austria’s tennis future. “I experienced many new moments,” she said. “It was the best week I’ve ever played.”

Winner Potapova also gave her roses: “I like Lilli a lot, I think she has a great future ahead of her. That was just the first of many games that we will play against each other.”