Dominika Salkova came from 4-0 down in the first set to beat Anna Blinkova 7-5, 6-1 at the Open de Rouen and move into the round of 16. The lucky loser, who entered the draw after missing out in qualifying, turned a match that had slipped away from her into a straight-sets win.
Blinkova opened with a burst that put her 4-0 ahead, but Salkova steadied quickly and won four games in a row to pull level. Blinkova then served for the first set and failed to close it out as Salkova won three consecutive games to take the lead, then broke again in the first service game of the second set and never recovered.
The result sets up a meeting with Tatjana Maria, who reached the last 16 after beating Elsa Jacquemot 6-4, 6-3 in one hour and 45 minutes. Maria had been vulnerable at times in that match, as had Salkova in her own opening test, leaving both players with reasons to believe they can press deeper into the tournament.
Maria has struggled for much of the campaign so far, but she is through and facing a player who has already shown she can survive a difficult passage and still finish strongly. For Salkova, the next round offers a chance to turn a lucky-loser entry into a real run at Rouen.
