Eva Lys will have to rebook her plane ticket home after extending her dream run at the Australian Open, winning her third-round match as a lucky loser.
The 23-year-old had thought her time at Melbourne Park was over but found herself stepping in with just 10 minutes notice when the world No.13, Anna Kalinskaya, withdrew on Tuesday.
Despite having no warm-up, the German displayed a sensational performance in her first round, defeating Aussie Kimberly Birrell 6-2 6-2.
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Eva Lys of Germany celebrates after defeating Jaqueline Cristian of Romania in their third round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)Â AP
On Saturday she collapsed to the ground following her 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 win over Romania's Jaqueline Cristian.
In her post-match press conference, Lys revealed that she had already booked her flights for tomorrow, never imagining she'd make it into the round of 16.
"I am very happy to be making it to the second week, and it's been such a dream for me," Lys said
"Today's match wasn't easy and I have played her three times already and I have had struggles with her and she plays intense, I knew I had to keep going."
Lys, Harriet Dart, and Francesco Passaro were all lucky losers this year, meaning they are called upon when a main-draw player withdraws.
They were all required to remain on-site and were summoned to play within minutes of a player withdrawal.
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"It's definitely an amazing situation to be in, especially knowing that I was the lucky loser," Lys said.
"I don't know when the realisation will kick in.
"I think I found a picture of me sleeping the day I got in. I was just trying to spend the time at the venue, trying to do something because I didn't really know what to do with my time. I was just preparing for my flight the next day."
Eva Lys of Germany celebrates after defeating Jaqueline Cristian of Romania. AP
The 23-year-old said it had been an insane couple of days, which have changed her life.
"I'm definitely really thankful," Lys said.
She will face world No.2 Iga Swiatek in the next round, but before that, she will change her flight to next week.
"It's actually really funny. We just picked a date. We're like, 'OK, Sunday's six days away. We're just going to pick Sunday'. I'm glad we have to change it now," Lys said.
"Right now I think after the press conference we're going to go and try to change it a little bit further."
