![]() 2019: Rapid rise in the rankings, ITF success, WTA Tour and top 125 debut ĭespite a sluggish start to the year which saw Gracheva reach just one quarterfinal on hard courts, she achieved good results on clay. She ended the year with a 28–13 winning record on the professional tour, as the world No. Gracheva had three top 300 wins, including one over Maryna Zanevska in the qualifying rounds of the Al Habtoor Tennis Challenge. Nonetheless, she was able to reach her first $25k quarterfinal in Périgueux and made her top 500 debut in July as a result. 2018: Last junior year, top 500 debut Īfter defeating Sofia Shapatava to win a $15k tournament in Antalya, Turkey to begin her 2018 season, Gracheva returned to playing her final junior tournaments and did not compete on the ITF Circuit for six months. 647 by the end of the year, after reaching three consecutive $15k tournaments in Hammamet, Tunisia, defeating the likes of Fiona Ferro in the process. Gracheva played her first professional events in 2017, starting off unranked but managed to reach a ranking of No. Gracheva reached a career-high ranking of 19 in her junior career, winning four Grade-2 events. She obtained french nationality in June 2023 and was approved to start representing France after receiving her passport. In March 2023 it was reported that Gracheva is in process of finalizing her naturalization application for French citizenship. ![]() In July 2019, she qualified for the Washington Open and won her first WTA Tour main-draw match, defeating Anna Blinkova. Gracheva made her main-draw debut on the WTA Tour at the 2019 Ladies Open Lausanne, where she qualified by defeating Julia Grabher in the final round. She has won seven singles titles at tournaments of the ITF Circuit. Gracheva has a career-high WTA singles ranking of No. However, with the kind of season Kostyuk has put together this year and the small steps she has taken in the past few years, this should be her breakthrough moment on the WTA Tour.Varvara Andreyevna Gracheva (Russian: Варвара Андреевна Грачёва, IPA: ( listen) born 2 August 2000) is a Russian tennis player. So if this one does indeed go into a decider, the Russian could give Kostyuk a run for her money. There won’t be much to choose between these two, and despite entering the match as the underdog priced at 2/1, Gracheva has showcased her stamina and endurance when the going gets tough. Kostyuk’s win over Danielle Collins in the semifinal cannot be taken for granted either considering the resurgence the American was forging on home soil after a subpar Australian summer. Gracheva, in truth, has faced stiff competition in getting to the WTA Austin Open final, accounting for some giant-killing wins. Marta Kostyuk leads Varvara Gracheva 3-2 in their head-to-head, although their solitary WTA meeting was won by the Russian on the hard courts of Chicago in 2021. A topsy-turvy win over home favorite Katie Volynets confirmed her place in the final. Then she knocked off the rapidly improving Anna Blinkova before avenging her Merida loss by beating Sloane Stephens – her only straight-sets win during the week. Gracheva has had a much tougher path in reaching the WTA Austin Open final, taking out the top-seeded Magda Linette in her opener. Gracheva doesn’t have a junior career of illustrious comparison to that of Kostyuk, but she is only two years older than her Ukranian opponent and very much with massive top-20 potential. Varvara Gracheva, like Marta Kostyuk, will also be playing in her first WTA final after sneaking into the championship match with a series of odds-defying wins. ![]() But with the Russian very much a giant killer this week, do not rule out an upset. But on Sunday at the inaugural WTA Austin Open, the Ukranian enters the championships match as a strong favorite to claim the prize against Varvara Gracheva. While 2018 feels like ages ago, Kostyuk is still only 20, hardly even in her prime years, but it beggars belief she hasn’t been to the WTA final in that span let alone winning one. Since she burst onto the big stage as a 15-year-old in 2018, Marta Kostyuk was destined for future success at the biggest WTA tournaments. Who will leave the state of Texas as the champion of the inaugural WTA Austin Open? soil in 2023 culminates in a final match pitting Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk, the number eight seed, against unseeded Russian Varvara Gracheva. The first WTA tournament to be held on U.S. TennisSection previews the 2023 WTA Austin Open as Marta Kostyuk takes on Varvara Gracheva in the final on Sunday, March 5, 2023.
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