Jack Sock On Preseason Preparation
Jack Sock On Preseason Preparation
Dec182015
The Lawn Tennis Association plans to hand out 10,000 free racquets and offer 10,000 free junior tennis courses in an attempt to unearth stars of the future.
The LTA says it will also take the Davis Cup trophy on a tour to 50 different venues around Britain.
The move follows criticism of the LTA from world number two Andy Murray for failing to develop world-class talent.
Britain won the Davis Cup for the first time since 1936 by beating Belgium in Ghent in November.
“We want to make a difference in capitalising on this unique opportunity to get as many kids on court as possible,” said victorious Davis Cup captain Leon Smith.
The lessons will be delivered by a team of 1,000 “expert and passionate coaches”, according to an LTA statement.
The opportunity for children and families to take up the offer will go live before the Davis Cup first round tie against Japan in March.
Friends, Besties, BFFs. Who was in your favorite Womance of the year? Click here to vote!
Arina Rodionova set to play a match on her wedding day: Rodionova is caught in a scheduling tizzy. She’s into the semifinals of the Australian Open wildcard playoff on Saturday. That also happens to be the same day as her wedding. Organizers have moved the match to start at 9am. Good luck!
Serena ready for another Grand Slam run: The World No.1 says the Grand Slam – nay, Golden Slam – is on her mind as she readies for 2016.
Sania Mirza hoping for less controversy at the Olympics: After a divisive Olympic selection bid last time around in London, Mirza his hoping for smoother waters in Rio this summer.
Belinda Bencic partnership still in flux: On the heels of Martina Hingis confirming her mixed doubles pairing with Roger Federer at the Olympics, Bencic’s potential pairing with Wawrinka is still in up in the air.
Meanwhile, here’s Bencic with her IPTL Singapore Slammers. Looks like a fun time is being had by all.
Singapore calling! @andy_murray @Charlymoya @BelindaBencic @marcelomelo83 @NickKyrgios @KaPliskova #Tenfie pic.twitter.com/mmI9cMYNbP
— IPTL (@iptl) December 17, 2015
Petra Kvitova announces her engagement: The two-time Wimbledon champion announced on Thursday that she’s engaged to Czech hockey player Radek Meidl. Congrats!
Vincanity: Steve Tignor for Tennis.com on his second-best match of the year: Roberta Vinci’s shocker over Serena Williams at the US Open.
Kristina Mladenovic living her dream: The Frenchwoman tells Sport360.com that playing IPTL alongside Roger Federer is blowing her mind.
The Best Interviews: We’ve created a playlist on Soundcloud featuring the best player interviews so far from the WTA Insider Podcast. It’s a great jumping off point if you haven’t heard the podcast yet.
Strong IS beautiful: We see you, Dominika Cibulkova.
#strongisbeautiful @Cibulkova @wta @DomiCollection pic.twitter.com/NKqhRLyt4h
— Dominika Cibulkova (@Cibulkova) December 17, 2015
Greatness has been found: Nifty Nike collection honoring Serena here:
Strong. Powerful. Beautiful. @nikelab honors @serenawilliams with the Greatness Collection: https://t.co/mUskPo4YEH pic.twitter.com/pcMnc7Mg8O
— NikeCourt (@Nikecourt) December 16, 2015
Petra Kvitova, a two-time Wimbledon champion in 2011 and 2014 and a former No.2 player in the world, has announced her engagement to Radek Meidl, a hockey player from the Czech Republic.
So happy to share the news with you that we got engaged! pic.twitter.com/8aXm9rGPk0
— Petra Kvitova (@Petra_Kvitova) December 17, 2015
Always one of the most popular players on the tour, and winner of the Karen Krantzcke Sportsmanship Award for the last two years, it may come as no surprise Kvitova’s fellow WTA stars were thrilled:
@Petra_Kvitova congrats Petra , so happy for you ?
— Angelique Kerber (@AngeliqueKerber) December 17, 2015
Congrats!!! ?? @Petra_Kvitova https://t.co/PzyITuIcDk
— Sabine Lisicki (@sabinelisicki) December 17, 2015
@Petra_Kvitova I am so happy for you!!! ???
— Yanina Wickmayer (@wickytennis) December 17, 2015
@Petra_Kvitova congrats girl !!!! ?❤️
— Jovana Jaksic (@JaksicJovana) December 17, 2015
Sometimes it takes us more than once to get the right shot. See all the best bloopers and outtakes of WTA Live Fan Access presented by Xerox right here!
Two-time US Open finalist Caroline Wozniacki may have made her major breakthrough in the hustle and bustle of New York, but she first came to prominence under calmer circumstances, winning her first junior Grand Slam title in 2006 at the Wimbledon Championships.
“I like to play on grass,” she said at the All England Club this past summer. “It’s a fun surface for me to play on. I enjoy it.”
Though her maiden Premier title came in New Haven, it was less than a year later that her second big title came at the Aegon International Eastbourne.
Despite these early successes, Wimbledon remains the only major tournament where she is yet to reach the quarterfinals. Most maddeningly, her tournament has ended on the Championships’ Manic Monday five of the last seven years.
“I’m very motivated for that. I’ve won Eastbourne. I’ve done so well there so many times. I won junior Wimbledon. I feel so comfortable on the grass. There’s no reason why I shouldn’t be able to make it past the fourth round.”
In defense of the Dane, she has run into some stiff opposition at this stage of the tournament. Three of her round of 16 losses have come to future Wimbledon starlets in Sabine Lisicki, Petra Kvitova, and Garbiñe Muguruza, who went on to reach the final later that week.
A player who enjoys outfoxing opponents, Wozniacki is aware of the need to earn the initiative early in grass court rallies.
“It’s all about being good on the first couple of shots in the rally. Once you have that, you can kind of dictate, and then you have to think about where you can place the ball.”
Wozniacki is also hoping to make changes when it comes to her court assignments, having ended up on the wrong end of one too many matches on Wimbledon’s newly constructed Court 2.
“Court 2 hasn’t been very nice to me through the years. Maybe next year I’ll ask to be put on one of the small courts. I don’t know. Try and mix it up a little bit.”
Spoken in jest, the former No.1 and two-time year-end No.1 is still hungry for the big results, and the big stages that come with them – though she admits it’s even tougher for WTA players to get their due at Wimbledon.
“The women really haven’t gotten the opportunity here to play on the big courts. You only get one woman’s match on Court 1 and Centre Court. Most of last week it was only one woman’s match on Court 2 as well. It’s definitely different. That’s all I can say.
“I think a lot of us women feel like we deserve to play on the big courts in front of a big crowd, as well.”
With another Wimbledon on the horizon in 2016, will Wozniacki fulfill her potential for Grand Slam glory at the tournament that started it all?
Players prepare for 2016 campaign at ATP training camp
World No. 1 and Monte-Carlo resident Novak Djokovic has been honing his preparations for the 2016 ATP World Tour season at the ATP training camp in Monaco.
The Serb, who captured 11 tour-level titles in a staggering 2015 campaign, has enjoyed full use of the facilities at the Monte-Carlo Country Club, including the gym and discounted meals.
Djokovic has been joined in the warm weather at the training camp by fellow Monte-Carlo resident, Milos Raonic, Italians Andreas Seppi and Marco Cecchinato, China’s Di Wu and all the Monaco team. Junior players also took the opportunity to train with the world’s best as practice partners.
As well as benefitting from the facilities at the Monte-Carlo Country Club, the players were also welcome at Stade Louis II, home of AS Monaco, where they could use the athletic track. Hotel discounts were also available for ATP members.
The Monte-Carlo Country Club also hosts the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 clay-court tournament, to be played 10-17 April, 2016.