How the 2023 Linz Open Champion Ensured Her Spot in the 2026 Final
Anastasia Potapova, 25 years old and currently 97th-ranked in the world, only received her nationality-change approval in December 2025. Now, the former Russian is doing her new country, Austria, proud with immediate success, seeking another Upper Austria Ladies Linz Championship, despite the surface changing from indoor hard court to red clay. In a one-hour and 19-minute contest, their third ever. Croatian Donna Vekic fought, but had too many drastic ups and downs to survive, losing 6-4, 6-2. With this result, Vekic still leads the head-to-head, now at 2-1. So how did the Croatian, who has been as high as 17th-ranked, fall to Potapova?
Game Stats
Vekic stands three inches taller than the 2023 Linz champ at five-foot-10. Yet, that extra height and reach hardly showed any advantage in the game. Just as both players went unseeded for the tournament, do they both need a service upgrade? The Croatian’s service stats weren’t impressive; 60.4% accuracy for her first serves, won 62.1% points on said first serve, and won 36.8% of the points on her second serve. A performance that opened her up to Potapova breaking her serve nine times. Remarkably, Potapova herself did not do much better, with a lower first serve accuracy at 58.7%, and won roughly around 58% of her second serve points. However, she made the successful first serves count, winning 75.7% of them.
Vekic’s enduring, rally-heavy game didn’t pair well with the fierce intensity her opponent had. Plus, especially not on clay, a surface that slows. Powerful forehand finishers supported an all-around massive groundstroke game. The 97th-ranked was on top of the ball almost always, striking out with her weight forward always, even when hopelessly off-balance. Momentum like that resulted in Potapova winning 11 straight points in a row, fresh off winning the 1st set, which is quite a feat for both competitors. Vekic, both while standing and running, didn’t see as many chances. She favored going for rallies in the beginning, then panicked and abandoned that approach when the storm of Potapova descended. Without any reliable weapons, it became clear that the 104th-ranked was at the mercy of the Austrian.
How Potapova Won
Potapova had a great day, completely in the zone, and pounced on every ball with fervor. She hit out at everything, went for the deepest angles constantly to keep Vekic unstable, and didn’t let her errors frustrate her into distraction. Despite faltering in both sets to close out, her plan never strayed. The Croatian did her best to up the pace to match her opponent’s, but her touch and balance were simply off. Potapova, despite her wild-slinging, made 19 forced errors. Vekic’s hesitancy didn’t pay off, as her final unforced error count was 30.
Now, there’s a high-stakes final matchup awaiting the former champ on Sunday. Mirra Andreeva, fellow Russian-born and lauded throughout her teen years, is still in motion. Much as the Austrian flag bearer did in 2014 in the Girls’ Under 14 Bracket, Andreeva lifted the Girls' 12 Orange Bowl International Tennis Championship in 2019. The Russian has much to fight for in this WTA 500 Final, as she’s currently 10th-ranked, where she was up fifth-ranked just as 2026 began, and has had a few early 2026 disappointments. Likewise, winning this title again would mean the world to Potapova, especially now as an Austrian national.
