Stuttgart: Mladenovic and Garcia's Parking Challenge
Kristina Mladenovic and Caroline Garcia take the Parking Challenge at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix.
Kristina Mladenovic and Caroline Garcia take the Parking Challenge at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix.
An interview with Eugenie Bouchard after her quarterfinal win at the Apia International Sydney.
HOBART, Australia – Kiki Bertens recovered from a second-set break to defeat Galina Voskoboeva, 6-1, 6-4, to reach the quarterfinals of the Hobart International.
“It’s always tough to get some matches at the beginning of the season, so I’m happy I won two matches here and I hope to go even farther,” Bertens said in her post-match press conference.
Voskoboeva spent two years off the tour nursing persistent foot injuries, and had just won her first WTA main draw match since 2014 ahead of her clash with Bertens. The top seed, by contrast, is in the midst of a career-best 12 months, having reached the semifinals of the French Open to qualify for her first Olympic tennis event.
“It was an OK match today; she helped me a lot in the beginning with a lot of mistakes, but in the second she played really well. I had to fight for it and there were some tough conditions with the wind, but I’m happy I got through.
“I really need some matches; my body needs matches to play better. You saw what happened last year in Paris: I won a tournament the week before and was in the semis the week after!”
Bertens rushed out to a 4-0 lead to start the match, serving out the opening set before things got complicated in the second. The Kazakh pushed Bertens to the brink on multiple occasions, leading by a late break in the sixth game. But the Dutch star roared back, winning the last three games to book an encounter with qualifier Elise Mertens.
“I know her well; she’s a great young player with a good run last year. I’ll have to be more aggressive than today but hopefully I can get the win.”
Earlier in the day, another qualifier got a big win over former World No.5, Lucie Safarova. Risa Ozaki came back from a set down to defeat the 2015 French Open finalist, 2-6, 6-3, 7-5.
“In the first set, she played well and I couldn’t hit a strong ball,” she explained after the match. “After that, I tried to focus on my forehand and things got better from there.”
Safarova won a titanic sixth game in the first set and broke to start the second, but the 22-year-old won six of the last seven games to level the match.
“I started the match really well,” Safarova echoed in her post-match press conference. “I had some game points to go 3-0, but things started going the other way. It wasn’t easy conditions with the wind; she started to pressure me more and make fewer mistakes. I lost my rhythm; I tried to hang in there but it was always tough serving in this wind.”
The Czech veteran showed signs of life late in the match, breaking Ozaki as she served for the upset, but the Japanese youngster broke serve one last time, reaching her third career WTA quarterfinal in two hours, 22 minutes.
“These conditions don’t really suit my game because I like to be aggressive, but I was making too many mistakes. She was putting a lot of balls back; she ran and served well, especially at the end. This isn’t the result I would have liked, but it’s tennis and things happen. It’s good that I got an extra two matches before Melbourne. Hopefully I’ll peak there.”
As Serena Williams readies to pursue a record-breaking 23rd Grand Slam title at the Australian Open, espnW presents the story of how the former No.1 won her first 22.
MADRID, Spain – If Agnieszka Radwanska thought the absence of Serena Williams would make her task any easier at the Mutua Madrid Open, Friday’s draw provided an immediate reality check.
Williams’ withdrawal elevated Radwanska to top seed, but her reward is a meeting with one of the draw’s most dangerous of floaters: Dominika Cibulkova.
Last month in Indian Wells, Cibulkova came within a point of victory against Radwanska only to fall agonizingly short in a thrilling second-round clash. The Slovak followed this up with a title in Katowice and the former French Open semifinalist will present a real challenge on Radwanska’s least favorite surface.
And should she pass this opening test, things will not get any easier for the Pole. Awaiting her in the second round will be either Caroline Garcia or Johanna Konta, before a likely third-round date with one of the WTA’s finest clay courters, Sara Errani.
Defending champion Petra Kvitova is also in Radwanska’s half of the draw but has been handed a less formidable opening opponent in the shape of Lara Arruabarrena, while No.4 seed Victoria Azarenka begins against Laura Robson. Azarenka and Kvitova are projected to meet in the last eight.
Like Radwanska, No.2 seed Angelique Kerber has been placed in a tricky section. She starts against the mercurial Barbora Strycova, and also finds Sloane Stephens, Daria Kasatkina and Carla Suárez Navarro in her quarter.
Home hopes will rest chiefly on the shoulders of Suárez Navarro and Garbiñe Muguruza. Suárez Navarro opens up against big-serving Timea Babos, while No.3 seed Muguruza meets Anna Karolina Schmiedlova. Keeping Muguruza company in arguably the most open section of the draw are Simona Halep, Timea Bacsinszky and Karolina Pliskova.
Click here to see the draw in full.
Top half @MutuaMadridOpen. pic.twitter.com/cDLkYnuxPo
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) 29 April 2016
Belgian qualifier Elise Mertens is through to her first career WTA final after a 6-4, 6-0 win over Jana Fett at the Hobart International.
Johanna Konta takes on Agnieszka Radwanska in the final of the Apia International Sydney.
Highlights from the finals action on Day 6 of the Apia International Sydney.
Elise Mertens has Friday’s shot of the day at the Hobart International.
MELBOURNE, Australia – The 2017 Australian Open begins on Monday in Melbourne, with World No.1 and defending champion Angelique Kerber headlining the first night session on Rod Laver Arena. What else do you need to know about your favorite WTA stars as the first Grand Slam tournament of the season gets underway?
Click here for a full analysis of the draw, courtesy of WTA Insider.
1. Kerber contends for first-ever major title defense.
Kerber came away with an impressive haul of Grand Slam titles in 2016, bookending the season with wins Down Under and the US Open – taking the No.1 ranking at the latter. 2017 is a new ballgame for the German, who will seek to defend a major title for the first time in her career. Her first opponent is Lesia Tsurenko, with the likes of Eugenie Bouchard and Roberta Vinci looming in her section of the draw.
2. Serena could reclaim No.1 in Australia.
In the other half of the draw stands 22-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams, who is firmly in the hunt for her seventh Daphne Akhurst Memorial Trophy in Melbourne. The American would have to reach the final to have a chance at wresting the No.1 ranking from Kerber; click here to find out how it would all have to shake out.
3. Radwanska feeling in Grand Slam rhythm.
Armed with a new racquet, No.3 seed Agnieszka Radwanska is the high seed in Serena’s half of the draw, projecting a rematch of their 2016 semifinal encounter Down Under. Radwanska shrugged off a tough week in Shenzhen to reach the final at the Apia International Sydney, but has a potentially tricky opener against Tsvetana Pironkova. The Bulgarian beat Radwanska in their most recent meeting at last year’s French Open.
4. Halep in hot pursuit of first major title.
No.4 seed Simona Halep also started her year in Shenzhen, but arrived last week for some early preparation in Melbourne on the advice of coach Darren Cahill. The Romanian opens against American Shelby Rogers, and is aiming to build on her pair of quarterfinal appearances earned in 2014 and 2015.
5. Cibulkova seeking Singapore stepping stone.
No.5 seed Dominika Cibulkova ended 2016 on an all-time high, winning the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global and reaching a best-ever ranking of No.5. The Slovak’s biggest major success came in Melbourne, where she reached the final back in 2014.
6. Is this Pliskova’s breakthrough moment?
Karolina Pliskova fell before the second week in her first 17 Grand Slam appearances, but made up for lost time in style at the US Open, where she rolled past both Williams sisters en route to the final. The Czech looked just as tough in Brisbane to start 2017, winning the tournament alongside new coach David Kotyza and moving back up to a career-high of No.5.
7. Muguruza feeding off good Melbourne memories.
Garbiñe Muguruza enjoyed a strong start to the season before injury forced her to retire from the Brisbane International semifinals. Still, the the No.7 seed feels fit and fresh ahead of the Australian Open, starting off against New Zealand’s Marina Erakovic on Monday.
8. Kuznetsova rounds out Top 8.
Kuznetsova burned some serious rubber on the Road to Singapore last fall, narrowly qualifying to become the story of the tournament, reaching the semifinals. This year, Kuznetsova is feeling calm as she hopes to surpass the quarterfinals, her previous best finish in Australia.
9. Venus & Serena headline the doubles draw.
The Australian Open women’s doubles draw came out on Sunday, with Wimbledon winners Venus and Serena Williams coming in as the most dangerous floaters in the draw, seeded No.15. The pair could play No.2 seeds Lucie Safarova and new World No.1 Bethanie Mattek-Sands in the third round.
10. No.1 up for grabs in Australia.
The singles No.1 isn’t the only ranking under threat at the Australian Open. Mattek-Sands narrowly took the top spot from Sania Mirza in Brisbane, ending the Indian star’s 91-week reign. But Elena Vesnina and the French team of Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic all have a shot of taking No.1 during the fortnight. Click here to find out how.