Roland Garros: Bertens vs Bacsinszky
Kiki Bertens takes on Timea Bacsinszky in the quarterfinals of Roland Garros.
Kiki Bertens takes on Timea Bacsinszky in the quarterfinals of Roland Garros.
Petra Kvitova powered her way to the final of the Huajin Securities WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai with the help of her dominating first serve – SAP Coaches View shows how she got it done.
ZHUHAI, China – Huanjin Securities WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai Ambassador and 22-time Grand Slam champion Stefanie Graf had a front row seat to the rise of World No.1 Angelique Kerber.
“She would take little breaks in the year and come to Las Vegas to train and prepare herself,” she told WTA Insider during a media Q&A on Sunday. “I had a chance to watch and help a little but, but she’s the one doing the hard work. She’s the one showing that determination and commitment.
“I felt she always had the talent and the strengths; she’s been working hard. She just needed that one win to get her mindset changed to where she could start believing in herself. She was really able to do that in the last year or two, where she started realizing that she can beat top players. That belief really changed her game around; she’s been playing with a lot more confidence, and you can see that she’s a different player on the court. With each victory, it seemed like she got stronger and more comfortable with herself on the court.”
With Kerber leading a strong German contingent – one that already includes Julia Goerges, Andrea Petkovic, Sabine Lisicki, and Laura Siegemund – Graf is hopeful for a surge in national interest in the sport she once dominated.
“I think we’ve had such strong talent in Germany over the past few years; we had a lot of great players pushing each other. For her to push through has been really important for German tennis because where we’ve seen a lot of growth here, we’ve seen fewer tournaments in Germany where we used to be really strong.
“For her to have that success, and a lot of the other players being strong behind her, that should hopefully strengthen tennis in Germany and Europe again.”
Graf wouldn’t count out former No.1 Serena Williams, who matched her Grand Slam total this year at Wimbledon, as Kerber’s biggest challenge in 2017.
“With Serena, she’s definitely had a little bit of a harder year; she wasn’t able to play as many tournaments as she might have wished to be ready for the Grand Slams. But she’s too incredible of a player to be underestimated in the coming year.
“Consistency is what we’re all striving for on the court; it’s difficult with different surfaces, different time zones and different climates. It’s a long year in tennis.”
Serving as WTA Elite Trophy Ambassador at the end of the season proved to be an easy decision for Graf; the German had never before traveled to China and has thoroughly enjoyed taking in the sights throughout the region. She arrived late Friday night and was greeted by a throng of fans at her hotel, and has since participated in several clinics with junior players, a trip to the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge with Caroline Garcia, and the coin toss for the final between Petra Kvitova and Elina Svitolina.
“The desire has always been there to come visit China. I can say I’ve traveled the world, but there’s a few places I haven’t been but have the wish to go. I love to travel and experience different cultures. Tennis is such a great and growing sport in China; to be part of it, and hopefully help just a little bit bring the sport to our young talents, it’s a great opportunity.
“I do enjoy a coastline, and even having the possibility to drive around and get the chance yesterday to be playing a little bit of tennis on the longest bridge in the world. That was an incredible sight. The city has a lot of beautiful parts I’ve seen just by driving along, but also looking at little mountains and hills. We’ve enjoyed taking walks in the morning, jogging along the water and seeing people on early strolls of their own.
“You have so many possibilities here, so it seems like a vibrant city everyone can enjoy.”
Check out more quick hits from Graf on what she makes of the tournament, how tennis can continue growing in China, and even what she makes of new ATP World No.1 Andy Murray.
What an honor to meet & play with the Legend, Steffi Graff! And why not do it on the longest cross sea bridge in the World! #WTAEliteTrophy pic.twitter.com/LzFOGlqGtN
— Caroline Garcia (@CaroGarcia) November 6, 2016
On the Zhuhai venue…
I’m looking at an incredible facility right now. The center court couldn’t be nicer; I got a chance to play a little bit on the outside courts yesterday, and they play beautifully. In terms of the environment – from locker rooms, to physiotherapy to massages – I thought the organization has been exceptional. I feel there’s a strong passion for tennis here, and you can feel a high level excitement from everyone on the grounds. Everyone has been so accommodating and able to help whenever you have questions. There’s a really cute conversation card in the tournament transportation vehicle, where if a driver doesn’t completely understand you, there’s a list of different questions you could have in different languages. It’s all extremely well thought through. I’m sure all the other players will agree that the organization has been top notch.
On the city’s plan to further integrate tennis into the Zhuhai landscape…
I just learned quite a bit last night and this afternoon, sitting down with some of the CTA members, as well as the mayor and vice-mayor. Just from those discussions, it seems that there’s a lot of vision already in hand, where they’re already in the second and third stages of development. They’re talking about developing a tennis academy as well as increasing the amount of tennis played in schools. It seems that there’s a lot of planning going on. With the interest and passion that I’ve seen around this tournament, I believe that there’s going to be fast growth.
It seems that everyone is very enthusiastic about it. I think from what I hear, it’s still a very new sport, because for long periods, China couldn’t watch a lot of tennis on TV. The enthusiasm is there, and just seeing the growing tournaments over the last few years has been great. During my career, we didn’t have a big women’s tournament here, so the growth in this sector is clearly immense. So the industry and fans are here; I believe that from what has already been done that we all need to be on the lookout for even more growth.
On Andy Murray ascending to World No.1…
I didn’t even know until you told me just now! It happened last night, so I hadn’t caught the news. It’s the result of some incredible tennis that he’s been playing over the last few years, and so it’s well deserved. When you look at men’s tennis, the level has been so phenomenal for such a long time; it’s still a tight race with Djokovic, players like Federer and Nadal. It’s fascinating to watch men’s tennis with how close it is. How long will he be able to hold on? I don’t know, but I’ll be looking forward to seeing what next year will bring.
On the importance of consistency throughout a long season…
Consistency is what you strive for. It’s pretty difficult to achieve in the world of tennis. There are very few sports played all year long. In my career, it was an 11-11.5 month long season; now it’s gotten a little short, more like 10 months. But it’s really difficult to hold the highest level throughout the year. Ideally, you try to pace yourself through it, meaning you pick and choose your tournaments, and take time in between. With Angie, she did a fantastic job peaking at the big tournaments this year, with strong showings at the Grand Slam tournaments.
On the next generation of players…
I think it’s important for everyone to find their individual way, their presence, and their style. I think in terms of my style of play, it’s not around so much anymore with one-handed backhand slice, and keeping the ball low. That’s a very unusual thing; I think tennis has changed quite a bit through the last few generations. But the good thing is that everyone finds their own way to become who they are.
.@WTAEliteTrophy Ambassador Stefanie Graf was on hand for a fan activity and Media Q&A in Zhuhai pic.twitter.com/ndblZTBc5y
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) November 6, 2016
All photos courtesy of WTA Elite Trophy.
‘S-HERTOGENBOSCH, Netherlands – Belinda Bencic returned to the semifinals of the Ricoh Open courtesy of a hard-fought win over qualifier Viktorija Golubic on Friday afternoon.
Watch live action from ‘s-Hertogenbosch this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
Twelve months ago, Bencic made it all the way to the final in ‘s-Hertogenbosch. Understandably given her recent injury lay-off her tennis is yet to sparkle this time, and against Golubic she dug deep to eventually prevail, 7-6(6), 7-6(2).
“Like yesterday I just fought with everything I had obviously. I think she played very well and it was a very intense match and I’m happy that I fought through it,” Bencic, who let leads slip in both sets, said afterwards. “It’s good for both of us that we’re in the quarterfinal here and I’m very happy to be back in the semifinals here.”
There she will face her good friend Kristina Mladenovic, a relatively comfortable 7-5, 6-3 winner earlier in the day over the draw’s other remaining qualifier, Elise Mertens. Coincidentally, their only previous meeting also came in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Bencic winning in three tight sets en route to last year’s final.
“It’s like every normal match – you try to prepare as best you can. It will be different because actually she’s my very good friend, but I’ll try and take it like a normal match and improve everything I can,” Bencic added when asked about putting their friendship to one side on Saturday afternoon.
The other semifinal will be an all-American affair, pitting the big-serving CoCo Vandeweghe against Madison Brengle. Vandeweghe continued her impressive progress by swatting aside Evgeniya Rodina, 6-2, 6-2, while Brengle defeat Kateryna Kozlova, 7-5, 6-4.
It’s time to vote for October’s WTA Player of the Month!
Have a look at the nominees and cast your vote before Thursday at 11:59pm ET! The winner will be announced Friday, November 11.
October 2016 WTA Player Of The Month Finalists
Dominika Cibulkova: Cibulkova needed to win the Generali Ladies Linz to qualify for her debut appearance at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global. The Slovak did just that, defeating Viktorija Golubic in straight sets in the final and clinching what became a winning berth in Singapore. From 0-2 down in round robin play, Cibulkova stunned 2014 finalist Simona Halep and outgutted Svetlana Kuznetsova in the semifinals before putting on a masterclass against World No.1 Angelique Kerber to win the biggest title of her career.
Angelique Kerber: Kerber didn’t walk away with the title in Singapore, but nonetheless impressed as she clinched the Year-End No.1 ranking. Undefeated in round robin play, she brushed aside defending champion Agnieszka Radwanska before falling to Cibulkova in a high-quality final.
Agnieszka Radwanska: The Pole ended another solid season with a Premier Mandatory title at the China Open, where she defeated Johanna Konta in the final. Playing to defend her Singapore crown, Radwanska put down a pair of quality wins in round robin play, ultimately bowing out to World No.1 Kerber in the semifinals.
2016 Winners
January: Angelique Kerber
February: Carla Suárez Navarro
March: Victoria Azarenka
April: Angelique Kerber
May: Garbiñe Muguruza
June: Serena Williams
July: Simona Halep
August: Monica Puig
September: Petra Kvitova
How it works:
Finalists are selected by wtatennis.com
Winner is then determined by a fan vote on wtatennis.com
THE WINNERS
CoCo Vandeweghe overcame Kristina Mladenovic and the worst of the Dutch weather to recapture the Ricoh Open on Sunday afternoon. Vandeweghe, who also won the title in 2014, follows in the footsteps of Justine Henin and Tamarine Tanasugarn as only the third player in the tournament’s 21-year history to win it on two occasions.
“It was actually really difficult – we had three rain delay stops – so it was really difficult to get yourself back into the match and make sure you’re fresh and light and ready to go. Especially the last rain delay in the first set. I was really trying to get myself moving,” Vandeweghe said.
“I got myself in a bit of a pickle in the second set, but I battled my way out of it, and sometimes the name of the game is just battling through adversity and problems you cause for yourself.”
Read the full story here. | WTA Insider Champion’s Corner
Top seed Karolina Pliskova overcame Alison Riske in a rain-affected Aegon Open Nottingham final on Sunday to capture her fifth WTA title.
Afternoon showers pushed the start of play back a couple of hours, at one point even raising the possibility of a Monday final. When the clouds did eventually clear, Pliskova held her nerve to triumph 7-6(8), 7-5, in a fraction under two hours.
“It’s been a great week for me, I really didn’t count on having such early success on the grass so I am feeling good ahead of Wimbledon,” Pliskova said.
Read the full story here.
RANKING MOVERS:
Notable singles ranking movers for the week of June 13, 2016.
CoCo Vandeweghe (USA), +11 (No.43 to 32): Vandeweghe’s run to her second Ricoh Open title in three years earns her the biggest ranking jump of the week. She’s now back at her career-high ranking of No.32 after jumping up 11 spots.
Madison Brengle (USA), +8 (No.68 to 60): Brengle reached her first WTA semifinal at ‘s-Hertogenbosch of 2016 to jump up eight spots to No.60.
Alison Riske (USA), +8 (No.89 to 81): Riske’s run to the final of Nottingham, her second WTA final this year, inches her up to No.81.
Monica Puig (PUR), +6 (No.49 to 43): Puerto Rico’s Puig has been steadily climbing up the rankings all year long: she started off 2016 at No.92 and with her run to the Nottingham semifinals she’s up to No.43, just shy of her career-high ranking of No.41.
Kristina Mladenovic (FRA), +3 (No.32 to 29): Mladenovic backed up her French Open doubles title with a run to the Ricoh Open final and as a result she gained a spot in the Top 30, ever-closer to matching her career-high ranking of No.27.
UPCOMING TOURNAMENTS
Aegon Classic Birmingham
Birmingham, Great Britain
Premier | $780,900 | Grass
Monday, June 13 – Sunday, June 19
Mallorca Open
Mallorca, Spain
International | $226,750 | Grass
Monday, June 13 – Sunday, June 19
Aegon International Eastbourne
Eastbourne, Great Britain
Premier | $711,778 | Grass
Sunday, June 19 – Saturday, June 25
The Championships, Wimbledon
London, Great Britain
Grand Slams | – | Grass
Monday, June 27 – Sunday, July 10
TOP 20 PLAYER SCHEDULES
1. Serena Williams – Wimbledon
2. Garbiñe Muguruza – Mallorca, Wimbledon
3. Agnieszka Radwanska – Birmingham, Eastbourne, Wimbledon
4. Angelique Kerber -Birmingham, Wimbledon
5. Simona Halep -Wimbledon
6. Victoria Azarenka – Wimbledon
7. Roberta Vinci – Eastbourne, Wimbledon
8. Belinda Bencic – Birmingham, Eastbourne, Wimbledon
9. Venus Williams – Wimbledon
10. Timea Bacsinszky – Eastbourne, Wimbledon
11. Petra Kvitova – Birmingham, Eastbourne, Wimbledon
12. Svetlana Kuznetsova – Eastbourne, Wimbledon
13. Flavia Pennetta
14. Samantha Stosur – Eastbourne, Wimbledon
15. Carla Suárez Navarro – Birmingham, Eastbourne, Wimbledon
16. Madison Keys – Birmingham, Eastbourne Wimbledon
17. Karolina Pliskova – Birmingham, Eastbourne, Wimbledon
18. Elina Svitolina – Birmingham, Wimbledon
19. Johanna Konta – Birmingham, Eastbourne, Wimbledon
20. Sloane Stephens – Eastbourne, Wimbledon
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!
Best wishes to those celebrating birthdays this week:
Venus Williams (USA) – June 17, 1980
STRASBOURG, France – World No.6 Karolina Pliskova will open the Czech Republic’s Fed Cup defense against Kristina Mladenovic on Saturday afternoon.
The draw, held at Maison de la Region and carried out by Paralympic wheelchair doubles champion Nicolas Peifer, contained few surprises, pairing Czech No.1 Pliskova and French No.2 Mladenovic in the first rubber, with Petra Kvitova and Caroline Garcia facing off in the second.
The Czechs have dominated the Fed Cup in recent years, lifting the trophy in four of the past five years. Is it a record that compares favorably with many of the other dominant sides in the competition’s history. Indeed, should Pliskova and Kvitova spearhead them to victory over a gifted French side, then they will cement their place alongside the great Australian and United States teams of years gone by.
In the 1960s and 1970s, the Australians reigned supreme, Margaret Court and company winning seven of the first 12 titles. This was followed by the golden age of American tennis, Chris Evert and Billie Jean King integral to a group that won the cup on seven consecutive occasions.
Check out photos from the draw for the #FedCupFinal on our Facebook page: https://t.co/ntiKRdmxNX pic.twitter.com/yG4Di4BL8e
— Fed Cup (@FedCup) November 11, 2016
Fast forward to the 21st century and Czech captain Petr Pala has forged another dynasty, founded on tremendous team spirit and no little talent. And even away from the fortresses of Prague and Ostrava, they are a formidable proposition.
Pliskova has enjoyed the best season of her career, winning a couple of titles and reaching the US Open final to cement a place in the Top 10. Despite being overtaken in the rankings by Pliskova, two-time Wimbledon champion Kvitova remains an integral cog, arriving in Strasbourg fresh from dominant victories at the big Asian events in Wuhan and Zhuhai. She will be further buoyed by her record against, Garcia, whom she has beaten in two of their three meetings.
The Czechs are not the only ones playing for a piece of history. French captain Amélie Mauresmo is aiming to follow in the footsteps of Court, King and Evert by winning the Fed Cup as both player and captain, and certainly has the players to spring an upset.
? Très contente d'être à Strasbourg pour la finale de #FedCup #TeamFranceTennis #J-2 pic.twitter.com/eJFSKuUadE
— Caroline Garcia (@CaroGarcia) November 10, 2016
Garcia has enjoyed a quietly impressive year on tour, titles in Strasbourg and Mallorca helping her close in on the Top 20. Alongside Mladenovic she enjoyed an even more impressive doubles campaign, highlighted by a memorable victory on home soil at Roland Garros, forging an understanding that could prove decisive should the tie reach the decisive doubles rubber on Sunday.
Pliskova and Garcia, who have split their two career encounters, will step out in front of an expected capacity crowd at the 6,077-seat Rhénus Sport indoor arena at 2pm.
Traditionally the start of the grass court season is the time for surprises, the well-manicured lawns paying scant regard to the reputation of tennis’ great and good.
This year’s opening two events, the Aegon Open Nottingham and the Richo Open, proved no different, throwing up a number of eye-catching results. Coming through the wreckage to lift the silverware were two a the game’s biggest servers: Karolina Pliskova and CoCo Vandeweghe.
Their success has resulted significant moves on the Road To Singapore leaderboard. Nottingham champion Pliskova, who narrowly missed out on qualifying for last year’s BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global, is up to No.18, while ‘s-Hertogenbosch winner Vandeweghe leapt from No.84 to No.43.
With many of the leading contenders for Singapore waiting until Birmingham and Mallorca to begin their grass court preparations, much of the movement was restricted to lower down the leaderboard. Belinda Bencic made a successful return from the back injury that forced her out of the French Open, reaching the semifinals in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, a result that took her from No.34 to No.27.
Bencic’s conqueror Kristina Mladenovic was rewarded for her eventual runner-up finish with a jump from No.70 to No.49 on the leaderboard. Meanwhile, Alison Riske, the runner-up in Nottingham’s rain delayed final is up to No.55 from her previous position of No.72.
Wimbledon preparations continue apace this week in Birmingham and Mallorca, where Garbiñe Muguruza, Agnieszka Radwanska and Angelique Kerber are all competing.
RTS Ranking Movers
Karolina Pliskova: No.26 to No.18 (+8)
Monica Puig: No.21 to No.19 (+2)
Belinda Bencic: No.34 to No.27 (+7)
CoCo Vandeweghe: No.84 to No.43 (+41)
Kristina Mladenovic: No.70 to No.49 (+21)
Madison Brengle: No.64 to No.54 (+10)
Alison Riske: No.72 to No.55 (+17)
Click here to see the full Road To Singapore leaderboard standings following Nottingham and ‘s-Hertogenbosch.
STRASBOURG, France – Karolina Pliskova overcame France’s Kristina Mladenovic in the longest set in Fed Cup final history to give the Czech Republic the first victory, 6-3, 4-6, 16-14.
“I heard that it’s the longest one!” Pliskova told FedCup.com after the record-setting match. “I was just looking at the score and just counting the games and we were still continuing.
“Unbelievable match from both of us. My tennis was maybe not 100 percent, but it still counts as a win. Really happy that we got the first point.”
Walking into the first rubber of the 2016 Fed Cup final, Pliskova and Mladenovic’s head-to-head record was split at one win apiece and the pair had to set their long friendship aside in hopes of giving their team the early advantage.
Watch how Karolina Pliskova won the first set in the first rubber of the 2016 #FedCupFinal! pic.twitter.com/2IV046sEFk
— Fed Cup (@FedCup) 12 de noviembre de 2016
Mladenovic suffered a break of serve in the nerving opening game, misfiring a backhand and later double faulting to hand Pliskova the first lead. The surface seemed to suit Pliskova as well, as the Czech enjoyed the high bounce of the court at the Rhenus Sport Arena to wreak havoc with her big serve.
After Mladenovic leveled the set at 3-3, Pliskova found another gear and dropped just one point on her serve as she broke twice to take the first set 6-3.
The Frenchwoman had the home crowd roaring as she charged back in the second set. Mladenovic earned the first break at 4-3, and then weathered two consecutive breaks to emerge with the edge and the set.
Pliskova wrestled the momentum away as she quickly climbed to a 5-2 lead in the final set. Mladenovic was two points away from losing the match as Pliskova continued to hammer her vulnerable second serve and run her around the court, but she fended off the assault to claw her way back into the match and get back on serve.
With her back against the wall, Mladenovic rallied the French crowd and kept herself in the match time and time again and, with no final set tiebreak in Fed Cup, the match continued. Mladenovic fought past fatigue and cramping – and saved two match points with a gutsy dropshot and a zinging crosscourt backhand – to hold for 9-9, but the final set was barely getting started.
WHAT A THRILLER! ?@KaPliskova edges Mladenovic 6-3, 4-6, 16-14!
Gives Czech Republic a 1-0 lead over France! #FedCupFinal pic.twitter.com/qp1KRJjcyJ
— WTA (@WTA) 12 de noviembre de 2016
Pliskova stayed cool despite it all, trading breaks at 12-12 as the pair broke the Fed Cup final record for longest set ever played. After a monumental three hours and forty-eight minutes (two hours and 23 minutes in the final set), Mladenovic finally blinked in the last game, being broken to love to but an end to the thrilling match and hand the Czech Republic a vital 1-0 lead.
“I feel fresh, actually! But no it’s my longest match that I’ve played ever, so I’m really happy with the way I ended,” Pliskova laughed afterwards, speaking to FedCup.com.
“I was really waiting for my chance. And she was serving so well in the third set that I didn’t really have that many chances. I’m just happy with the win.”
– All photos courtesy of Getty Images
No.2 seed Angelique Kerber got her title defense off to a flying start at the Aegon Classic Birmingham, outlasting a three-hour rain delay to defeat Shuai Peng, 7-6(3), 6-3.