This Russian tennis player made her debut in the main draw of a Grand Slam at Roland Garros in 2019 after passing the qualification. Then on June 20, 2021 Liudmila Samsonova won the first tournament of her career, prevailing against all odds in the WTA 500 tournament on grass in Berlin, after starting from the previous phase of the tournament. Despite her Russian nationality, Liudmila Samsonova spent a good part of her life in Italy, where she trained till 2018. Leaving her mark on the summer with two titles in a row in Washington and Cleveland, then another eighth at the US Open Liudmila Samsonova, already winner of two WTA tournaments this summer in North America, won her third title of the season in Tokyo, dominating the young Chinese Zheng Qinwen in two sets (7-5, 7- 5). In this article, we share facts about the tennis star!
Liudmila Samsonova Is 16th Currently (12 Other Things About Her)
1. Where is Lyudmila Samsonova now?
In 2023, Samsonova continues to storm the tennis rankings, but she lacks victories in major tournaments. On the courts of Abu Dhabi, the girl passed strong rivals in the face-Barbora Kreychikova, Veronica Kudermetova, and Zheng Qinwen. In the final, a native of the Murmansk region was waiting for Belinda Bencic, the owner of gold medals in singles at the Tokyo Olympics.
It is noteworthy that Lyudmila won three victories in a row in face-to-face meetings and was considered a favorite, but this time she lost. The Swiss tennis player won a strong-willed victory and managed to escape from three match points. Once again, psychological problems did not allow Samsonova to win the tournament.
As of 8th May 2023, Ludmila Samsonova occupies 16th place in the WTA rankings thanks to her huge end to the 2022 season. She is not particularly threatening this year with 11 wins for 10 losses. If she wears the label of favorite before the kick-off of this meeting, it is mainly because of one of her best performances on earth. Present in Madrid in May 2023, she had fun against Zanevska (6-2, 6-3) and also Ostapenko (6-2, 6-0), before falling in the round of 16 against Begu (6-4 , 6-4). Samsonova starts her Rome tournament with this match.
2. She first played for Italy, then jumped to support Russia:
Lyudmila Samsonova spent most of her life in Italy, but decided to perform under the flag of her historical homeland. The girl explained her decision by the lack of pressure in Russia from the media: journalists did not pay any attention to the promising athlete for a couple of years.
So it makes sense that the right-handed tennis player started competing for her country in 2014. The same year, she wore the colors of Italy, the country for which she played until 2018.
3. Lyudmila’s main achievements:
2021 – Winner of the German Open
2021 – Billie Jean King Cup winner (team)
2022 – Citi Open Winner
2022 – Cleveland Open Champion
2022 – Toray Pan Pacific Open winner
2023 – Abu Dhabi Open finalist
4. The Russian player was ranked 12th on the WTA track for singles:
In her ITF career, she won four tournaments: Rome in June 2014; Solarino in November 2016; El Espinar in August 2018; Saint-Malo in September 2018. In doubles, Liudmila Samsonova won two titles. She first won in Pula with Bianca Turati, before doing it again in August 2016 in Tarvisio, counting as teammate Chiara Quattrone. Liudmila Samsonova discovers the Grand Slams in 2019, blocked in the qualifying rounds, except at Roland Garros where she climbs to the first round.
5. Lyudmila Samsonova was born in Murmansk Oblast, Russia:
Lyudmila Samsonova was born on November 11, 1998 in the Murmansk region, in the city of Olenegorsk but she is closely connected with Italy. The parents moved to the Apennines when the child was one and a half years old. Lyudmila’s father, a professional table tennis player Dmitry Samsonov, played in Turin for the Ferentino club.
At the age of six, Lyudmila first appeared on the court, trained under the guidance of coach Ricardo Piatti. On the Apennine Peninsula, she took her first steps in professional sports, and won regional tennis tournaments. Now the girl has Italian citizenship, in her youth she competed at international competitions under the flag of this country.
With her 80 meters and her often impregnable serve, the one who has a habit of exceeding 200 aces each season began her meteoric rise in 2021, with the first title of her career won in Berlin, a round of 16 at Wimbledon (her first in Grand Slam), with victories over the tough Kanepi, Pegula and Stephens and finally a victory in the Billie Jean Cup with Russia (this was also her debut as a Russian tennis player) Results of the races, she went from 127th to 38th place in the world at the end of the year!
6. If her parents stayed in Russia, she would not play tennis now:
As a child, Samsonova was engaged in figure skating, she called her idol Caroline Costner. Today, Lyudmila speaks fluent Italian, she was taught Russian by her mother and the athlete has been performing under the flag of Russia since 2018.
Samsonova emphasizes that thanks to her parents, she has formed a Russian mentality, although she only visits the country during tournaments. The girl loves to dance, she believes that she would be able to build a successful career in figure skating. Lyudmila reads a lot, prefers booksFyodor Dostoyevsky and Leo Tolstoy and she is a big fan of Roger Federer.
7. Tennis career in 2014:
Samsonova began playing tennis at a professional level in 2014. The girl participated in singles and doubles tournaments, and training at the academy of Ricardo Piatti made it possible to obtain funding from the Italian federation. Lyudmila, on the advice of her mentor, did not force things, gradually improving her results and rising in the overall ranking.
8. In 2021, she became an official Russian pro athlete:
She made her debut for the Russian national team as one of the discoveries of the season. and became the heroine of the Billie Jean King Cup. At the tournament, which had the status of an unofficial women’s world championship, Samsonova came on as a substitute and beat Belindu Bencic, bringing the team a trophy.
The second half of 2022 turned out to be especially bright for the Russian tennis player. At the WTA tournament in Tokyo, the girl did not give up a single set to her rivals, on the way to the trophy she beat Garbiner Mugurusu and Elena Rybakina. In addition, in August, Lyudmila managed to win in Washington and Cleveland, making a rapid breakthrough in the final women’s ranking.
9. Her mentor is Danilo Pizzorno:
The tennis player associated her progress with the work of her mentor Danilo Pizzorno, complimenting his work in an interview:
“In my opinion, Danilo is a genius, a tactical genius. Seriously. I’m not saying this because he works with me. I think there is not a single coach in the WTA with such experience and level. All technique, all strikes: forehand, backhand, serve – all thanks to him. He built me.”
In addition, Lyudmila’s personal life is also connected with tennis – she meets with coach Alessandro Dumitrache. Young people love to travel, posting photos from their holidays in the Maldives on social networks.
10. Lyudmila’s playing style:
Her power tennis is effective on grass, while the girl tries to vary her style – in the arsenal of tricks there is a short hit with a low rebound and a forehand along the line. The match with Alexandra Krunich at the US Open in 2022 is indicative, in which the Russian woman tactically outplayed her opponent in two sets.
However, Samsonova does not always have enough stability and composure on the tennis court; at the decisive moments of the matches, she begins to get nervous. There were several unfortunate defeats in the career of the Russian woman, when she lost a significant advantage over her rivals: at the tournament in Adelaide she lostArina Sobolenko in the first game, although she led 5-1 with a double break, Ayla Tomljanovic played eight set points at the US Open. To get rid of problems with mentality, Samsonova hired a personal psychologist.
11. How tall is Samsonova?
She stands out with a two-handed backhand and Lyudmila Samsonova’s tall stature allows her to be more powerful in service. Lyudmila Samsonova is exactly 1.80 meters tall, which is relatively tall for a tennis player.
For comparison, champions Simona Halep and Ashleigh Barty are 1.68m and 1.66m respectively. Samsonova’s height can therefore be a significant advantage, especially on serve and in net coverage.
A tall athlete (height – 180 cm) she has an aggressive serve that is unpleasant for her rivals, is not afraid to take risks, and attacks immediately after the reception. The ball speed reaches 199 km / h, at the start of her career, Lyudmila won thanks to numerous aces.
12. By 2022, Samsonova wins the Tokyo tournament:
For the 30th player in the world, aged 23, it is also the most prestigious trophy since her surprise victory at the Berlin tournament last season. This time, in a competition of the same category (WTA 500), it is the logic that the Russian enforced by dominating Zheng, 36th in the world and who participated in the first final of her young career.
A winner this summer of the WTA 250 tournaments in Washington and Cleveland, Samsonova had a perfect week in Tokyo by not losing any sets, with flawless victories against the Kazakh Elena Rybakina or the Spaniard Garbine Muguruza, seeded N.3 . In the semi-finals, she quietly dismissed another Chinese, Shuai Zhang, while Zheng Qinwen had to fight for more than three hours against Russian Veronika Kudermetova, with no player losing serve until 5-5.
The break made by Samsonova then proved decisive. In her final, the Russian particularly appreciated the fact of having managed to manage the pressure. “It’s amazing what I achieved today. The whole week has been awesome,” she said.