Irina Bara and Ana Bogdan, through to second round of qualifications in Sankt Petersburg (WTA)

Romanian tennis players Irina Bara and Ana Bogdan won on Saturday in the first round of qualifications for the main draw of the WTA 500 tournament in Sankt Petersburg (Russia), with total prize money worth 703,580 USD, Agerpres reports.

Bara (26 years old, WTA's 123rd) overpassed Russian Diana Shnaider (17, WTA's 873rd), 6-4, 6-2, after one hour and 18 minutes of playing.

Bara will have an much more valuable opponent in the second round of qualifications, also a Russian, Varvara Gracheva, (21, WTA's 81st), whom she managed to defeat in their last duel, in 2020, in Cagnes-sur-Mer, 7-5, 6-4, in the semifinals. Gracheva had won their first encounter, in 2019, in Valencia, in the semifinals, 6-1, 6-1.

Ana Bogdan (29, WTA's 101st) needed 68 minutes to defeat Chinese Lin Zhu (28, WTA's 114h), 6-1, 6-2.

In the second preliminary round, Ana Bogdan will face off Norwegian Ulrikke Eikeri (29, WTA's 278th), as a first.

Three Romanian players have entered directly on the main draw of the competition, Sorana Cirstea, Irina Begu and Jaqueline Cristian.

Cirstea will play in the first round against Czech Marketa Vondrousova, Begu will compete with Chinese Shuai Zhang, and Cristian will play against Russian Anastasia Pavliuchenkova, the fourth seeded.