Chang Closes In On Taipei Title
Former runner-up Chang Kai-Chen returned to the final of the OEC Taipei WTA Challenger with an impressive victory over No.8 seed Marina Erakovic.
Former runner-up Chang Kai-Chen returned to the final of the OEC Taipei WTA Challenger with an impressive victory over No.8 seed Marina Erakovic.
LONDON, Great Britain – Serena Williams and Venus Williams imposed their doubles dominance against the No.11 seeded team of Andreja Klepac and Katarina Srebotnik in their Wimbledon doubles opener to advance 7-5, 6-3.
The sisters started out sluggish in the first set as Venus, who finished her two hour and twenty-four minute marathon singles match against Maria Sakkari about two hours earlier, was broken twice to allow the Slovaks to build up a hefty 4-1 lead in the first set.
After trading breaks for 5-2, the Williams sisters broke again after Klepac couldn’t get out of the way of a Serena volley fast enough. Venus held serve for the first time just as the two started to kick it into high gear.
With Srebotnik serving for the set at 5-4, Venus fired a forehand long to give the Slovakian team three set points but immediately redeemed herself by saving one with a lunging volley on the stretch. She ripped a backhand passing shot up the middle of the court to clinch the break and level the score 5-5.
Finally fired up, the Williams sisters dropped just one point in the next two games to take the first set 7-5. They continued their romp into the second set, where they broke twice to get ahead 4-0. Klepac and Srebotnik stopped the streak of nine games in a row by getting one of the breaks back, but it wasn’t enough to turn the tide as Serena and Venus took the match for their first Wimbledon doubles win in two years.
Up next for the sibling duo are the Belgian team of Elise Mertens and An-Sophie Mestach, who took out the all-American team of Nicole Gibbs and Irina Falconi, 7-6(3), 6-1.
Another sibling duo moves on as the No.3 seeded sisters Chan Yung-Jan and Chan Hao-Ching battled past Ashleigh Barty and Laura Robson in a comfortable straight sets, 6-4, 6-2.
They’re joined in the second round by the No.13 seeds Vania King and Alla Kudryavtseva after the Birmingham finalists came back to dispatch Nao Hibino and Alicija Rosolska 3-6, 6-1, 6-3, and by Darija Jurak and Anastasia Rodionova, who are fresh off of a title win at the Aegon International Eastbourne and downed the No.9 seeds Yifan Xu and Saisai Zheng 7-6(6), 2-6, 7-5.
5 sets today. 2 of them with my favorite tennis player @serenawilliams #sucess #wimbeldon https://t.co/MWPw4ZPhlu
— Venus Williams (@Venuseswilliams) June 30, 2016
No you are MY FAVORITE player. I love u so much ❤️❤️? #Repost @venuseswilliams with repostapp… https://t.co/kc8pTg92sY
— Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) June 30, 2016
More to come…
LONDON, Great Britain – Svetlana Kuznetsova is a good mood these days. And why shouldn’t she be?
At 31 years old the two-time Slam champion is playing some of her best tennis in years. Currently at No.14, Kuznetsova’s seen her ranking peak this year at No.12, her highest since 2011. She has a title under her belt, winning the Apia International Sydney in January, and made the final of the Miami Open, beating defending champion and World No.1 Serena Williams en route.
After all the ups and downs of her career, Kuznetsova was outspoken last year about wanting to just enjoy her tennis, knowing that if she did the results would come. The change in mindset has led to a more positive mindset and it has freed up her game and led to a level of consistency she has not seen in years.
She’s even holding impromptu Q&As with fans on Twitter. And no matter what’s going on in her life or on the court, Sveta just can’t help being Sveta:
I sat down with Kuznetsova at Wimbledon after her strong first round win over Caroline Wozniacki for a fun discussion about the state of her game, the hilarious circumstances surrounding her first round draw against Caroline, and why she considers herself “an artist” on the court.
Subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn or on any podcast app of your choice to ensure you never miss an episode when they go live. Reviews are always helpful, so if you like what you’ve heard so far, leave us one. You can also get new episode alerts by following us on Twitter @WTA_Insider.
Earlier this year, Canada’s No.1 Eugenie Bouchard showed us how to make the perfect parfait, and now she’s back to shake things up with her favorite USANA MySmart Shake.
Watch to find out how to make a great on-the-go snack or a quick, nutritious breakfast with just five ingredients – and a packet of USANA MySmart Shake Whey Protein.
USANA is the Official Vitamin & Supplement Supplier of the WTA, and over 170 Athletes – including 8 out of the Top 10 and 15 out of the Top 20 use USANA products. Former No.1 Caroline Wozniacki, Samantha Stosur, Eugenie Bouchard, and Madison Keys are among several USANA ambassadors, and 2016 marks the 10th Anniversary of the USANA-WTA partnership.
Caroline Wozniacki’s late-season resurgence made headlines during the Asian Swing, but her spectacular shotmaking was on song all season long. Watch all her best shots of 2016!
Despite the degrees of separation, Elena Vesnina proved most prescient prior to the Wimbledon fortnight when expecting a boost in form thanks to Ivan Lendl.
Simona Halep finished a third straight season as a Top 5 player, and credits some of her game’s biggest improvements to work done with coach Darren Cahill.
“I am more aggressive, but not crazy aggressive,” the Romanian told Forbes’ Danielle Rossingh during the Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open. “More smart aggressive because I cannot stay all the time close to the baseline. I have to go out and back and come in many times.
“I think I improved in myself, my forehand is stronger. We worked on every shot and I think all my game is better now.”
Halep believes another key improvement has come on serve, specifically her ball toss.
“He told me to change it, to toss it lower, and I think it helps me. I feel like the timing is better.”
The results began to come in streams by spring, when she won her second Premier Mandatory title at the Mutua Madrid Open, owned by countryman and Romanian tennis legend Ion Tiriac.
15-Love: Try saying “foot fault” 5x fast. @Simona_Halep was more than up for the challenge in our super-sonic Q&A challenge. #USOpen #Halep pic.twitter.com/YEYKc9OKFB
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) December 5, 2016
“He helps me with advice, he talks with me,” she said. Tiriac gave her a wildcard into Madrid back in 2013, a move Halep says kickstarted her pro career.
“He’s into my tennis and always we have a good discussion, sometimes he’s coming to my practices.”
A lot of his advice centers around Halep’s ultimate goal of Grand Slam glory; the former World No.2 reached the French Open final in 2014, and will aim to take that career-best major finish one step further in 2017.
“He tells me that I have everything to win a Grand Slam, I have just to believe. It’s good to have such an important man in my life and in my career.”
Click here to read the full interview with Halep as she discusses her celebrity status in Romania and the rise of Year-End No.1 Angelique Kerber.
LONDON, Great Britain – Just hours after winning her seventh Wimbledon crown and a historic 22nd major title, Serena Williams was back on Centre Court to join Venus Williams in the final of Ladies Doubles. The sisters extended their doubles dominance and improved their record to 14-0 in Grand Slam finals by taking the title, powering past Timea Babos and Yaroslava Shvedova 6-3, 6-4.
“It was really special to be out there again, to win Wimbledon in doubles. We love it, we love playing doubles, we love being together,” Serena said after the match.
“I had just enough time to change and get the ankles re-taped. It was fine. I didn’t want to warm down.”
It had been four years since the Williams sisters featured in a major doubles final – their victory at the 2012 Wimbledon Ladies Doubles Championships was the last time they reached this stage. With today’s victory they hold 14 Grand Slam titles together, putting them at second place on the list of most doubles titles in the Open Era. Only Martina Navratilova and Pam Shriver have more, at 20 titles.
“Watching Serena playing earlier was amazing and I was so into that,” Venus said of her younger sister’s historic win earlier in the day.
“We had to hit the reset button to get ready for the doubles. She brought the energy from game one.”
The sisters came out firing straight away against the No.5 seeds Babos and Shvedova. After trading breaks early on, the Williamses grabbed the decisive break at 4-3 after a vicious Venus crosscourt backhand split the court and left Babos and Shvedova stranded.
Despite firing off a double fault while serving for the match, Venus quickly redeemed herself on the next point as Serena picked off a backhand volley to seal the title.
The Williamses joined up again for doubles for the first time this year at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia with an eye on the Summer Games in Rio later in the season. After a pair of false starts – a first-round loss in Rome and an early exit at the French Open – they look to be peaking just in time for the Olympics, where they’re seeking their fourth doubles gold medal.
#SAPStatOfTheDay: This is the fourth time @SerenaWilliams has won BOTH #Wimbledon singles and doubles titles! pic.twitter.com/GZLHjzLMIa
— WTA (@WTA) July 9, 2016
LONDON, Great Britain – Serena Williams wasn’t sure how she found herself at the net on match point. At least not for as long as she did. But as was the case at the Australian Open, Angelique Kerber dug in and made her hit that extra shot, poking, prodding, and counterpunching as we’e seen the German do so well. Kerber was not going to give it away. Serena had to earn it. And as she finally put away the last ball with a casual forehand volley into the open court, the 34-year-old American fell to the turn and laid still.
Finally. No.22. Finally.
“On match point I hit a great shot and she got it back and I was like, ‘How appropriate that I have to win this at the net because I’m never at the net,” Serena told ESPN after the match with a laugh.
For nearly a year, Serena’s path to her Open Era record-tying 22nd major was paved with crushing disappointment. Her nervous, three-set loss to Roberta Vinci at the 2015 US Open was, in her own words, heartbreaking. What should have been the Summer of Serena – a coronation of her greatness looked sure to come at the US Open with the completion of the Calendar Slam – ended with a shock loss. She took the rest of the season off and returned at the Australian Open in January, again in search of No.22. Again she came up short, as Kerber blocked her way with brick-wall defense.
The big-match losses continued. Victoria Azarenka beat her in the final of the BNP Paribas Open. Then came a loss to Svetlana Kuznetsova at the Miami Open. When she earned her first title of the season at the Italian Open in Rome, she looked back to her dominant ways. Then came a one-way loss to Garbiñe Muguruza in the French Open final.
“I have definitely had some sleepless nights, if I’m just honest, with a lot of stuff,” Serena said. “Coming so close. Feeling it, not being able to quite get there.”
And then things changed. Serena willed the change. She woke up one morning after the French Open and decided to stop feeling sorry for herself. She would not allow herself to be the victim of some universal conspiracy to keep her off the podium. She was the architect of her own destiny. And in that moment, the Serena Williams took back the reigns.
“One day I woke and I felt different,” Serena told a small pool of reporters after the final. “I felt I can do better. I can do this. Not only can I do this but I’m going to do this and there’s nothing in this world that’s going to stop me.”
The change in mentality showed both on and off the court. I wrote last week about the clear change in how Serena spoke about herself throughout the fortnight. That was based on just my observation. I put that theory to Serena after the final. She agreed.
Q: One thing that I’ve noticed with you in the press room here and off the court as well is there does seem to be a re-embracing of “I’m Serena. I’ve done what I’ve done.” How far away did you think that you got from that last year? I feel like you were trying to diffuse the pressure a little bit of the run up to New York, saying “I’m just doing my best, that’s all I can do.” But it seems like you kind of recaptured yourself here.
A: Yeah, I definitely think so. I feel like… God, get it, girl [laughs]. Wow. Yes. Very well said.
While she was dishing out bagels on court, reminding her opponents and anyone watching this was a focused, determined, positive Serena, off-court she took every opportunity to remind reporters that her last three Slam losses did not change her character as a champion. At times it felt like it was just as important to say it out loud to herself as it was for the press to hear.
“I definitely feel like when I lose I don’t feel as good about myself. But then I have to remind myself that you are Serena Williams. Do you know what you’ve done, who you are, what you continue to do not only in tennis, off the court? You’re awesome. I think that shows the human side of me, that I’m not a robot. I only expect perfection.”
For the first time since 2006, we saw a rematch of a Grand Slam final in the same season. Kerber flummoxed Serena with her defense at the Australian Open and there is no denying that Serena was unsettled throughout the match with nerves. On Saturday, Serena controlled those nerves. In fact, she controlled everything. On the surface that rewards her game like no other, she served 13 aces, one of which wiped out the only break point she faced all day. She fired 39 winners to 21 unforced errors on a day when Kerber forced her to earn every inch.
“Serena was serving unbelievable today,” Kerber said afterwards. “At the end I was trying everything, but she deserved it today. She really played an unbelievable match. I think we both play on a really high level. I tried everything.
“I mean, I think I was not the one who lost the match, I think she won the match. Just one can win, and today Serena deserved it.”
On a day when Kerber hit just nine unforced errors in the match, Serena had to win it. And on this day, instead of throwing her hands up to the heavens asking how Kerber could get that one ball back every time, she simply gripped her racquet tighter and took control.
“We had a lot of long, tough points,” Serena said. “I think every single point I worked for, and nothing was given to me.”
That sums up much of Serena Williams’ career. With her seventh Wimbledon title she is now tied with Stefanie Graf for the Open Era record in major titles. She now just two wins short of Martina Navratilova’s Open Era record of Slam wins. She has won more matches at Wimbledon than any other active player. On Monday she will remain No.1, the oldest woman to hold the top ranking, for her 301st week.
After the match the BBC ran a montage of Serena’s march to No.22, narrated by Serena herself reading Maya Angelou’s poem “Still I Rise.” It was a moving montage of all her trials and tribulations over the last 12 months.
“I knew Maya when she was around,” Serena told a pool of reporters. “I used to go hang out with her. She was someone I really admired and I think her work should always live on.
“It’s an extremely powerful poem to me and it meant a lot to me last year. It’s one of my favorite poems of hers and I think it’s so powerful. The words are so strong and so encouraging. And I think it describes me. I really do.
“One of the most powerful lines that I like is when she says don’t get me twisted with your bitter twisted lies. Were you happy to see me down, were you sad when I fell down? And then one of my favorite parts is ‘I’m the hope and the dream of a slave.’
“So those really, really resonate with me because that’s what my ancestors were. I’m the product of that. If you break down those words, it was a dream probably for my ancestors to be here and to see what they, because of their perseverance, were able to let me have this opportunity. It’s so touching and it’s so amazing that because of that I do have that opportunity.”
We may never know the true depth of the emotional impact this last year – or really these last 20 years – has had on her personally. But her internalization of the words and the message, one of hope, of overcoming, of being judged and misunderstood, of celebrating her black history while defying it, speaks volumes of where she’s been and how she tapped into that inner strength to get back to where she wants to be.
Earlier in the week, a reporter asked what it feels like to go down as one of the greatest female athletes of all time. Serena did not blink. She did not hesitate.
“I prefer the word ‘one of the greatest athletes of all time’.”
Rise up. Serena is back.
All photos courtesy of Getty Images.
GSTAAD, Switzerland – Two weeks on from facing Serena Williams at the home of tennis, Amra Sadikovic continued her career renaissance with victory on a slightly more low-key, but no less important, stage.
Playing on home soil, at the Ladies Championship Gstaad, Sadikovic produced a battling display to see off Rebecca Peterson, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3, in just under two hours.
Struggling for motivation and money, Sadikovic walked away from the game two years ago. Inspired to return following the fairytale comeback of fellow Swiss Timea Bacsinszky, Sadikovic has been making up for lost time, already reaching a higher ranking than during the first phase of her career.
And against Peterson there was enough to suggest that her rise up the tennis pyramid may not yet be over, reeling off the final three games to emerge triumphant.
“It is a big difference, playing Wimbledon and now Gstaad, but I have to say I’m happy here – I’ve always played good anywhere back home. Even though it’s much smaller than Wimbledon it’s a nice atmosphere,” Sadikovic said.
“It was quite easy [moving back to clay], I think it took two days and I felt good. I had more problems with the altitude, so I had to fight for every point as I was not comfortable at all. I tried to mix it up, use my variety and even though I missed a few balls in the second set it made the difference in the end.”
Also advancing in the top half of the draw were Mandy Minella, Claire Feuerstein and Irina Khromacheva.
Feuerstein recovered impressively from a slow start to defeat Sílvia Soler-Espinosa, 2-6, 6-2, 6-0, while Khromacheva ably defused Lucie Hradecka, breaking six times en route to a 6-2, 7-5 victory.
Minella bounced back from her heartbreaking Wimbledon exit, defeating Ons Jabeur in an equally dramatic encounter. Jabeur served for the match in the second set only to see Minella fightback and eventually triumph, 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-4.
#SADIKOVIC Amra won her 1. Round Match against #PETERSON Rebecca 6:2,3:6,3:6. #WTA Gstaad #thegirlsarebackinthealps pic.twitter.com/rmdoilcfFp
— Ladies Open Gstaad (@WTA_Gstaad) July 11, 2016