For ‌20-year-old American Clervie Ngounoue, the Citi DC Open qualifier offered a golden opportunity to get in form after she walked over from the Newport Challenger. But the dream of reaching the main draw ended abruptly as 40-year-old Varvara Lepchenko produced a thunderous performance against her.

Lepchenko, the oldest woman in the WTA top 200, recently stunned Ngounoue during the qualifiers of the Citi DC Open. The 2023 SW19 junior champion couldn’t hold off the challenge as she eventually lost the match 6-1, 6-4, 6-4.

Both players delivered a competitive performance throughout the match at Stadium Court. However, the former world No. 19 held the edge in several key areas that ultimately helped her win the match.

Lepchenko won 74% of her first-serve points, compared to Ngounoue’s 59%. The Uzbekistan-born American also converted 5 of her 8 break-point opportunities.

With ‌16 points separating the two WTA players, Lepchenko booked her place in the second round of qualifiers, where she will now face Polina Kudermetova at the John A Harris Grandstand.

After suffering an opening-round defeat at SW19, Varvara Lepchenko’s recent performances have shown clear improvement. She reached the quarterfinals of the Nordea Open before losing to Paula Badosa.

The 40-year-old also made the third round at the Lasi Open, where she lost to Clara Burel.

Although she couldn’t progress beyond the second round at the Hamburg Open, the qualifiers’ victory in DC has given her 2026 campaign fresh momentum.

Now that she has claimed this impressive win, the current world No. 175 has added another memorable achievement to her tennis journey.

Varvara Lepchenko becomes one of the oldest WTA players to win a match

Last year at the same WTA 500 event, the American icon Venus Williams made history when she became the second-oldest woman to win a WTA Tour-level singles match. Her victory came after defeating Peyton Stearns in the opening round at the Citi DC Open.

After her win, Williams only trails the 18-time Grand Slam winner Martina Navratilova, who achieved the feat at the age of 47 in 2004. 

Yesterday, the 40-year-old American Varvara Lepchenko added a new achievement along with those iconic names. After defeating Clervie Ngounoue, she became one of the oldest WTA players after Venus Williams and Martina Navratilova to win a Tour-level match.

However, the task now becomes much more difficult for her. Lepchenko’s next opponent will be Polina Kudermetova, presenting another tough test in the tournament.

Meanwhile, this will be the third WTA tour-level meeting between the two, with their H2H record balanced at 1-1 overall. The last time both these WTA players met was in the second round at Mérida in 2024, where the 23-year-old claimed a 6-3, 6-4 victory.

With another exciting contest now set, both players will be eager to take the lead in their rivalry.