Melbourne, Australia, 24 February 2025 | Dan Imhoff

Daria Saville and Maya Joint have made promising starts to their campaigns in Merida, Mexico, with each booking a singles berth in the main draw of the WTA 500 event.

The 30-year-old Saville sealed her place after a straight-sets qualifying win over American veteran Varvara Lepchenko. It sets a first-round showdown against sixth seed Marta Kostyuk in what will be her second WTA main draw outside Australia this season after Singapore.

Seeded third in qualifying, Joint gave herself every chance of cracking the top 100 this week after winning through to the main draw. The 18-year-old swept past Argentine Solana Sierra to book a first-round clash against Julia Grabher.

> READ MORE: Birrell to lead Australia’s BJK Cup team in Brisbane qualifier 

This week’s most outstanding performers include …

Jason Kubler: Perseverance finally paid dividends for 31-year-old Kubler after he won his first title since his return in November from a 10-month hiatus due to injury at the M25 ITF event in Burnie. Kubler beat compatriot Omar Jasika for the title, his 22^nd singles crown at all levels.

Omar Jasika: The 27-year-old reached the final of the M25 ITF event in Burnie where he came up short against Kubler in straight sets. The top seed was aiming for his first title since he claimed four straight ITF events last season. It took his record since the Australian Open to 10-3.

Destanee Aiava: The 24-year-old reached the final of the W75 event in Prague where she narrowly fell to Czech local Gabriela Knutson. Aiava’s run included a win over top-seeded Gao Xinyu and she was bidding for a first ITF title since Brisbane in November.

Alex de Minaur: Seeded second, the 25-year-old reached the quarterfinals in Doha where he succumbed in a match tiebreak to eventual champion Andrey Rublev. It was De Minaur’s third straight quarterfinal after the Australian Open and Rotterdam final.

Priscilla Hon: The unseeded Hon toppled fifth seed Lucrezia Stefanini en route to the W75 Prague semifinals before she succumbed to compatriot Aiava. Since falling to good friend Kim Birrell in Australian Open qualifying, Hon has won 10 of her past 12 matches, including a title run in Brisbane. She also reached the doubles final in Prague with Swiss Rebeka Masarova.

Jaimee Fourlis: The 25-year-old scored a win over sixth-seeded compatriot Lizette Cabrera en route to the Burnie W35 semifinals. It was her first singles semifinal since the W35 event in Tauranga, New Zealand in December. Fourlis also reached the doubles semifinals with countrywoman Alana Parnaby.

Matthew Hulme: the 26-year-old and Kiwi James Watt took down fourth seeds Hsu Yu Hsiou and Huang Tsung-Hao to claim the Burnie M25 ITF event. The unseeded duo did not drop a set en route to their first title together. The win atoned for having let slip three match points in the Brisbane 2 Challenger final earlier in the month.

Matthew Romios: The 25-year-old made the final of the Pune Challenger in India alongside compatriot Blake Bayldon where they were beaten by top-seeded locals Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan and Vijay-Sundar Prashanth. Romios was bidding for his second Challenger title of the year after Brisbane earlier this month.

Blake Bayldon: It has been a prosperous opening two months of the season for Bayldon. The 26-year-old was shooting for his third Challenger doubles title this season after Noumea and Brisbane 2 but fell in the Pune final alongside Romios.

Elena Micic: The 20-year-old and Kiwi Monique Barry clinched their first doubles title together at the W35 event in Burnie. It was Micic’s second doubles trophy of the season after Brisbane and improved her record to nine wins from 10 doubles matches played.

Gabriella da Silva Fick: Da Silva Fick reached her first doubles final since Roehampton last August alongside compatriot Belle Thompson at the Burnie W35 event. She was aiming for her first doubles title since Porto last July but the pair fell to Barry/Micic in the final.

Belle Thompson: The 25-year-old fell short of her maiden ITF doubles title after she and Da Silva Fick finished runners-up to Barry/Micic in the Burnie W35 final. It was Thompson’s first doubles final since Wellington in December 2023.

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