WTA 125 in Angers: Ferro Advances to Round of 16, Ponchet Beaten from the Start

Fiona Ferro overturned Tina Smith and qualified for the round of 16 of the Angers tournament. On her side, Jessika Ponchet was defeated as soon as she entered the competition.

AFP

Adrien Guyot

le 02/12/2025 à 15h12

2 min to read

Angers Barthel Ferro Jimenez Ponchet Smith Sonmez

Two French players were on the courts this early afternoon at the WTA 125 in Angers. Fiona Ferro, now ranked 422nd in the world, faced Tina Smith, an Australian player ranked 316th.

Invited by the tournament organizers in Maine-et-Loire, the 28-year-old player did not start the match very well, before finding the right rhythm and eventually winning in three sets (3-6, 6-4, 6-0 in 2h05). She will face Elena-Gabriela Ruse or Tamara Korpatsch for a spot in the quarterfinals.

Ponchet Outclassed by Barthel

On her side, Jessika Ponchet, ranked 167th in the WTA rankings, made her debut against Mona Barthel. The German, a former world number 23, is now ranked beyond the top 200 but still displays a good level of play. Moreover, the 35-year-old player left only crumbs for the Frenchwoman and won in two sets (6-2, 6-0 in 59 minutes). Barthel will face Zhang Shuai or Marina Bassols Ribera in the next round.

Three more French players are still expected by the end of the day on the courts in Angers. Océane Dodin will face Alice Rame in an all-French duel, before the match of Chloé Paquet against Lucia Bronzetti.

Very early in the day, Zeynep Sönmez was the first to qualify this Tuesday with a victory in three sets against Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva, the number 8 seed (3-6, 7-6, 6-3 in 2h10). The Turkish player will face Amandine Monnot in the next round.