USTA Women's Event Begins Today in Rock Hill

A player to watch is 21-year-old Vasilisa Bardina, a native of Moscow who earned a spot in this week's event by winning the wild card qualifying event last weekend.

She began playing professional tennis in 2003 at age 15. By early 2007, she was ranked 48th in the world. She had won three ITF women's circuit events. In January 2007, she played in the finals of the Moorilla Hobart International tennis tournament, a WTA Tour event, in Australia.

But in June 2007, at age 19, she suffered a stress fracture to her right shin while playing at Wimbledon. What she first thought would be only a few weeks away from competitive tennis turned out to be two years.

She went home to Russia for a month, then began rehab in several countries, including Argentina, Brazil and Australia. She entered a few tournaments in 2008, but found she wasn't ready for competitive play.

But she is rehabilitating her leg, working out, and practicing. Through the trying experience, she said she has learned to trust her instincts about how far she can push herself physically.

In May, she played a $10K USTA Pro Circuit event in Sumter. She lost in the first round. She did better at an event in Cleveland earlier this month, winning one match.

Originally published by From staff reports.

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