SAN JOSE (August 1, 2021) – American Emina Bektas didn’t learn she would be competing in the Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic qualifying tournament until early Saturday morning, and now the former University of Michigan standout is headed to her first tour-level main draw following a 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 win over Australia’s Ellen Perez on Sunday.
Bektas, ranked 352nd in the world, was a qualifying alternate when the tournament’s No. 5 seed Veronika Kudermetova withdrew from the event due to illness. That moved fellow American Catherine McNally into the main draw and opened up a spot for Bektas.
A couple hours after learning she was in Saturday’s qualifying draw, she defeated American Katie Volynets 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 to advance to Sunday’s final qualifying round.
In her opening round match on Monday, she will face seven-time WTA title winner and former World No. 4 Caroline Garcia in the second evening match on Stadium Court.
Bektas is one of four women to play their way into the main draw. Other qualifiers include Ana Konjuh of Croatia who defeated 16-year-old American Robin Montgomery 6-3, 7-6(2) and Korea’s Na-Lae Han who knocked off 17-year-old American Ashlyn Krueger 6-1, 4-6, 6-1.
In the biggest upset of the day, Lesley Pattinama Kerkhove came from behind to defeat the qualifying tournament’s No. 1 seed Anastasia Potapova of Russia 6-7(4), 7-5, 7-5.
The Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic main draw kicks off Monday at 10 am. The featured match of the day session will be a battle of Americans with No. 9 seed Alison Riske taking on two-time Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic finalist Coco Vandeweghe in the fourth match on Stadium.
The evening session features a blockbuster match-up between British star Emma Raducanu and Zhang Shuai of China.
Individual session tickets are available now, with opening-round tickets starting at only $20. Get your tickets today for this historic Bay Area event as it returns to San José State University, August 2-8, and celebrates its 50th Anniversary. Weeklong ticket packages are also available.
Co-founded by the legendary sportswoman, visionary, and activist Billie Jean King, the tournament was the first event of the historic 1971 women's professional tennis tour, a precursor to the WTA. Its list of past champions reads like a who's who of women's tennis, including Serena Williams, Lindsay Davenport, Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Andrea Jaeger, Monica Seles, Martina Hingis, Venus Williams, and Kim Clijsters.
Owned and operated by IMG, the tournament features a 28-player singles draw and 16-team doubles draw and serves as the opening women's event of the US Open Series.
ABOUT THE MUBADALA SILICON VALLEY CLASSIC: Co-founded by Billie Jean King in 1971, the Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic is celebrating its 50th Anniversary and is the longest-running women-only professional tennis tournament in the world. Owned and operated by IMG, the WTA 1000 level event is the first women’s stop on the US Open Series and features a 28-player singles draw and a 16-team doubles draw with total prize money of $565,530.
ABOUT MUBADALA: Mubadala Investment Company is a sovereign investor managing a global portfolio, aimed at generating sustainable financial returns for the Government of Abu Dhabi. Mubadala’s $243.4 billion (AED 894 billion) portfolio spans six continents with interests in multiple sectors and asset classes. We leverage our deep sectoral expertise and long-standing partnerships to drive sustainable growth and profit, while supporting the continued diversification and global integration of the economy of the United Arab Emirates. Headquartered in Abu Dhabi, Mubadala has offices in London, Rio de Janeiro, Moscow, New York, San Francisco and Beijing. For more information about Mubadala Investment Company, please visit: www.mubadala.com
ABOUT THE US OPEN SERIES: The US Open Series serves as a true “regular season” of summer tennis in North America, linking nine summer WTA and ATP Tour tournaments to the US Open. Featuring a cohesive weekly schedule, the Series centralizes the way tennis is viewed in North America, across multiple television and digital platforms. Fans will see today's top champions go head-to-head with tomorrow's emerging stars, as storylines develop throughout the summer season. Each tournament also engages its local community with a variety of outreach initiatives, including grass-roots youth tennis clinics and activities.
ABOUT IMG: IMG is a global leader in sport, events, fashion and media. The company manages some of the world’s greatest athletes and fashion icons; owns and operates hundreds of live events annually; and is a leading independent producer and distributor of sports and entertainment media. IMG also specializes in licensing, sports training and league development. IMG is a subsidiary of Endeavor, a global entertainment, sports and content company.
ABOUT SAN JOSÉ STATE UNIVERSITY: The founding campus of the 23-campus California State University system, San José State provides a comprehensive university education, granting bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in 250 areas of study – offered through its eight colleges. With more than 33,000 students and nearly 4,370 employees, San José State University continues to be an essential partner in the economic, cultural and social development of Silicon Valley and the state, annually contributing 10,000 graduates to the workforce. The university is immensely proud of the accomplishments of its more than 260,000 alumni, 60 percent of whom live and work in the Bay Area