Germany's Laura Ludwig and Louisa Lippmann were clear favorites going into the second Center Court match of the day at the A1 Beach Pro Vienna 2024 tournament on Tuesday. And they never wavered, besting Austria's Franziska Friedl and Anja Trailovic 2-0 (21-11, 21-10).
The Austrians had home advantage and the Viennese crowd duly stood behind the pair, loudly cheering them on, but it wasn't enough to get them through the qualification round on the first day of the tournament.
Ludwig/Lippmann, who are headed to the Paris Olympics after their stop in the Austrian capital, dominated the match from the get-go. Friedl/Trailovic showed moments of brilliance throughout to give their opponents something to fight for but the German pair took the lead early and never let go.
Anja Trailovic admitted after the match feeling nervous playing the legendary Laura Ludwig, 2016 Olympic gold medalist and 2017 World Champion. "The result is disappointing, we had hoped for more," added Franziska Friedl. "But it was great to play here, the stadium is amazing and so many people have come out to watch, even on a Tuesday.”
