Radwanska Safely Into Second Round
No.3 seed Agnieszka Radwanska moved serenely into the second round of Wimbledon with a straight set win over Kateryna Kozlova.
No.3 seed Agnieszka Radwanska moved serenely into the second round of Wimbledon with a straight set win over Kateryna Kozlova.
The final chapter in a memorable season came in Singapore as Dominika Cibulkova recovered from a rocky start to triumph at the season-ending showpiece.
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…
ROCK ISLAND, IL, USA – 21-year-old American tennis player Madison Keys hosted her first FearlesslyGIRL summit earlier today at the Rock Island High School in Rock Island, Illinois.
“Today was incredibly special,” Keys said. “To be able to launch my partnership with FearlesslyGIRL in my hometown and to meet so many amazing young women was an unforgettable experience.”
During the four hour summit in her hometown, Keys met hundreds of young women who attend Rock Island High School. She hosted a questions and answers session during which she shared her personal experiences with anti-bullying, building confidence, her relationship with fellow tennis players, and overcoming the pressure of being in the public eye. She also participated in group breakouts covering numerous topics relevant to young women today.
“I am so honored to be called a role model for young women and I take this role seriously as my goal is to help others through my own experiences and spread positivity.
“I want to thank my FearlesslyGIRL partner Kate and everyone at the Rock Island High School for making today possible. I look forward to keeping in touch with the young women I met today,” said Keys.
Keys became an ambassador for the internationally recognized leadership organization earlier this fall. FearlesslyGIRL is dedicated to empowering a generation of young women as well as their schools and communities and is 100% girl driven.
Check out the best photos from the event, courtesy of IMG and FearlesslyGIRL.
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.
Madison Keys might be the youngest member of the WTA’s Top 10, but in 2016 she proved that she has the game to stay at the top. Watch all of Keys’ best shots of the year, right here!
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.
December 14, 2016
Spelling challenges, emoji challenges, cracker challenges, selfie challenges and, of course, the WTA Frame Challenge – which video was the best of the year? Click here to vote!
Elina Svitolina
2016 Quick Hits
Week 1 Ranking: No.20
Year-End Ranking: No.14 (Career-High No.14, March 7)
Season Highlights: Title at Kuala Lumpur, finals at New Haven & Zhuhai
Best Major Result: QF (French Open)
14 Days until the 2017 #WTA season! pic.twitter.com/DIIg2qWhUX
— WTA (@WTA) 18 de diciembre de 2016
2017 Outlook
Some players adhere to the policy of “If it’s not broken, don’t fix it,” but Elina Svitolina isn’t one of those people.
After a career-best season – which saw her rise to her highest ranking of No.14, upset two different WTA World No.1s, pocket a title at Kuala Lumpur and reach the finals at New Haven and Zhuhai – the always-improving Svitolina announced a new coaching team with the goal of getting herself past the final hurdles and cementing her spot at the game’s upper echelons.
A busy off-season schedule in 2015 stunted Svitolina’s progress earlier this year, but she learned her lesson and heads into 2017 with a clear objective:
“Of course, the main goal is to be Top 10,” Svitolina told WTA Insider at the Huajin Securities WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai. “I’ll try to have a normal off-season this time, work really hard physically, and mentally. It’s all about the small details, so I’ll be trying to work on those and make little changes.”
Looking ahead to 2017, Ukraine’s No.1 player will start out the year rested and in prime position to make big gains. With just a handful of points to defend in the first two months of the year, Svitolina looks ever closer to a big leap into the WTA’s highest rankings.