Sydney: Errani Interview
An interview with Sara Errani after her win in the first round of the Apia International Sydney.
An interview with Sara Errani after her win in the first round of the Apia International Sydney.
Madison Keys takes on Kristina Kucova in the semifinals of the Rogers Cup.
Her relentless pursuit of the highest echelons of tennis now comes with the reality of having to deliver week-in and week-out. Ranked World No.3, Garbiñe Muguruza has gone from underdog to favorite, and along with that comes the inevitable – pressure.
“Before, I was Garbiñe who had chances to win; now I’m Garbiñe who is supposed to win,” Muguruza told Spanish reporters during the off-season.
“Until now I had never found myself in a situation with so many expectations and so much pressure. It’s something I have to take in, because you can’t learn that off of the court. You’re out there and you have to manage it.”
But the 22-year-old Spaniard remains undaunted by the big task of meeting high expectations – in fact, she’s learned to relish the pressure.
“It’s about dealing with it on your own,” she said, “because there’s no one who can teach you how to handle it all. It’s a part of my job – all this pressure. And I love it.”
And another thing Muguruza is loving are her chances at the Australian Open despite having to bow out of the Brisbane International early, her first tournament of 2016 cut short by the flare up of a long-standing foot injury. She’s optimistic that it won’t be a problem in Melbourne.
Muguruza hasn’t made it past the fourth round at Melbourne yet, but she also has never been seeded so high – her ranking guarantees a Top 4 seed. The only people to knock her out of the Happy Slam – Serena Williams and Agnieszka Radwanska – are both in the Top 4 as well, so she won’t have to face them until at least the semifinals.
Can the youngest member of the WTA Top 10 seize this opportunity and win the biggest title of her career in Melbourne?
Following last week’s withdrawals, the International Tennis Federation has updated entry lists for the upcoming Olympic Games, adding Magda Linette and Polona Hercog to the singles competition.
Twelve years after tennis was relaunched as an exhibition event during the 1984 Los Angeles Games, the sport returned stateside for the centenary Games in Atlanta…
Atlanta, United States, 1996
Stone Mountain Tennis Center
Hardcourt
Now appearing in its third consecutive Games, tennis was beginning to come of age as an Olympic sport by the time it arrived in Atlanta. And by the time the flame had died out above the Centennial Stadium, one of the game’s bright young things had completed her own rite of passage.
Aside from an injured Steffi Graf, all the big names were present in Atlanta. America’s Monica Seles topped the seeds and after a stellar year was many people’s favorite for gold at the recently completed Stone Mountain Tennis Center.
However, by the time the business end of the tournament had arrived, it was another American who was podium bound and winning the hearts of the American public.
Up until then, Lindsay Davenport was known as the big-hitting Californian who had struggled to convert her prodigious talent into titles that mattered. Still just 20 by the time the Games rolled around, Davenport had been a near-permanent fixture in the Top 10 for two years, but still only had a handful of minor titles and Slam quarterfinals to show for her efforts.
Yet at an Olympics where so many of her compatriots were shining on the track and in the pool, Davenport couldn’t help but be inspired, producing some of the best tennis of her career to defeat Anke Huber, Iva Majoli and Mary Joe Fernandez to reach the final.
“For the last two weeks, I’ve been hearing “The Star-Spangled Banner” so much for the other athletes,” Davenport said after defeating Fernández. “And only last night did I really think I could hear it for myself.
“I realized that actually when Michael Johnson was on the stand, and Dan O’Brien. I thought, ‘I want to hear that song so badly now.'”
And hear it she did.
Taking on the tour’s toughest competitor in Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario, the old Davenport may have succumbed to the pressure. The Atlanta version came out fighting like a lion.
With neither player able to break serve, the first set went to the tie-break. Davenport moved ahead, 6-4, only to let Sánchez-Vicario back into it with a backhand that sailed wide and a lob that drifted long.
The American responded with a strong serve and deep volley to go back ahead before taking the set with a touch of good fortune when a backhand drive hit the tape and trickled over.
From here there was no looking back; Davenport secured two early service breaks in the second and soon after was serving out for an emotional 7-6(6), 6-2 win.
“This means everything for me,” Davenport said. “No matter what else happens in my life, I’ll always be a gold medalist.”
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Olympic Memories: Barcelona
Olympic Memories: Seoul
With this week’s WTA rankings used to determine the French Open entry list, former champion Francesca Schiavone headlines the week’s biggest movers and shakers.
Sara Errani has Tuesday’s shot of the day at the Apia International Sydney.
Hometown Heroes Hingis & Bencic Hold Court In Biel/Bienne
Children attending the Ladies Open Biel Bienne over the weekend got to get a glimpse of two of their country’s biggest WTA stars, as Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic and Martina Hingis participated in the tournament’s Kids’ Day festivities, organized by Swiss Tennis.
Check out all the best photos of Bencic and Hingis on Biel/Bienne Kids Day right here!
A Peak Behind The Scenes In Bogota
Meanwhile in Bogota, a group of kids from the Colombian children’s charity ICBF got a special treat on Kids’ Day at the Claro Open Colsanitas. They were invited to a tour of the grounds and practice courts, as well as getting the chance to meet some of the areas’ biggest tennis stars.
See more photos from their behind-the-scenes tour right here!
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Want to see the Aystralian Open draw unfold right before your eyes? Look no further – watch the live broadcast of the draw ceremony right here on wtatennis.com!
NANCHANG, China – Francesca Schiavone moved one step closer to an eighth career title with a three-set win over Lu Jia-Jing at the Jiangxi Open on Wednesday.
Watch live action from Nanchang this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
Following Magda Linette’s 11th-hour Olympic acceptance, Schiavone was elevated to the highest-ranked player in the top half of the draw, although for the first set it was her not Lu that resembled the underdog.
“I think I was playing too short and too much counter-attacking and I told myself that I can’t keep playing like this at 36 years old and I have to go to the ball, hit the ball and make life much, much easier,” Schiavone said.
The conclusion to the first set was a war of attrition, Schiavone coming off second best in two arduous games. Eager not to continue in this vein, the Italian came out firing on the restart, racing into a 3-0 lead and wrapping up the set soon after. The decider followed a similar pattern, the No.3 seed assuming control with two early breaks before surviving a slight wobble to close out a 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 victory.
Nanchang has been a fixture on the WTA calendar since 2014, household names Peng Shuai and Jelena Jankovic triumphing at the first two editions. Schiavone’s bid to follow in their footsteps and lift the tournament’s striking new trophy will face a stern examination in the quarterfinals when she takes on No.7 seed Risa Ozaki.
As Schiavone stepped out on Centre Court, Ozaki was putting the finishing touches to a clinical 6-0, 6-3 win over qualifier Nicha Lertpitaksinchai. Also advancing were Zhang Kai-Lin, who defeated Miyu Kato, 6-4, 7-5, and Vania King, a 6-4, 6-2 winner over Zhang Ying.
