Miami: Angelique Kerber vs Shelby Rogers
Highlights of the match at the Miami Open between Angelique Kerber and Shelby Rogers.
Highlights of the match at the Miami Open between Angelique Kerber and Shelby Rogers.
HONG KONG, SAR – There were contrasting emotions on display after Alizé Cornet beat Venus Williams 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 in Hong Kong.
Cornet could not have been more delighted to reach the quarterfinals by beating a player who had always bested her previously.
“We have played many times and I was losing in straight sets. Now I can beat her in Hong Kong!” the French player enthused. “It means I used a good tactic, I played a very good match, and I believed in it.”
Her American opponent, unsurprisingly, was very downcast.
“My opponent played well, there wasn’t much I could do against her,” said Williams. “You work hard to win matches – it’s always disappointing [to lose].”
Cornet will face Jelena Jankovic next up — and is anticipating a very difficult match.
“I’m expecting a really tough battle,” she admitted. “She has a really solid baseline game. I expect some good rallies from both of us.”
Describing her current mood as “great, tired, happy”, Cornet said that she still had some trouble with the same heel issue that has plagued her for the past four years — but that she would be running with just as much energy in the morning.
She added that she was enjoying her time in Hong Kong — the city and the tournament.
“The welcome is really amazing and the city is great,” she said. “For me, every match [on tour] is the same intensity.”
Earlier in the day, Caroline Wozniacki took less than an hour and a half to secure her quarterfinal spot, beating Great Britain’s Heather Watson, 6-3, 6-3.
Neither player looked solid on her serve – Watson won three of her four break points, but Wozniacki broke her six times in return. Next up for Wozniacki is Wang Qiang, who received a walkover after Johanna Konta withdrew from the tournament with an abdominal injury.
Simona Halep reflects on her performance at the Miami Open.
HONG KONG, SAR – On Thursday the race for the final qualifying spots at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global took another twist when Johanna Konta withdrew from the Hong Kong Tennis Open.
Konta currently occupies the final qualifying berth for Singapore, just 10 points ahead of Dominika Cibulkova. However, after pulling out of Hong Kong with an abdominal injury Konta may now be left relying on other results to go her way if she is to reach Singapore.
“Obviously it’s never the ideal way to finish a tournament, and definitely never the intention when you come to play,” Konta said. “I really enjoy playing here in Hong Kong and I was really looking forward to making this week last as long as possible. Unfortunately it wasn’t as long as I would have liked but I need to look after my body first – I’ve only got one – so I really have to make sure I make the right decisions for my health.
“I’m looking forward to hopefully coming back next year and making it a full week here.”
Three places at the season-ending showpiece remain up for grabs. Garbiñe Muguruza, Madison Keys and Konta are in sixth, seventh and eighth place, respectively, while Cibulkova, Carla Suárez Navarro and Svetlana Kuznetsova remain hot on their heels.
All six contenders entered tournaments this week, and with Cibulkova and Carla Suárez Navarro also scheduled to play next week’s Kremlin Cup, in Moscow, for the second year in a row the battle is likely to go down to the wire…
• Cibulkova would need to reach the final in Linz this week to pass Konta
• A semifinal for Cibulkova in Linz would put Konta and Cibulkova in a tie*
• Cibulkova’s 16th best result is currently 100 points, so she would need to reach the semifinals at Moscow to add any points to her total
• Suárez Navarro can also pass Konta, but will need to add points in both Linz (where she is through to the quarterfinals) and Moscow
• If Cibulkova loses in Linz and Muguruza can qualify for the WTA Finals by beating Monica Niculescu on Thursday
* When two or more players have the same number of ranking points, the first tie-break is the player with the most combined points from Grand Slams, Premier Mandatory, Premier 5 and WTA Finals (as outlined on pg.215 of the Rule Book). In this regard, Konta (2685) has the edge over Cibulkova (2180)
MIAMI, FL, USA – World No.1 Angelique Kerber steamrolled past Japanese qualifier Risa Ozaki in barely an hour to move into the Miami Open quarterfinals for the third time in her career.
Kerber broke the Ozaki serve six times and hit 17 winners to Ozaki’s seven on her way to the 6-2, 6-2 victory.
“I think that she’s played a good tournament,” Kerber praised her opponent in post-match press. “She came through the qualies, she beat good players. I was ready for it.
“I talked with my team and I know that she’s moving good and bringing a lot of balls back. I was trying to play my game and be aggressive.”
.@AngeliqueKerber wraps up the set 6-2! #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/UOBifNUCYj
— WTA (@WTA) 27 de marzo de 2017
After a tentative start, with both players feeling each other out in their first encounter, it all went the German’s way as her powerful game started to click together. She dictated with the forehand, breaking Ozaki twice for a 4-1 lead. The 22-year-old Japanese earned one of the breaks back, but it wasn’t enough to halt Kerber’s momentum as she steamrolled to the opening set.
The same pattern emerged in the final set; Kerber rolled ahead to a 5-0, triple break lead, but faltered for a moment against Ozaki’s slices and the Japanese grabbed one of the breaks back. Kerber stayed solid, though, and wrapped up the match moments later.
Despite the result, 22-year-old Ozaki will still have reason to celebrate. After reaching the main draw in her Miami Open debut, Ozaki is set to rise to a career-high ranking on Monday, projected to land inside the Top 75.
Moving on!@AngeliqueKerber books a spot in @MiamiOpen Quarterfinals! Cruises past Ozaki 6-2, 6-2! pic.twitter.com/bIMObErLu7
— WTA (@WTA) 27 de marzo de 2017
For Kerber, the challenge continues in the next round as she’ll face the winner between WTA veterans Venus Williams and Svetlana Kuznetsova for a spot in the semifinals.
“I think it doesn’t matter against who because they are both amazing players,” Kerber said. “Playing against Venus, I’m looking forward [to it] if it’s Venus. But as well if it’s Sveta, she’s played great tennis in the last few weeks. She reached the final in Indian Wells. She’s on fire, but also Venus, she played amazing this year so far.
“I’m looking forward to playing against them. We’ll see tonight.”
MOSCOW, Russia – World No.8 Svetlana Kuznetsova will make one final push to qualify for the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global, taking a last-minute wildcard into next week’s Kremlin Cup. Kuznetsova is the defending champion. Anna Kalinskaya also received a wildcard into the Moscow main draw.
Last year, Kuznetsova surged into a qualifying spot for the Huajin Securities WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai with her Moscow triumph. This year a deep run at her hometown tournament could boost her into her first WTA Finals since 2009. Kuznetsova, who has advanced to the semifinals of this week’s Tianjin Open, currently sits at No.11 on the Road to Singapore. Only the Top 8 players at the end of the season will qualify.
The Premier-level Kremlin Cup will be the last significant opportunity for top players to earn big ranking points and bolster their qualification campaigns. In addition to Kuznetsova, other players looking to qualify for Singapore in Moscow are Dominika Cibulkova and Carla Suárez Navarro.
At the International-level BGL BNP Paribas Luxembourg Open, wildcards have been awarded to 2010 French Open champion Francesca Schiavone, local favorite Mandy Minella, and France’s talented teenager Oceane Dodin. Petra Kvitova remains the top seed.
MIAMI, FL, USA – Former World No.1 Caroline Wozniacki kept up her searing 2017 form, surging past an unseeded but dangerous Lucie Safarova, 6-4, 6-3, to join Karolina Pliskova in the Miami Open semifinals.
“I love playing out there,” she said of the electric crowd environment in her press conference. “The first night match is unbelievable; I think it’s the best slot of the day. I love being out there, competing, and just playing good tennis.”
Safarova has been ranked as high as No.5, but the former French Open finalist struggled to recover from various illnesses and injuries in 2016, causing her to start this season ranked outside the Top 60.
Finding vintage form in spurts coming into Miami, Safarova caught fire in South Florida, upsetting No.4 seed Dominika Cibulkova in straights to reach her first Premier Mandatory quarterfinal since the Mutua Madrid Open in 2015.
.@CaroWozniacki chases down the drop shot! ??? #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/RQZPNslfP8
— WTA (@WTA) March 29, 2017
Wozniacki suffered similar setbacks last year, but has been on a roll since reaching the semifinals of the US Open, and ultimately dispatched Safarova in two sets after a slow start.
“She’s been playing really well, and came out firing. Her lefty serve is also tricky, but I just kept staying in there.
“I felt like I moved really well today, and thought we played some really great points out there.”
Safarova was close to a double break lead on the onset of the match, but Wozniacki held on, mixing up the pace and forcing the uber-aggressive Safarova into uncomfortable positions as she moved the ball about the court.
.@CaroWozniacki downs Safarova 6-4, 6-3!
Sets @MiamiOpen Semifinal vs @KaPliskova! pic.twitter.com/s65Ef0EWVf
— WTA (@WTA) March 29, 2017
Still, things stayed close until the end of each set, when the Doha and Dubai runner-up pulled ahead, breaking in the first and serving out the second.
Up next for Wozniacki is No.2 seed Karolina Pliskova. The pair last played in the finals of the Qatar Total Open, where the Czech powerhouse won in straight sets.
“She beat me last time we play, so she’s clearly in good shape. I’m looking forward to getting another try, to see if I can beat her this time.
“I know her game, what her strengths and weaknesses are. I’ll have my team take a look at our last match and let me know; I’ve played so many matches in a row that they won’t want me to overthink it.”
See ya in the @MiamiOpen Semifinals @CaroWozniacki ? pic.twitter.com/QM7r1jaXts
— WTA (@WTA) March 29, 2017
Eugenie Bouchard takes on Alexandra Dulgheru in the first round of the Volvo Car Open.
Tianjin, China – Shuai Peng claimed the first WTA singles title of her career by beating Alison Riske at the Tianjin Open.
Peng, who has slipped to No.182 in the WTA Rankings because of injury problems, took a wildcard from the tournament and emerged victorious in the final by beating a player ranked almost 130 places ahead of her 7-6, 6-2.
It was Riske who made the early running but Peng proved to be obdurate opposition, saving nine break points before eventually succumbing to the American.
However, her advantage was short lived, with Peng breaking back immediately. Riske went up a break one more to give herself a chance to serve for the set at 6-5, but history repeated itself and Peng forced a tiebreak, which she eventually won.
Riske had a hangover heading into the second set, falling a break behind in the first game. Peng doubled her advantage soon after and closed out the match to confirm a stunning upset.
“The match was really tough for me today,” Riske said after the match.
“I had a really tough day in general, playing Kuznetsova earlier, I did the best I could, Peng had a great match, she was the better player today.
“I think this year was huge for me, I finished in the top 50. I take a lot of pride in it and confidence from my season, I look forward to what 2017 brings.”
MIAMI, FL, USA – One lucky tennis fan got their hands on one of Caroline Wozniacki’s Stella McCartney-designed Adidas tennis dresses after the Dane marched into the semifinals of the Miami Open on Tuesday.
Wozniacki had just defeated Lucie Safarova 6-4, 6-3 and was clearly in the mood to make someone’s day after her impressive display.
“Any girls that play tennis want this skirt?” offered Wozniacki, before handing one of her red dresses to a very grateful fan.
Nice one @CaroWozniacki. Offers up her @StellaMcCartney @adidastennis kit to a fan @miamiopen. pic.twitter.com/UOcAUa1QGg
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) March 29, 2017
Victory for Wozniacki means that she now faces Karolina Pliskova for a place in the final, having previously defeated Dominika Cibulkova in straight sets.
Wozniacki enjoys a 3-1 head-to-head against Pliskova, but it was the Czech who won the last encounter, having defeated her in the finals of the Qatar Total Open.