Andrea Petkovic regrets her situation as the only remaining German tennis player at the clay court tournament in Hamburg.
“It’s sad for me. I always think it’s good when the pressure is spread across all shoulders, when the next generation slowly takes over,” said the 34-year-old after reaching the quarter-finals at Rothenbaum. “But apparently the old iron still have to hold up the flag and we do it with cracking joints.”
Petkovic had won 6-4, 6-3 against Misaki Doi of Japan in the round of 16. She is the only one of eleven German professionals still in the tournament. On Tuesday evening, Daniel Altmaier was the last remaining German player to fail in the men’s competition.
“It’s always better for the tournament, the atmosphere is different when there’s a German on the court,” said Petkovic, who also has the role of tournament ambassador. She hopes to reach her second final in a row in Hamburg: “I’ll try to make it to the end.” In the round of the best eight, Petkovic will face either top-seeded world number two Anett Kontaveit from Estonia or Rebecca Peterson from Sweden.
