Tennis News

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic will look to return to his winning ways on Tuesday afternoon at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships when he contests an intriguing opening round battle against Canadian No. 2 Vasek Pospisil. This marks the third time that these two competitors will cross paths on the professional tour, with Djokovic leading the head-to-head series 2-0.

Watch the match live here: Djokovic v Pospisil Live Stream

Back in 2011, and 2013, Novak Djokovic was able to follow up his Aussie Open title wins with championship wins in Dubai. Given that he won the title in Melbourne this season, Djokovic will be looking to maintain that remarkable trend in 2015.

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“I believe there is a connection between the Australian Open and Dubai,” said Djokovic. “Every time I win there I probably win here. The reason I’m so successful here is building on the confidence and that it’s the beginning of the season and I’m motivated, fresh and eager to compete.”

The former four-time champion is riding a seven-match win streak and only lost once this season – a three-set defeat to Delray Beach champion Ivo Karlovic – and will now look to build on his newfound momentum ahead of the Indian Wells Masters event next season.

Canadian No. 2 Vasek Pospisil has managed to compile five wins on the ATP World Tour so far this season, although they are all scattered over four tournaments. His best performance was at the Aussie Open, where he reached the third round of the tournament following wins over Sam Querrey and Paolo Lorenzi. Since then, he has only picked up one win in Rotterdam, and one in Marseille.

This marks the third time that Djokovic and Pospisil will cross paths on the ATP World Tour, with the Serb leading the series 2-0 with a Davis Cup victory on clay last season, and then a win in the second round in Beijing. The world No. 1 is coming off an extended break following his Major title win, which is why he will likely be fresh and ready to impose his dominance over an inconsistent BC native.

Prediction: Novak Djokovic in Straight Sets

After a less than stellar start to her 2015 season, Sara Errani took part in a strong week on the red clay in Rio to defeat Anna Schmiedlova and lift the Rio Open title.

While the Italian’s win is a notable victory and edges her closer to an eventual return to the Top 10 in the WTA rankings, the biggest story this week was rising star Anna Schmiedlova, who had never reached the quarter-final stage of a WTA event prior to this week in Rio.

The youngster even put up a fight in the final, where she pushed Errani to a tiebreak in the opening set before being overwhelmed by the Italian in the second set to lose 7-6(2), 6-1.

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“She was moving really well and she’s a really great player,” Schmiedlova said. “I played some very good tennis in the first set – the second set was worse, but I’m so happy I was in the final. This week gave me a lot of confidence. I hope it helps me in my next tournaments.”

With the victory on Sunday, Errani won her eighth title on the WTA tour.

“The first set was tough. We played more than an hour,” Errani said. “We were both fighting hard in that set – she was playing very well and not giving me anything, really. It was also the first time I played her so I needed some time to find my tactics. I was happy I managed to win that set, and in the second set things started going much more my way. I think I was just physically stronger in the end.

“Winning a title is always special. This tournament was great and I leave with only good memories.”

As someone who was a former No. 5 ranked player, Errani will rise from No.16 to No.12 on this week’s WTA Rankings.

“I’m aware that I’m close to getting back to the Top 10, but right now my goal is to keep trying to play my best and keep trying to improve,” Errani said. “If that happens I think the ranking will come.”

Following several weeks off the tour, Roger Federer will return to professional competition when he takes part in the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Monday afternoon. The Swiss No. 1 is scheduled to meet Russia’s Mikhail Youzhny, whom he holds a remarkable 15-0 head to head record against.

Watch the match live here: Federer v Youzhny Live Stream

World No. 2 Roger Federer has been away from the tour since his premature exit from the Australian Open in January. After starting off the year with an impressive showing in Brisbane, where he won the title following wins over Grigor Dimitrov and Milos Raonic, Federer was unable to maintain that momentum, and suffered a surprise loss to Andreas Seppi in the Aussie Open third round. It was his first career loss to the Italian, and put a damper on Federer’s strong start to the season.

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After a couple of weeks of rest, Federer is prepared to return to Dubai and rebound from his rough fortnight in Melbourne.

“I feel good, I know well this the area, I know what to expect. I have had two weeks off, after the Australian Open, so, I feel myself fresh and ready to play. I really like the court, here I have played well, over the years. The tournament has a great atmosphere.”

After starting his year with back-to-back first round losses in Doha and the Aussie Open, Youzhny earned a pair of wins in Zagreb (Blaz Kavcic and Sergiy Stakhovsky) before losing to Marcos Baghdatis in the quarter-final.

This marks the 17th time that these two competitors meet on the professional tour, and the first time since the Halle final in 2013. Considering that was Federer’s worst season in a decade, and that Youzhny was still unable to dent the armour, the Russian will certainly be hard pressed to defeat a motivated Federer.

Prediction: Roger Federer in Straight Sets

After two very different paths in 2015, Victoria Azarenka and Angelique Kerber will meet in the opening round of the Qatar Total Open. It will serve as their fourth career meeting, with two-time former Grand Slam champion Azarenka leading head to head the series with an unblemished 3-0 record. This will also be their first career meeting since the WTA Championships in 2012.

Watch the match live here: Azarenka v Kerber Live Stream

Azarenka overcame a tough and turbulent 2014 season plagued with injuries and is well on her way to regaining her old form, particularly under the new tutelage of Wim Fissette. After losing to rising star Karolina Pliskova in her first match of the season in Brisbane, Azarenka managed to work her way through a tough Aussie Open draw to reach the fourth round of the Major that she had previously won on two occasions. Following wins over Sloane Stephens, Carolina Wozniacki and Barbara Zahlavova Strycova, the former champ lost to last year’s runner up Dominika Cibulkova, and were denied the quarter-final berth.

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Now, Azarenka is back in Doha, where she is on a 10-match winning streak following back-to-back title wins in 2012-13. She missed last year’s tournament due to her foot injury, but appears to be ready to continue her run in the Qatari capital.

Her opponent, Angelique Kerber has had a tempestuous season on the tour so far, as she lost in the quarter-final round in Sydney to Karolina Pliskova, suffered opening round losses at the Aussie Open and Antwerp, and later managed to reach the second round in Dubai before losing to Flavia Pennetta.

This marks the fourth time that these two competitors will cross paths on the professional tour, and the first time since the 2012 WTA Championship. While Azarenka is unseeded at this event, she should be treated as a top competitor, and will likely find a way to edge her German adversary on Monday.

Prediction: Victoria Azarenka in Three Sets