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USANA & The WTA's Montréal Aces

USANA & The WTA's Montréal Aces

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

The 2016 Aces For Humanity campaign was launched by USANA and the WTA at the BNP Paribas Open and continued in Montréal at the Rogers Cup, where every ace hit by a WTA player at Premier-level events translates into a donation to the USANA True Health Foundation, whose mission is to provide the most critical human necessities to those who are suffering or in need around the world.

For every ace hit by any player the WTA donates $5, and for every ace hit by a USANA Brand Ambassador, it’s $10.

USANA Brand Ambassadors Eugenie Bouchard, Samantha Stosur, Kristina Mladenovic, Madison Keys, Monica Puig, Sloane Stephens, Zheng Saisai, Alizé Cornet and Caroline Wozniacki hit 72 of the 320 aces at Stanford – raising a grand total of $1960 throughout the week. Keys hit the most with 43 aces.

Read more about the campaign here and see below to find out who’s hit the most aces so far!

 USANA

USANA

#AcesForHumanity Fan Giveaway

It’s simple: before each WTA Premier tournament guess how many total aces will be hit.
Next up is the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati. Last year there was a total of 359 aces hit. It’s now your turn, take your best guess of how many will be hit this year.

How To Enter:
• Follow @WTA and @USANAFoundation on Twitter and before each WTA Premier tournament tweet the number of aces you predict will be hit during the whole tournament (Singles, Main Draw)
• Include the hashtag #AcesForHumanity
• Eastbourne deadline is August 16 at 11:59pm ET
• The winner will be announced August 22nd

Aces For Humanity is a joint WTA and USANA initiative that benefits the USANA True Health Foundation, which provides critical human necessities to those in suffering or in need around the globe.

For full rules on how to enter, click here.

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Kerber To Headline Star-Studded Sydney Field

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

WTA Insider Courtney Nguyen | World No.1 Angelique Kerber leads a stacked field at the Apia International Sydney that also features WTA Finals winner Dominika Cibulkova; check out the full entry list here on wtatennis.com.

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Petra Kvitova: At The Crossroads

Petra Kvitova: At The Crossroads

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Petra Kvitova finds herself caught at the crossroads of two tennis eras – but she quite likes it that way.

The big hitting lefty is not quite in the generation of WTA veterans like Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova and Venus Williams. But in turn, she’s not in the crowd of new stars likes Garbiñe Muguruza, Simona Halep and fellow Czech Karolina Pliskova who are fast on the rise. Kvitova remains the first and only Grand Slam winner – male or female – born in the 90s.

How does the two-time Wimbledon champion feel about being the most accomplished member of this ‘in between’ group?

“I don’t feel any pressure,” Kvitova told China’s CCTV in Shenzhen. “I know that Serena has been there for a long time – she’s still the biggest champion that we have. And the younger generation is coming up and they are pushing us a lot. I think it’s good that we can see many [new] faces playing so well.

“There’s room in tennis right now – it’s very open. It’s nice to compete and not really be expecting who can win. It’s more difficult and less predictable this way.”

Kvitova experienced first-hand the unpredictability of the emerging younger generation: at last year’s Australian Open, she was stunned by a then 19-year-old Madison Keys in the third round.

The Australian Open is Kvitova’s toughest major: her best results in Melbourne have been an appearance in the quarterfinal in 2011 and in the semifinal in 2012. But if she could choose which of the four slams she’d like to win, the Czech is up for the challenge.

“If I could have another Grand Slam, I would pick either the Australian Open or the French Open,” she said. “At the Australian Open, the hard courts, I just love that Grand Slam a lot. I feel so relaxed in Australia.”

To make that wish come true, Kvitova is facing an uphill climb. She was forced to withdraw from Shenzhen in her first round match and later from Sydney – where she was the defending champion – due to a stomach virus. The last time she played a complete match was at the Fed Cup final, when she helped propel the Czech Republic to victory more than two months ago.

If Kvitova can shake off the off-season rust and beat her lingering illness, the Czech is poised for a deep run in Melbourne – as long as she can make it past the initial hurdles and build up the confidence she needs.

“I don’t really like the beginning of the tournaments, for sure,” Kvitova said. “But that’s how it is – it’s probably normal that I’m improving my game with each match in a tournament.

“And then when the finish line comes, I’m feeling better about my game.”

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Azarenka Ready For New Challenge In 2017

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Victoria Azarenka

2016 Quick Hits
Week 1 Ranking: No.22
Year-End Ranking: No.13
Season Highlights: Titles at Brisbane, Indian Wells & Miami
Best Major Result: QF (Australian Open)

2017 Outlook

Two-time Grand Slam champion Victoria Azarenka tore off the blocks in 2016, winning the first title of the year at the Brisbane International in emphatic style. She was just as ruthless in Indian Wells and Miami, where she became the first woman in over a decade to clinch the elusive “Sunshine Double.” 

And the 2016 SAP Match Stats reflect her torrid form: she dropped just 17 games en route to lifting the trophy in Brisbane – the fewest games lost in winning a WTA title in the entire year.

But after the clay season, the former No.1 announced that she was putting an end to her season in order to take on her biggest challenge yet: motherhood.

Looking ahead to 2017, Azarenka has plans to return to the sport but admits she won’t put a date on her comeback.

“I don’t put any time frame on myself,” Azarenka said in an interview with Tennis Channel. “I would love to make it as soon as possible, but give myself a reasonable time to fully recover and be ready. I’m not going to rush anything, and it’s hard to tell before the birth actually happens.

“So, we’ll see, but I’m confident that I’ll be able to play tennis again pretty soon.”

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Watch Christina McHale's Exclusive Tour Of New USTA Orlando Facility

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

ORLANDO, FL, USA – On-the-rise American Christina McHale took a break from her off-season preparations to take WTA fans on an exclusive tour of the new USTA National Campus in Orlando, set to open in early 2017.

“It’s just a really great environment to be in,” said McHale, who was in town for a practice session on the Team USA Player Development courts.

Dubbed “the new Home Of American Tennis,” the National Campus will serve as the home base of USTA’s Player Development and USTA’s Community Tennis divisions as well as host USTA Pro Circuit events. Formerly in New York at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, which hosts the US Open, the new Orlando facility is one of the largest tennis facilities in the world.

Check out the video above to follow McHale on a first look at the brand new facility!

Fast Facts About The USTA National Campus:
· With 64-plus acres and 100 lighted tennis courts, the National Campus is one of the largest tennis facilities in the world.
· The USTA National Campus will open January 2, 2017 with the first tournament scheduled for January 6th.
· The Campus will host over 80 tournaments and events in 2017 with approximately 30,000 participants.
· An expected 80,000-100,000 attendees will visit the Campus in 2017.
· The USTA’s Community Tennis and Player Development divisions will be headquartered at the National Campus. It will also be home to the national training center for USTA-certified officials.

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Azarenka Wins, First Round Wraps Up

Azarenka Wins, First Round Wraps Up

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

MELBOURNE, Australia – Victoria Azarenka, who won the Australian Open in 2012 and 2013, didn’t drop a single game in the first match of her quest for a third title at the Happy Slam on Tuesday.

The No.14-seeded Azarenka was absolutely ruthless against Alison Van Uytvanck in the feature night match on Rod Laver Arena, rolling past the Belgian up-and-comer in just 53 minutes, 6-0, 6-0.

“I’m pretty happy – I don’t think I’m looking for perfection, I’m looking for effort. I’m looking for focus,” Azarenka told reporters afterwards. “I like that I was very composed today from the first point to the last point. Like it didn’t matter what the score was in the match, I was there on every point.

“So that’s what I’m very happy about today.”

The former World No.1 was asked whether she was sticking to the dab – the American Football-inspired post-match celebration she debuted during her run to the Brisbane title – this fortnight.

“For now, yeah,” she said, after which she was asked whether it was for luck.

“I just like doing it,” Azarenka replied. “I don’t believe in luck – I believe in hard work.”

Azarenka has gotten off to a perfect start to the 2016 season, not dropping a set en route to her first WTA title in almost two and a half years at the Brisbane International a few weeks ago – losing just 17 games in five matches, in fact – and she’s now 6-0 on the year after her first win in Melbourne.

Not all of the favorites flourished, though, with five more seeds going out, most notably No.2 seed Simona Halep, who was stunned by Chinese qualifier Zhang Shuai, 6-4, 6-3 (read more here) and No.8 seed Venus Williams, who succumbed to British No.1 Johanna Konta, 6-4, 6-2 (read more here).

Johanna Larsson beat No.29 seed Irina-Camelia Begu, 6-3, 6-2, Varvara Lepchenko beat No.31 seed Lesia Tsurenko, 6-7(5), 6-2, 6-3, and Barbora Strycova outdid No.32 seed Caroline Garcia, 6-2, 6-4.

Most of the seeds in action moved through, though, including No.3 seed Garbiñe Muguruza, who out-hit Anett Kontaveit, 6-0, 6-4, and No.7 seed Angelique Kerber, who won a thriller against Misaki Doi, saving a match point down 6-5 in the second set tie-break to survive, 6-7(4), 7-6(6), 6-3.

Other winners on Tuesday included No.9 seed Karolina Pliskova, No.11 seed Timea Bacsinszky, No.15 seed Madison Keys, No.18 seed Elina Svitolina, No.19 seed Jelena Jankovic, No.20 seed Ana Ivanovic (read about her win here), No.21 seed Ekaterina Makarova and No.30 seed Sabine Lisicki.

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Sania Mirza’s New Year’s Resolution: Taking Care Of Unfinished Business

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Doubles World No.1 Sania Mirza is closing in on 90 weeks at the top of the rankings, but she’s still got unfinished business to take care of in 2017.

The Indian star ended the season as the world’s top doubles player for the second straight year, capping off a stellar run which saw her win three Grand Slams in a row, go on a 41-match winning streak and rack up an incredible 15 titles with four different partners.

But despite the impressive trophy haul, there’s still one title missing from her resume, and in 2017 Mirza intends to make things right on the red clay of Paris.

“In 2017, I would love to win a Grand Slam,” Mirza said, speaking at a promotional event in India. “If that [winning the French Open] does happen, it would be amazing. I won’t kill myself, if I don’t [win the French Open].

“It would be amazing for me to have three back-to-back years with at least one Grand Slam. So, that would be my goal really and everything else follows.”

Mirza came close to lifting the French Open doubles trophy in 2011 when she reached the final with then-partner Elena Vesnina, but six years down the road the World No.1 is heading to Paris in search of her first Coupe Simone-Mathieu and the Career Slam.

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Olympic QFs: By The Numbers

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

How many minutes has Madison Keys spent on court? Who has hit the most aces? And in whose famous footsteps is Johanna Konta looking to follow?

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WTA Stars Pay Tribute To Hewitt

WTA Stars Pay Tribute To Hewitt

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

An emotional Lleyton Hewitt hung up the racquet after a two-decade long career that saw him win 30 ATP titles and two Grand Slams, as well as become the youngest ever No.1 ranked male player. The Aussie legend retired at his home slam after losing to David Ferrer in the men’s second round of the Australian Open. Well wishes and tears poured in for Hewitt after the match, and several WTA stars took to Twitter to pay tribute.

Here’s how they said goodbye to the two-time Grand Slam winner:

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