"The hard work is finally paying off": Pera seeded for first time at WTA 1000 tournament but faces biggest test in Swiatek

Bernarda Pera will face Iga Swiatek in the third round of the Mutua Madrid Open.

The American is one of the tennis players who achieved a significant ascent last year, in a couple of weeks she managed to advance from the 130th position to the top 50 for the first time in her career. What is surprising is that Pera is not a young up-and-comer, at 28 years old she spent the last decade mainly playing ITF tournaments.

In 2022, she won her first two titles on the circuit, consecutively on clay at the WTA 250 Budapest and the following week in Hamburg. As the weeks passed, Pera gained access to play in WTA tournament draws due to her rise in the rankings, which has now led her to be seeded 28th in Madrid, her first time being ranked among the top players in a tournament of this category.

“I started to play well, started to believe in myself,” Pera said. “I had a lot of confidence in my game and just went for my shots. I think I just relaxed a little. I’m getting older, wiser, probably. I would hope so.”

"I’m a late bloomer. But definitely feels like all the hard work is finally paying off."

In the third round, she will face the world No.1 Iga Swiatek, who continues with her good feelings on clay and obtained a comfortable victory over Julia Grabher with a score of 6-3, 6-2.