Gaiba, Italy, Jun 16 (AP) Fourth-seeded Claire Liu was upset by Tatjana Maria 7-6 (3), 6-7 (3), 6-3 Thursday in the second round of the Veneto Open.

The 35-year-old Maria, who is ranked 109th in the world, converted her first match point when her American opponent hit a return into the net.

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Maria will next face sixth-seeded Diane Parry in the quarterfinals. The Frenchwoman beat Joanne Zuger 6-1, 4-6, 6-4.

The Veneto Open is taking place in Gaiba, a town of less than 1,000 inhabitants — making it the smallest town in the world to host a WTA tournament.

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It is the first WTA tournament played on natural grass in Italy and organizers are using former soccer fields for the courts. The host tennis club has been nicknamed “Gaibledon” in homage to Wimbledon. AP

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)