Donna Vekic of Croatia in action against Russia's Mariia Tkacheva in the round-of-16 of the Philippine Women's Open, January 28, 2026 at the Rizal Memorial Tennis Center. PHILTA/Philippine Women's Open
MANILA – Croatia's Donna Vekic put up another dominant performance on Wednesday to advance to the quarterfinals of the Philippine Women's Open.
The No. 4 seed in the tournament made quick work of Russia's Mariia Tkacheva, 6-1, 6-2, in their Round of 16 matchup at the Rizal Memorial Tennis Center.
After being delayed by the rain on Tuesday, Vekic did not waste time to put away Tkacheva, who was hounded by faults throughout the match.
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The Croatian player had a total of three service aces in the two-set match.
"It's been two very good matches for me. I played very well, very solid. I was serving very well, I was aggressive. The matches weren't that easy compared to how the score looks. But it's [a] good level," Vekic said in the post-match press conference.
Just like in the previous match, Vekic was feeling the love from the Filipino fans in attendance at center court, something she remains grateful for.
"It's great to have the support. It's definitely a big advantage. I hope they will be rooting for me for the rest of the tournament until I face Alex of course," she said.
The Olympic silver medalist will face China's Lin Zhu in the quarterfinals, after the latter defeated Thailand's Mananchaya Sawangkaew, 6-3, 7-6(5).
"The matches are going to get tougher and tougher from now on but that's what I'm here for to have matches, to improve my level and keep raising my level," Vekic said.