July 30, 2017
Vanderbilt women’s tennis player, Astra Sharma, is back on the pro circuit and making waves as the Commodore earned her second International Tennis Federation singles title, the Targu Jiu $15,000 in Targu Jiu, Romania.
The raising redshirt-senior’s first pro tournament trophy came last summer in the desert of Sharm El Samak, Egypt.
Winning across the globe and on the comfy courts of the Currey Tennis Center, the reigning Southeastern Conference Player of the Year defeated a familiar foe in fellow Australian and SEC opponent, Belinda Woolcock of Florida.
“Winning my second title is awesome,” said Sharma. “It meant a lot to have such a tough match in the final and pull through. I think win or lose today I would have been happy with my performance and attitude on court. I’m really pleased with how everything is coming along.”
Known as two of the best Aussie’s in collegiate women’s tennis, the two student-athletes battled hard throughout three full sets with Sharma coming out on top, 1-6, 6-2, 7-5.
“Playing Belinda was obviously a great moment,” Sharma continued, “the two of us all the way out in the fringes of Romania battling it out. I knew it was going to be a tough match and it was different playing without the team and coaches there, but it was a great match and a lot of fun.”
With another title to bolster her impressive resume, Sharma looks to remain in Romania for one more tournament before meeting up with former teammate, Frances Altick (c.o. 2015), in Austria.
“Tour life is a definite change,” stated Sharma, “managing yourself well instead of going along with a team is different. I have lots of spare time and so I’m trying to learn Romanian in my hours off. But I’ve got one more here then I’m heading off to Austria to join Frances and play a couple there, which will be a blast.”
To keep up with all of the Commodores’ adventures abroad, follow @VandyWTennis on Twitter.
