Bollerman battles past defiant Doble at Ladies World Championships
Lumley on top form against spirited Garside
The 2025 Ladies World Championships main draw kicked off in Newport on Monday, with third and fourth seeds Saskia Bollerman and Tara Lumley fending off qualifiers in order to progress.
The first main draw match saw qualifier Nicola Doble taking on world number 3 Saskia Bollerman. The start of the match was evenly fought out as both players felt their way into the play. From 2-all, Doble’s serving got on top of Bollerman, the tight serves meaning that any attempt to be attacking came with the risk of a loose ball that Doble was easily able to clean up. Her play in the rallies was dominating as well, picking up balls close to the ground with a late swing off her back foot. Bollerman couldn’t find a way to respond effectively, her shots were too often finding the net. She brought back one game from 2-5 down but Doble’s precision was sufficient to earn herself a one set advantage.
Bollerman regrouped at the start of the second set. She reined in her volley, compacted her swing and hit the ball more cleanly. She found an effective strategy to counter Doble too, dropping her shots slightly shorter onto Doble’s forehand aiming the second bounce to be behind Doble and the back wall. Doble’s preference to play off the back wall meant that she was constantly getting caught playing a falling ball around her ankles. As the set developed, Bollerman’s confidence grew, once again taking on the more attacking volleys but this time was able to pull them off. Bollerman won the set without dropping a game, sending the match into a third.
Doble broke Bollerman’s streak in the first game of the final set, setting up a back and forth race to the finish line. Both players found form in their stroke play, exchanging the first few games of the set. Bollerman was the first to break through, helped by a high serve causing trouble for the left-handed Doble. Her lead was never dominant, and Doble was in the match through to the final point. Bollerman held on to take the final set 6/3.
The second match was between Tara Lumley and Jess Garside, a rivalry stretching back over 16 years to when both were rising through the junior ranks. Garside started by taking the attack to Lumley, but couldn’t get past Lumley’s firm defenses and pin-point accurate counterattack. Lumley’s double-handed backhand volleys were a stand-out, crunching the ball onto the tambour. Garside had to pull out all the stops just to stay in the rallies, desperately trying to keep in the game. Lumley was in control of the play throughout the match, winning easily in straight sets.
Bollerman and Lumley will now play off against each other for the right to play Lea Van Der Zwalmen, with the winner earning a challenge at the world title.
Match results:
Monday 26 May:
10:00 AM: Saskia Bollerman def Nicola Doble 3/6 6/0 6/3
11:30 AM: Tara Lumley def Jess Garside 6/2 6/2
Upcoming Matches (all times EDT):
Tuesday 27 May:
4:00 PM: Saskia Bollerman vs Tara Lumley
Wednesday 28 May:
5:00 PM: Lea Van Der Zwalmen vs Winner 27 May 4:00 PM
Thursday 29 May:
2:00 PM (Doubles Semi Final 1): Claire Fahey & Tara Lumley vs Jo See Tan & Jess Garside
3:30 PM (Doubles Semi Final 2): Nicola Doble & Saskia Bollerman vs Lea Van Der Zwalmen & Margaux Randjbar
Friday 30 May:
5:00 PM (World Championship Challenge): Claire Fahey vs Challenger TBD
Saturday 31 May:
2:00 PM (World Doubles Championship Final): Winner Semi Final 1 vs Winner Semi Final 2