St. Petersburg: Elena Vesnina's Shot Of The Day
Elena Vesnina had Wednesday’s shot of the day at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy.
Elena Vesnina had Wednesday’s shot of the day at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy.
Check out the best photos from the opening party for the 2016 French Open at Le Petit Palais here on wtatennis.com!
January was packed with plenty of amazing shots – we narrowed it down to the five best.
In the end, it Hot Shot Queen Agnieszka Radwanska, who turned defense to offense against Christina McHale at the Apia International Sydney. En route to the final, the former World No.2 used all her scrambling skills to end the rally with a screaming forehand winner.
Click here to watch all of January’s finalists.
Final Results for January’s WTA Shot Of The Month presented by Cambridge Global Payments
1. Agnieszka Radwanska (76%)
2. Julia Goerges (11%)
3. Yulia Putintseva (7%)
3. Karolina Pliskova (4%)
5. Alizé Cornet (2%)
2016 WTA Shot of the Month Winners
January: Caroline Wozniacki
February: Agnieszka Radwanska
March: Agnieszka Radwanska
April: Monica Niculescu
May: Simona Halep
June: Agnieszka Radwanska
July: Simona Halep
August: Agnieszka Radwanska
September: Kirsten Flipkens
October: Angelique Kerber
How it works:
Five shots are selected by wtatennis.com
Winner is then determined by a fan vote on wtatennis.com
Stefanie Graf, former WTA World No.1 and 22-time Grand Slam champion, will serve as the Tournament Ambassador for the 2016 WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai. The tournament is entering its second year on the WTA and is the final event of the 2016 season.
The WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai, established in 2015, features 11 of the top ranked singles players along with one wild card and four of the top ranked doubles teams, along with two team wild cards. Held November 1-6 at the Hengqin International Tennis Center, the $USD 2.21 million event with 700 ranking points awarded to the winner, will feature some of the top players in the world, with Venus Williams serving as the defending champion.
“I am so pleased to be the ambassador for the WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai in 2016,” said Graf. “Such a prestigious event in the beautiful city of Zhuhai will go a long way towards supporting the expansion of women’s tennis. I have heard great reports from the players and through the press about the 2015 event and I can’t wait to visit and be a part of the event this year.”
“It’s exciting to see Stefanie Graf as the official ambassador of WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai,” said WTA CEO Steve Simon. “Stefanie continues to be one of the greatest and most respected players on the WTA with so many players viewing her as their role model. Getting Stefanie’s endorsement is another solid testament to Zhuhai’s prestigious status. We are confident that WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai will achieve a bigger step forward in 2016 based on their success in the inaugural event last year.”
Graf is regarded as one of the greatest tennis players of all time. During her career, she won 107 WTA singles titles, including 22 Grand Slam singles titles, the record for most major wins by a tennis player (male or female) in the Open Era. Graf was the No.1 player on the WTA for a record 377 weeks – the highest total for any player since the WTA (and ATP) began issuing rankings. In 1988, she became the first player to achieve the Golden Slam by winning all four Grand Slam singles titles and the Olympic gold medal in the same calendar year. Furthermore, she is the only tennis player to have won each Grand Slam event at least four times. Because of her great achievements and her contributions to the sport of tennis, she was inducted into the Tennis Hall of Fame in 2004.
“We are absolutely delighted that Stefanie has agreed to become the Global Ambassador for the WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai for 2016,” said Tournament Director Peter Johnston. “Throughout her life, Stefanie has displayed the qualities both on and off the court that make her one of the greatest and most respected athletes of all time. As the WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai continues to grow and its global profile increases, it is another important milestone to have the endorsement of such a great champion. We look forward to working with her in lead up promotions and welcoming her during the event week.”
Due to its special qualification rules, the WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai is a competition mixed with established and rising stars. At its inaugural year in 2015, the event featured three former WTA World No.1 players of Venus Williams, Caroline Wozniacki, and Jelena Jankovic, along with next generation players of Karolina Pliskova, Madison Keys, and Elina Svitolina. The WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai is managed by the renowned Huafa Group in conjunction with APG.
Yulia Putintseva reached her first Premier-level semifinal at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy, outlasting No.3 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova in three sets.
PARIS, France – Next week at Roland Garros, Serena Williams resumes her relentless march towards tennis history. But before she embarks on her bid for a 22nd Grand Slam crown, here are some noteworthy numbers on the WTA’s indomitable World No.1.
Serena & Grand Slams
~ Serena has the second-most Grand Slam singles titles in the Open Era with 21 (Graf 22)
~ Serena has the third-most Grand Slam singles titles all-time with 21 (Court 24, Graf 22)
~ Serena has the third-most Grand Slam match wins in Open Era with 291 (Navratilova 306, Evert 299)
~ Serena is trying to win her fourth Roland Garros title (won it in 2002, 2013 and 2015); a fourth title would tie her with Justine Henin and Helen Wills-Moody on the all-time leaderboard
~ This is Serena’s 21st time being the No.1 seed at a Grand Slam (she’s won 11 of the first 20)
~ Serena is 61-1 in Grand Slam first round matches (only loss: Razzano at 2012 Roland Garros)
Serena & Finals
~ Serena is 21-5 in Grand Slam singles finals, the second-best winning percentage Open Era (Court was 11-1)
~ Serena won eight straight Grand Slam singles finals between 2012 Wimbledon and 2015 Wimbledon; losses on each side were 2011 US Open (l. Stosur) and 2016 Australian Open (l. Kerber)
~ Serena has won 31 of her last 35 finals (only losses: Azarenka at 2013 Doha, 2013 Cincinnati, 2016 Indian Wells & Kerber at 2016 Australian Open)
Serena & Age-Related Stats
~ Serena is the oldest woman to win a major in the Open Era (33y & 285d at 2015 Wimbledon)
~ Serena is the oldest No.1 in WTA history (set record when returned to No.1 on February 18, 2013)
~ Serena has the longest winning span between majors of any woman Open Era at 15 years and 10 months between 1999 US Open and 2015 Wimbledon (Evert, Navratilova and Graf had 12-year spans)
~ Serena has won eight majors since turning 30, the most after 30 by far in the Open Era (Court and Navratilova three each, King and Evert two each and Jones, Wade, Li and Pennetta one each)
Miscellaneous
~ Serena will spend her 171st & 172nd straight weeks at No.1 during the Roland Garros fortnight (second-longest streak at No.1 in WTA history after Graf’s 186)
~ Serena is spending her 294th & 295th career weeks at No.1 during the Roland Garros fortnight (second-most weeks at No.1 in WTA history after Graf’s 377)
~ Serena has the most career prize money in WTA history ($76.5M – next-most is Sharapova’s $36.8M)
~ Serena has the fifth-most WTA titles in Open Era with 70 (after Navratilova, Evert, Graf, Court)
Before & After Patrick Mouratoglou
Serena joined forces with Patrick Mouratoglou after falling first round at the 2012 French Open, and the dynamic duo’s numbers speak for themselves – here’s a comparison of before and after Mouratoglou:
Pre-Patrick Mouratoglou
win-loss: 523-107 (.830)
WTA titles: 41
Grand Slam titles: 13 out of 47 (.277)
vs Top 10: 111-59 (.653)
Post-Patrick Mouratoglou
win-loss: 232-19 (.924)
WTA titles: 29
Grand Slam titles: 8 out of 15 (.533)
vs Top 10: 56-6 (.903)
Since Regaining World No.1
Since returning to the top spot on the WTA Rankings on February 18, 2013, Serena’s been fantastic:
win-loss: 189-16
WTA titles: 23 of 33
Grand Slam titles: 6 of 12
vs Top 10: 41-4 (.911)
Kristina Mladenovic talks through her performance in her quarterfinal victory at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy.
PARIS, France – No.10 seed Lucie Safarova made the most of an interrupted schedule on Sunday to defeat the recently returning Vitalia Diatchenko, 6-0, 6-2, to reach the second round of the French Open. Not long after the 2015 finalist’s win, play was canceled due to rain.
Safarova was one of only five women to complete their first round matches, joining Petra Kvitova, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Viktorija Golubic and Hsieh Su-Wei before stormy weather held serve and kept top seeds like Simona Halep and Garbiñe Muguruza from making their 2015 French Open debuts.
“It’s nice to have the match finished,” said Safarova, who won the first seven games of the match before the first wave of inclement weather covered the clay courts. “Obviously now I have two days off, which I can train, hopefully, and get back to my routine.
“But I don’t think it does a huge impact in the draw results. I mean, obviously today it’s tough conditions because of the rain and delays and the balls are quite heavy, but it’s same for everyone.”
Diatchenko was playing her first major tournament since having to retire in the first round of the US Open due to an Achilles injury; the Russian returned last week to win a Challenger doubles title with Galina Voskoboeva, but was still struggling with her rhythm on Sunday, hitting 27 unforced errors and nine double faults.
“It’s really nice to be back,” the defending doubles champion with Bethanie Mattek-Sands remarked in her post-match press conference. “I’m excited. Obviously a lot of great memories from last year. To be back here on-site, playing on the same courts, brings a lot of nice feelings.”
Playing a clean match with 11 winners and 12 unforced errors, Safarova enjoyed her second win since food poisoning forced her to pull out of the Mutua Madrid Open; her season had already gotten off to a late start due to injuries and a bacterial infection causing a bout with reactive arthritis.
“I had a lot of health issues last half year, so I’m just really happy to be playing and to be here. Each match I face, I will try to win and we will see.”
Safarova advanced under the wire on Court Suzanne Lenglen, as a drizzle threatened to send her off court a second time, but the former World No.5 duly served out the match and booked a second round meeting with Golubic, who needed three sets to take out Alison Riske, 6-2, 1-6, 6-2.
Play is set to resume on Monday and will feature No.2 seed Agnieszka Radwanska as she takes on Bojana Jovanovski, Muguruza and Halep, and the completion of three matches which were rained out, including Svetlana Kuznetsova, Nicole Gibbs, and Aliaksandra Sasnovich, who lead Yaroslava Shvedova, Heather Watson, and Cagla Buyukakcay, respectively.
All remaining matches cancelled until tomorrow ☔ #RG16 pic.twitter.com/x5jbAyYT3A
— WTA (@WTA) May 22, 2016
Kristina Mladenovic talks through her performance in her semifinals victory at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy.
PARIS, France – Shelby Rogers woke up on Monday morning full of excitement and adrenaline. Sure, the 23-year-old South Carolina native was looking forward to taking on No.17 seed Karolina Pliskova in the first round of the French Open, but that wasn’t what she was amped about.
Rogers is a huge Tampa Bay Lightning fan and she woke up to the news her boys were a game away from the Stanley Cup Final.
“My Bolts are doing so well right now!” Rogers said, as she lit up at the mere mention of the NHL playoffs. “They’re going home with a 3-2 lead [over the Pittsburgh Penguins]. I’m so pumped.”
Rogers’ Monday would only get better. Ranked No.108, she pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the day at Roland Garros, beating Pliskova 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 to advance to the second round in Paris for the second time in her career. Rogers falls into the growing category of young Americans who are loving European red clay, and she was happy to avenge a tough loss to the Czech earlier this year in Indian Wells.
“I definitely like my chances better on clay, that’s for sure,” Rogers said.
“I think it helps my kick serve for sure. Moving is really fun on it. The points are always a little more versatile, you do a lot of different things. It’s a little bit slower so I do think I can hit through the court but I have a little bit more time to pick my shots.
“It’s a lot of fun, for sure.”
So how closely has Rogers been keeping tabs on the Lightning while she’s been in Europe? She’s doing as much as she can.
“I can’t watch the games because they’re so late,” she said. “They’re like at 3AM and that’s not very good match prep.
“But I woke up this morning and I was all fired up because they got the win in overtime. I was retweeting all the goals. I’m such a nerd. They’re probably like, ‘This girl needs to stop stalking us.'”
But how does a South Carolina native who now trains in Los Angeles become such a rabid Tampa Bay fan?
“I trained at [the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida] for about a year when I was younger,” Rogers explained. “That was the only thing I did there that was fun. I became a huge fan. I love hockey. I think it’s one of the best sports [to watch] live. It’s so much fun and I’ve just been a fan every since.”
@tennis_jarkag @TBLightning how good was that OT win???! Inspiring for sure! #gobolts
— Shelby Rogers (@Shelby_Rogers_) May 23, 2016
“I just love the aggression of it. I love the atmosphere at the games. I love that you can get rowdy and shout and the players love that. It’s just a really fast paced fun sport to watch. I grew up going to a lot of games. We have a team in South Carolina called the Sting Rays, and I grew up going to those. It’s just something different, something unique.”
Rogers plays No.49 Elena Vesnina in the second round. Vesnina beat Madison Brengle, 6-2, 6-3, in the first round.