"I just tried to play courageously and take the match into my own hands. It worked out well until the end and I'm very happy to have made it into the main draw," said Kraus, who is also competing in the doubles with Julia Grabher. "Julia and I get on very well, we've already played in a few Billie Jean King Cup matches and know our strengths and weaknesses on the court. That's why it's sure to be fun."

With Sinja Kraus and Julia Grabher, two Austrians are back in the main draw of Austria's biggest women's tennis tournament for the first time since 2015. Back then, Barbara Haas, who is acting as the hall announcer at the Design Centre for the first time this year, and Tamira Paszek were at the start.

The 22-year-old Kraus will now face Ukraine's Anna Blinkova (WTA 83) in the main draw on Wednesday.

Grabher meets Anastasia Potapova on Tuesday (not before 4 pm)

Julia Grabher starts the competition on Tuesday afternoon. She won't play Anastasia Potapova, who won the tournament in Linz two years ago, on Centre Court until 4 pm. 

"I'll just try to concentrate on my game, do my best and bring my training performance into the match. I'm leading in the head-to-head, but the last match between us was on clay. The conditions are different here and I'm looking forward to seeing how it goes," said Grabher on Monday. The only duel between the two to date was won by the Austrian in Valencia in June '22.