Singapore: Pliskova Interview
An interview with Karolina Pliskova after her round-robin win at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.
An interview with Karolina Pliskova after her round-robin win at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.
ZHUHAI, China – Following their season-long success and resurgent Asian Swing performances, Johanna Konta, Carla Suárez Navarro and Petra Kvitova are set to lead a world-class field at the 2016 Huajin Securities WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai.
Joining them at the season-ending event are Elina Svitolina, Roberta Vinci, Timea Bacsinszky, Elena Vesnina, Samantha Stosur, Barbora Strycova, Kiki Bertens, Caroline Garcia and wildcard Zhang Shuai. Timea Babos will be an alternate. Between all qualified competitors, they represent nine WTA singles titles won in 2016.
Here is a more in-depth look at the singles players competing in the 2016 Huajin Securities WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai:
|
WTA Ranking
(as of 10/23) |
Player |
2016 Best Results |
|
10 |
Konta (GBR) |
Won – Stanford
F – Beijing
SF – Australian Open, Eastbourne
QF – Monterrey, Miami, Montréal, Olympics, Wuhan |
|
12 |
Suarez Navarro (ESP) |
Won – Doha
SF – Linz , Birmingham, Brisbane
QF – Cincinnati, Stuttgart, Australian Open |
|
13 |
Kvitova (CZE) |
Won – Wuhan
F – Luxembourg
SF – New Haven, Olympics, Stuttgart
QF – Beijing, Indian Wells |
|
15 |
Svitolina (UKR) |
Won – Kuala Lumpur
F – New Haven
SF – Moscow, Beijing, Tokyo, Dubai
QF – Olympics |
|
17 |
Vinci (ITA) |
Won – St. Petersburg
QF – US Open, New Haven, Stuttgart, Doha, Brisbane |
|
18 |
Bacsinszky (SUI) |
Won – Rabat
SF – Gstaad, Miami
QF – Roland Garros, Rome |
|
19 |
Vesnina (RUS) |
F – Charleston
SF – Wimbledon
QF -New Haven, Eastbourne, Strasbourg, Doha |
|
20 |
Stosur (AUS) |
F – Prague
SF -Roland Garros, Madrid
QF – Washington DC, Strasbourg, Sydney |
|
21 |
Strycova ( CZE) |
F – Birmingham, Dubai
QF – Wuhan, Rome, Prague |
|
23 |
Bertens (NED) |
Won – Nurnberg
F – Gstaad
SF – Luxembourg, Roland Garros, Rabat |
|
26 |
Garcia (FRA) |
Won – Mallorca, Strasbourg
SF – Monterrey, Dubai |
|
28 (WC) |
Zhang (CHN) |
SF – Seoul, Tokyo International
QF – Beijing, Australian Open |
“We are looking forward to the second edition of the WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai, showcasing some of the top athletes on the WTA,” said WTA CEO Steve Simon. “This event features many of our top stars who have accomplished much success during the 2016 season and now have the opportunity to compete against each other for the Zhuhai title.”
The 2016 WTA Elite Trophy will run from November 1-6, 2016 at the custom-designed and state-of-the-art Zhuhai Hengqin International Tennis Centre. The event features both singles and doubles and will be staged in the southern Chinese coastal city of Zhuhai with a total prize money of over $2.2 million on the line.
The players will compete in four round-robin groups of three, with the winners of each group advancing to the semifinals. The six doubles teams will be split into two round-robin groups, with the winner of each advancing to the final.
The doubles field consists of Zheng Saisai and Xu Yifan, Arantxa Parra Santoja and Andrea Klepac, Olga Savchuk and Anastasia Rodionova, and Tatjana Maria and Oksana Kalashnikova, as well as the two wildcard teams of Wang Yafan and Liang Chen and You Xiaodi and Yang Zhaoxuan.
SINGAPORE – Semifinal spots are on the line as the White Group takes center stage on Wednesday at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global. We preview the action.
Wednesday, White Group, Round Robin
[4] Karolina Pliskova (CZE #5) vs [8] Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS #9)
Head-to-Head: Pliskova leads 1-0
Key Stat: Pliskova, the WTA aces leader, hit 14 aces in her opening win over Muguruza. She is the first player to record consecutive seasons with 500+ aces.
Svetlana Kuznetsova’s magical run continued in full force on Monday in Singapore as she saved a match point to defeat Agnieszka Radwanska in a two-hour and 48-minute cliffhanger. Kuznetsova heads into her second career meeting with Karolina Pliskova with brimming confidence after taking the Kremlin Cup title to complete an eleventh-hour qualification for Singapore. Now that she’s here, the Russian is playing with house money and loving every minute of it.
“Sometimes it’s not easy, and sometimes you’re pulling through,” Kuznetsova said on Monday after defeating Radwanska for the 13th time in 17 career matches. “I put aside that I’m tired, put aside the emotions, the jet lag – I didn’t want to think about it. We came here to fight, let’s put everything else to one side.”
There was plenty of fight coming from Pliskova on Monday as well. The Czech also fought off a match point as she battled past Garbiñe Muguruza to earn her first WTA Finals victory in dramatic
fashion. Pliskova’s big-match composure has been a recurring theme in the second half of the season, and she has made a habit out of delivering her best tennis in the clutch. But she’ll have to be on song once again on Wednesday if she is to get past the scorching-hot Kuznetsova. There’s much on the line in this the second career meeting between these two – the winner has a good chance of securing safe passage into the semifinals.
Pick: Kuznetsova in three
[2] Agnieszka Radwanska (POL #3) vs. [5] Garbiñe Muguruza (ESP #6)
Head-to-Head: Muguruza leads 4-3
Key Stat: On six occasions, a player has lost a match in the round-robin stage and gone on to win the WTA Finals title.
Two players eager for a shot of redemption and facing possible elimination will meet for the eighth time on Wednesday when Agnieszka Radwanska and Garbiñe Muguruza lock horns in the nightcap at Singapore Indoor Stadium. Both squandered match points in heartbreaking fashion on Monday, as Muguruza blew a double-break lead in the third set against her long-time nemesis Karolina Pliskova while Radwanska failed to convert a match point late in the third set against Svetlana Kuznetsova. The pair have not met since last year’s WTA Finals, when defending champion
Radwanska snapped a four-match losing streak against the Spaniard en route to the biggest title of her career. The Pole will seek to replicate the magic against a player that can be as formidable as they come when she is on her game. Will Radwanska be able to keep the powerful Muguruza at bay again in Singapore, or will the Spaniard rebound from a disappointing opening loss to earn a much-needed victory?
Pick: Muguruza in three
White Group Semifinal Qualification Scenarios…
1. If Kuznetsova and Radwanska win, Kuznetsova qualifies for semifinals, Muguruza is eliminated.
2. If Pliskova and Muguruza win, Pliskova qualifies for semifinals, Radwanska is eliminated.
3. Any other combination of results will mean White Group semifinal qualification comes down to Friday’s matches.
By the Numbers…
14 – Pliskova hammered 14 aces in 16 service games in her win over Muguruza on Monday.
8 – Radwanska is bidding to become the eighth player to successfully defend a WTA Finals title.
3 – No. of Czech players that have claimed a WTA Finals title (Navratilova, Novotna, Kvitova).
0 – Muguruza is bidding to become the first Spaniard to win the title at the WTA Finals.
WTA Insider | In the latest WTA Insider Live Blog, relive Svetlana Kuznetsova’s thrilling win over Karolina Pliskova in three grueling sets.
SINGAPORE – Out of the 16 semifinal scenarios that could have come to fore in the Red Group, only one involved No.7 seed Dominika Cibulkova reaching the semifinals of the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global in her debut appearance. By knocking out No.3 seed Simona Halep, 6-3, 7-6(5), she did all she could do to make that lone scenario happen on Thursday, outlasting the Romanian and playing her best tennis of the week to keep herself in semifinal contention.
With Angelique Kerber’s straight-set win over Madison Keys, Cibulkova advances into her first Singapore semifinal after a statement victory from the Slovak.
Read how the match unfolded in the WTA Insider Live Blog.
– Cibulkova shows off her refined mental toughness.
The second set was crucial for both women. Win it, and remain in contention for the semifinals; lose it, and book your first ticket home.
Cibulkova admitted she very nearly did that before taking the court on Thursday.
“I was like, ‘Okay if I lose today, tomorrow we fly for holidays.’ So we booked…well, no, we didn’t book the flight, but it was like, ‘Okay, if I lose today we fly tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. to holidays.’
“So I just give everything into this match today. I knew it could be possibly the last. All the circumstances made me play really well today.”
Perhaps the mind game helped her stay focused through the tensest set of the week, but even that is a symptom of a successful tenure with a sports psychologist, whom she began working with last year.
“I was playing such good rallies, and then somehow she’d put the ball back again. There were few situations I was like, ‘Okay, I want to leave the court. This is unreal.’
“That’s what made me so strong, the mental toughness, that I knew I cannot lose even one point. I had to just think about what I want to do on the next point. That’s what made me win the second set. It was extremely tough mentally and physically, but tennis-wise, it was such a high level.”
Out of challenges is @Cibulkova, as she didn't realize that. What drama! #WTAFinals pic.twitter.com/QuEF6CDaEp
— WTA (@WTA) October 27, 2016
Out of challenges late in the second set, Cibulkova refused to be rattled, and gamely won the last three points of the second set’s sudden death.
“The pressure of me winning in two sets, that’s what made me like, ‘Okay, breathe and just forget it.’ Because I saw the ball was in. I think I have a good eye. I knew it was in.
“Maybe in a different match, different time, it would make me go crazy and I could lose two, three points likes this and the set would be over. I knew I cannot do this right now. I just had to refocus. This is what I’m talking about, the mental strength I had today.”
– Halep ends the season how she started.
Injuries and illness plagued the start of Simona Halep’s 2016, to the point where she hardly thought it possible to return to Singapore in the spring. Sporting a left knee strapping against Cibulkova, there were some clear movement issues for most of the match, which, while it made her fight all the more impressive, it kept her from taking the aggressive stance necessary to take the second set.
“I think she saw that backhand is not very strong because of the leg,” Halep said in press. “It was not easy for me to push.”
Not wanting to talk too much about the injury, Halep heads into the off-season with plenty of positives: another Premier Mandatory title at the Mutua Madrid Open, a return to the Top 3 after dropping as low as No.7, all under the umbrella of a successful tenure with coach Darren Cahill.
“You're doing a hell of a job!” @Darren_Cahill tells @Simona_Halep! #WTAFinals pic.twitter.com/imCRrVkiu4
— WTA (@WTA) October 27, 2016
“This tournament was a bonus for me. At the middle of the year I said that I cannot qualify because I was very far after four months, tough four months.
“But once I qualified I say that it’s a bonus, and I have just to give everything I have. I didn’t have enough to qualify in the semis, but it was a good experience again, third year in a row, so it’s a good thing.”
Heading back to Romania to visit her newborn niece, Halep plans to revamp her pre-season with a trip to Australia with Cahill.
“The plan is to go to Australia in December. Before he is coming to Romania, so we will mix. I wanted to change something and get used to that time, weather before Shenzhen and before Australia.”
“Danke, Domi!” – @AngeliqueKerber, probably. pic.twitter.com/b8hM69GUr1
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) October 27, 2016
– Core team key to Cibulkova’s success.
A tennis player is often only as good as his or her team, and Cibulkova has spent years bonding with hers, headed by longtime fiance – now husband – Michal Navara.
“He’s really important. He’s there for me. Sometimes when there are tough, tough times he can make me see the other side. You know, he always says, ‘Okay, the life is not that bad, you know.’
“He can make me sometimes be more relaxed. Even if I lose a match, he can make me see different things. That’s what really helps me. There are so many things that he’s helping me with, but this is one of them.
“He’s really one of the biggest positive energy in our team.”
.@Cibulkova with her #WTAFinals Kids Fan Club! pic.twitter.com/EGx9IaSbQw
— WTA Finals Singapore (@WTAFinalsSG) October 27, 2016
Accenting her team this week in Singapore is the addition of both parents – Cibulkova typically travels with just one or the other to any given tournament – and it’s clear the Slovak’s passion and determination is genetic.
“My father, after my win today, he jumped down and again the security took him away. He’s a little bit emotional. You can see me on the court. I get emotions. Maybe probably it’s from him I get these emotions.
“Do you remember Stanford when he jumped down on the court? Yeah, today he didn’t get on the court but he jumped down from the stands.
“Mostly I’m looking in my box. My coach, they are more calm. But I’m happy my parents are here with me and they can see me playing a great tennis at the WTA Finals in Singapore. When I was starting playing tennis it was never, never in our dreams to be here.”
These WTA stars definitely know each other’s game, but can they spell each other’s name? Find out if your favorite players passed the WTA Spelling Quiz!
RABAT, Morocco – Top seed Timea Bacsinszky righted a mid-match wobble to advance to her second WTA quarterfinal of the year at the GP SAR La Princesse Lalla Meryem.
Bacsinszky was facing her first big test of the tournament against 22-year-old Kateryna Kozlova, an opponent who took her to three sets in their last encounter at Nottingham.
“This was a tough one for sure,” Bacsinszky said in her post match interview. “Kozlova is playing better and better every week, so this was a tough match.”
The rapidly rising Kozlova might be ranked No.117 but she sits at No.75 on the Road To Singapore Leaderboard due to her impressive results this year. In St. Petersburg she turned heads with her run through qualifying to the quarterfinals – beating Laura Siegemund and Elena Vesnina along the way – and last week she notched a semifinals appearance in Istanbul.
Bacsinszky drew first blood early on, breaking Kozlova’s in the first game of the match and again to go up to a 4-1 lead. The Swiss’ heavy high-bouncing forehands kept Kozlova back on her heels and out of position. Kozlova broke Bacsinszky’s serve to start mounting a comeback in the final games of the set, but the top seed quickly broke right back close out the set.
Kozlova found her pace in the second set, and put together the play that has impressed throughout the year. She overpowered Bacsinszky from the baseline and took the set to level the match. But the Swiss player put the mid-match dip behind her and won the deciding set after two hours and twenty minutes.
“She raised her level in the second set,” Bacsinszky said. “She was pushing more against me and had me more on defense. It was hard to hit winners against her.
“But I found my way to change things in the third set and in the end I was lucky enough to win the last point.”
Bacsinszky’s opponent in the quarterfinal is Johanna Larsson, who knocked out Teliana Pereira 6-4, 6-4.
Elsewhere, New Zealand qualifier Marina Erakovic had a bittersweet entry to the quarterfinals – she was up 6-4 against the No.7 seed Lesia Tsurenko when the Ukrainian was forced to retire due to pain in her right thigh from an injury sustained during fitness training.
“It’s always tough when you win like that,” Erakovic said afterwards. “You never want to see your opponent injured – I feel sorry for Lesia and hope she’s okay.
“But, you know, good for me. I’ve got through five matches here, which is great. I’m gradually playing better and better each match which is what you want.”
She sets up a quarterfinal clash against Aleksandra Krunic next round, who earlier ousted the No.2 seed Ekaterina Makarova, 6-2, 6-2 in the day’s biggest upset.
“I’ve never played her before but I know her,” Erakovic said. “It’s another challenge, another match, another chance to compete and keep improving my game. That’s what I’m thinking about.”
“Here in Rabat every day is a nice day – the sun is always shining, so tomorrow should be a good day.”
Karolina Pliskova moves up to the top of the Road to Singapore leaderboard – but Miami Open champion Johanna Konta is now hot on her heels, jumping seven places to No.2.
Throwback all the way to the very first Madrid champion: Dinara Safina won the inaugural Madrid Open in 2009, beating Caroline Wozniacki in the final.
Madrid is known for its innovations: the venue that hosts the event, La Caja Mágica (The Magic Box), which was also unveiled in 2009, has an unprecedented three courts with roofs.
In 2010, Aravane Rezai made headlines with her fairytale run to the Madrid title.
Rezai upset former No.1 Justine Henin in the first round, then powered past the likes of Andrea Petkovic, Jelena Jankovic and Lucie Safarova before beating Venus Williams in the final.
2011 was a banner year for Kvitova: at Madrid she lifted what was by then her third title of the year, and her first ever Premier Mandatory.
Kvitova would go on close out the 2011 season as the champion of Wimbledon and the WTA Finals.
Serena Williams won Madrid’s first – and so far, only – staging on blue clay in 2012.
In 2013 she became the first person to defend her Madrid title, and was joined by a special furry friend for the trophy ceremony.
Actually, the World No.1 was joined by several new friends!
Maria Sharapova won the Madrid title in 2014, one step on her road back from injury. A few weeks later she went on to win her second Roland Garros title.
2014 was an emotional year for the Russians in Madrid. Dinara Safina (left) – who presented the trophy to Sharapova – announced her official retirement from tennis at the Mutua Madrid Open.
Petra Kvitova won her second Madrid title in 2015 – can she defend her title and become Madrid’s first three-time champion?
All the best from the world of social media as the week begins with tournaments in Monterrey and Charleston.