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News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia – Yulia Putintseva made another thrilling comeback at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy, shocking BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global champion and No.2 seed Dominika Cibulkova, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4. The Kazakh’s first Top 5 win helps reach her first WTA final where she’ll face Kristina Mladenovic, who also triumphed in three sets against Russia’s Natalia Vikhlyantseva, 4-6, 6-2, 6-2.

“It’s unbelievable,” Putintseva said after the match. “I’m very happy that the crowd was behind me this time around. Yesterday they supported more Svetlana and today they cheered for me. I want to thank them from the bottom of my heart.”

Putintseva was playing her first Premier-level semifinal and coming off her third career Top 10 win over No.3 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova, giving the more experienced Cibulkova the upper hand from the start. The Slovak worked through a few tense opening games to edge ahead by a break and take the opening set with the help of nine winners.

Cibulkova fell behind a break to start the second, but after winning three straight games to level the set, a first final of 2017, a career-high ranking of No.4, and a 399th career win all appeared on the cards for the reigning WTA Finals champion.

But the unseeded 22-year-old had other ideas, holding and breaking serve in quick succession to level the match, cleaning up her side of the stat sheet with 12 winners to only eight unforced errors; Cibulkova maintained an almost exact inverse, hitting eight winners to 13 errors.

The final set was reminiscent of Friday’s quarterfinal between Putintseva and Kuznetsova, as the World No.5 twice led by a break, getting within two points of a 5-3 lead.

“I never give up and always try to dictate my game no matter what. And this is what I was trying to do throughout this match.

But Putintseva continued to play her best tennis when her back was up against the wall, winning four straight games to book her first-ever WTA final in two hours and 19 minutes.

By match’s end, it was clear that consistency had gotten the job done for Putintseva, who matched Cibulkova in winners (27 each), but hit 11 fewer errors (43 to 32).

“It’s my first WTA final, but actually I don’t feel any pressure here. I am enjoying every moment I spend on the court.”

Waiting for her in the championship match will be Mladenovic, herself enjoying a career-best run that began with an emphatic win over Australian Open runner-up Venus Williams. The Frenchwoman back up the upset by dethroning defending champion Roberta Vinci and remained composed after losing the first set to Vikhlyantseva, a rising Russian set to make her Top 100 debut after reaching her first semifinal at a WTA Premier event.

“She’s really powerful, and all credit to her in the first set,” Mladenovic said after the match. “I was like, ‘Geez, this is going very fast.’ She was playing very heavy with her groundstrokes, and hitting a lot of winners.

“I just dug really deep and I was trying to stay positive. I said to myself that if she managed to maintain this high energy and intensity for the whole match, good job. But I’m very happy to have stayed in the match long enough to turn it around.”

An unfamiliar opponent to many, Vikhlyantseva had previously pushed Mladenovic to three sets in ‘s-Hertogenbosch last summer, helping the unseeded Frenchwoman prepare for what became a three set battle.

“I think it was a very good match, high intensity from both of us. I think the difference today was my ability to maintain that intensity from first point to last. I felt that way mentally the whole match, but I could sense her start to drop her level physically, be it with footwork, and the legs. She became less precise, and because she takes so many risks from the baseline, she started to make more unforced errors.

Mladenovic and Putintseva have played four times before, splitting their head-to-head at two wins apiece; Putintseva won their most recent meeting last year at the BNP Paribas Open in straight sets.

“She’s in great form, playing really well. She’s a big fighter, who runs down a lot of balls. I’ll have to keep playing the same way I have all week, being aggressive, coming forward, and trying to dictate play with my forehand. I’ll try to find angles and try to find my game towards the net.”

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News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

TALLINN, Estonia: Heather Watson soared to a straight-sets win to give Great Britain the best possible start in the Fed Cup opener against Portugal.

Under the watchful eye of new captain Anne Keothavong, Watson made an impressive start to her country’s campaign, beating Ines Murta 6-1, 6-1.

The 2016 Wimbledon mixed doubles champion then assumed her role as “chief supporter”, ready to cheer on her teammates – first Johanna Konta in the singles, then Jocelyn Rae and Laura Robson in the doubles. “I’ll get the pom-poms, and the tambourines!” she joked.

Her cheerleading obviously worked – Konta cruised through her singles rubber 6-2, 6-4 against Michelle Larcher de Brito, giving Great Britain an unassailable 2-0 lead in the tie. It was good preparation for the British No.1, who will be seen in WTA Tour action next in Dubai from February 19.

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WTA Frame Challenge: Madison Brengle

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Madison Brengle had to borrow a racquet to take the WTA Frame Challenge, and even she was surprised at how well she did. Was it enough to take the lead? Find out here…

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News | WTA Tennis English

News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Victories from Ekaterina Makarova, Elina Svitolina and Francesca Schiavone headlined a dizzying opening day of Fed Cup action in World Group II.

Here’s how the ties stand after day one:

Ekaterina Makarova

Russia 1 – 1 Chinese Taipei

Ekaterina Makarova found herself leading a group of young talented Russians this weekend, with two of her teammates making their Fed Cup debut and the average team age just 20 years old.

“It’s a totally different situation because every time I was playing I was one of the young players, even when I had a good ranking. But it was someone like Elena Vesnina in the team every time teaching me,” Makarova told FedCup.com before the tie.

“Now there are two girls who are debutants and it’s a good experience for me. We have a great atmosphere the girls are very nice. We’re looking forward to this weekend.”

The 28-year-old survived a scare to defeat Lee Ya-Hsuan 6-3, 5-7, 6-1 and put Russia ahead in front of a delighted Moscow crowd.

But Chang Kai-Chen put Chinese Taipei back on track, brushing away Fed Cup debutant Anna Blinkova, 6-3, 7-5.

Kirsten Flipkens

Romania 0 – 2 Belgium

Hosts Romania were stunned on day one as Yanina Wickmayer and Kirsten Flipkens’ brace of victories put Belgium firmly in control of the tie.

Without Simona Halep and Irina-Camelia Begu, Romania struggled in singles as Flipkens dominated the opening rubber against Monica Niculescu, 6-3, 6-4.

“I knew I had to be patient and wait for the right moment to move forward,” Flipkens told press after the victory.

“It would have been a lot more difficult against Simona Halep as she is a top five player. Against Monica, I was confident going forward as I created my chances and took them when they came.”

Cirstea had a golden opportunity to rescue a point for her side, leading 5-2 in the opening set but Wickmayer came roaring back to edge through in a tight battle, 7-6(4), 5-7, 7-5.

Elina Svitolina

Ukraine 2 – 0 Australia

The hosts Ukraine are in full control over Australia after Elina Svitolina and Lesia Tsurenko notched wins on day one.

Tsurenko opened proceedings with a comfortable win against Daria Gavrilova, easing past the Australian 6-2, 6-3.

“I’m very pleased with my game today,” Tsurenko explained to FedCup.com. “After the first games, the captain asked me to play deep. Don’t try to hit flat. That was the key. To play deep and wait for the right moment, and stay focused in the point whatever happened.”

Svitolina had a harder time against Barty, whose game made a mockery of her No.156 ranking as the Australian quickly took the opening set. Svitolina hit back just as strong, and finally tamped down the resistance to win 4-6, 6-1, 6-2.

“I’m happy about today, although not about the score,” Barty said afterwards. “Elina is a tough player, with a lot of experience. She raised her level. The score of the second and third set doesn’t reflect how close the games where.”

Francesca Schiavone

Italy 1 -1 Slovakia

Fed Cup veteran Francesca Schiavone and Slovakian debutante Rebecca Sramkova left their countries level in Italy to close out day one.

At home and on clay, Schiavone fought past Anna-Karolina Schmiedlova 6-3, 6-1 to give Italy an early lead.

“I have to speak with my body, it’s not easy to handle three hours like before – but today I enjoyed my one hour and a half and I’m happy to bring the point to my national team. It’s my last Fed Cup so there are some big emotions,” said Schiavone, who will retire from professional tennis at the end of this season.

No.116 Sramkova took on Sara Errani, and came back from a set down to win 2-6, 6-3, 6-4.

“I was nervous in that first set but I just said to myself ‘I’m going to win it’. I just changed my thinking,” Sramkova told FedCup.com after the victory.

Photos courtesy of FedCup.com

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Kuznetsova Battles Into Prague QFs

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

PRAGUE, Czech Republic – Top seed Svetlana Kuznetsova was made to work hard for her place in the quarterfinals of the J&T Banka Prague Open, eventually subduing a dogged Madison Brengle in three sets.

Watch live action from Prague & Rabat this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!

On another bitterly cold afternoon in the Czech capital, Kuznetsova took some time to warm to the challenge, running out a 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 winner after just over two hours on court.

“Yesterday was really hard and today as well,” Kuznetsova said. “It looks like it’s warmer, but it’s not – thankfully it wasn’t snowing! Today I put the heat cream on, and almost all the clothes I have with me.”

The conditions affected the Russian’s game as well much as her wardrobe choices, and it was not until the latter stages that she began to resemble the player that impressed so much en route to the Miami final earlier this month.

“It’s difficult, especially on the clay, because I like when the ball bounces high, and here it doesn’t bounce at all,” she added. “It was a little bit ugly, but sometimes you need to win ugly matches, especially for me.

“In the first set I didn’t really play my game. I was struggling to move and when I don’t move my game is a little bit off.”

Earlier in the day, Lucie Safarova continued her progress when Lucie Hradecka retired from their all-Czech clash with a neck injury. Safarova, who led 6-4, 2-0 at the time of the retirement, is now through to the last eight of a WTA event for the first time since last August, and there she will face Hsieh Su-Wei.

“Obviously it’s not the best feeling after the match to win like that, but I think I played really well in the first set, served really well – there was a key moment at 5-4 when I was down 40-0 and aced her three times,” Safarova said. “Overall I’m happy with my game and ready for the next one.”

Also advancing with minimum fuss was No.3 seed Karolina Pliskova, who defeated Katerina Siniakova, 6-2, 6-4. Next up will be another hard-hitter, Camila Giorgi, after she overcame a late wobble to defeat qualifier Virginie Razzano, 6-1, 7-5.

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Insider Doubles Take: Madrid

Insider Doubles Take: Madrid

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Santina Feeling The Heat: Co-No.1s Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza were largely in cruise control to start the 2016 season; winning four straight titles in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne at the Australian Open, and St. Petersburg, the most dominant team of the last five years rode a 41-match winning streak into the quarterfinals fo the Qatar Total Open, where they found themselves stunned by Elena Vesnina and Daria Kasatkina in a match tie-break.

Since then, the pair hoping to capture a fourth straight Grand Slam tournament – a Santina Slam – at the French Open haven’t won a title since – their longest drought since last spring, when they went five tournaments without a win before capturing their first major title at Wimbledon.

Red clay was always going to be the toughest ask for the top ranked team on the Road to Singapore Standings, as it is the only surface on which the pair has yet to win – but the two came close just two weeks ago in Stuttgart – where they reached the final. In an ironic twist, they found themselves out-gutted by Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic, a team undefeated on clay and riding their own winning streak with back-to-back titles at the Volvo Car Open and Porsche Tennis Grand Prix.

With a bye into the second round of the Mutua Madrid Open, Hingis and Mirza could soon face a rematch of the Australian Open final as No.6 seeds Lucie Hradecka and Andrea Hlavackova, who won last week’s J&T Banka Prague Open title with Margarita Gasparyan.

Kristina Mladenovic, Caroline Garcia

The “Caroki” Streak?: Speaking of Garcia and Mladenovic, the team who paired up in January ahead of the Olympic Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro has won their last 10 matches – including a decisive Fed Cup rubber over the Netherlands and a first round win in Madrid over Anna-Lena Groenefeld and CoCo Vandeweghe. The young Frenchwomen started the year with two finals in Sydney and Dubai, but have gone from strength to strength since the tour turned to clay – not only taking out Santina in Stuttgart, but also reigning Miami Open and French Open champions Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Lucie Safarova in the finals of Charleston.

In a two-part interview with The Tennis Island, the pair proved that they bring as much energy off the court as they do on, embracing the looming pressure of playing in front of their home crowd in Roland Garros and employing tactics they hope translate into their singles games. Up to No.4 on the Road to Singapore Standings and the No.5 seeds in Madrid, Garcia and Mladenovic next play Australian Open semifinalists Xu Yi-Fan and Zheng Saisai, who reached the second round when Laura Siegemund and Daria Kasatkina were forced to retire due to the former’s illness.

Lucie Safarova, Bethanie Mattek-Sands

Bucie or Bust: The only player representing two teams on the Road to Singapore Standings, Mattek-Sands is playing some of the best doubles of her career, winning the Indian Wells/Miami “Sunshine Double” with two different partners in Vandeweghe (No.11) and regular partner, Lucie Safarova (No.8). With a run to the Charleston final under their belts, the American/Czech duo will make their red clay debut in Madrid as the former couldn’t play Stuttgart; she was a little busy, after all, helping to lead the United States to a stunning upset victory over Australia in Fed Cup.

With all the talk about Hingis and Mirza, it’s easy to forget that the first half of 2015 belonged to Team Bucie, who were half way to the Calendar Year Grand Slam following back-to-back major victories at the Australian Open and French Open. They went on to capture their last title of the season at the Rogers Cup in Toronto before injury and illness derailed Safarova’s season, ultimately falling in the round robin stage of the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.

Semifinalists in Madrid one year ago, Mattek-Sands and Safarova earned the first of their two wins over Santina at the Caja Magica, repeating the feat a few weeks later in Paris en route to the title. The pair have a bye in the second round, but a recently reunited team looms in the quarterfinals…

Ekaterina Makarova, Elena Vesnina

Together Again: Ekaterina Makarova hadn’t played with Elena Vesnina since last summer, when a leg injury curtailed a season that had started so brightly for the Russian veterans. Leading 5-2 in the deciding set of the Wimbledon final, the 2013 French Open and 2014 US Open champions were not only a game away from denying Hingis and Mirza of their first Grand Slam title, but were also incredibly close to grabbing the third leg of a Career Grand Slam.

It was not to be, and as Hingis and Mirza went on their historic run through the rest of the season, Vesnina began to find success with young compatriot, Daria Kasatkina. With the fast-rising teenager, Vesnina got her revenge on Santina in Doha, ending their streak en route to the semifinals.

But as she told WTA Insider earlier this week, the plan was always to reunite with her partner of the last four years, especially with the Olympics in mind. In fact, Makarova and Vesnina played their first WTA tournament together here in Madrid four years ago, where they reached the final.  

Garbine Muguruza, Carla Suarez Navarro

Hometown Glory: Singapore finalists and Top 2 Spaniards Carla Suárez Navarro and Garbiñe Muguruza joined Garcia and Mladenovic in the second round with a 6-4, 7-6(4) win over Gabriela Dabrowski and Anastasia Rodionova, and both admitted to feeling relieved to be back on the doubles court for what is only their second tournament together in 2016.

“It’s true that sometimes when you play doubles, the nerves and the tension, you can share that with your partner and makes you play a little bit more solid and a little bit more freely,” Suárez Navarro said after her three-set win over Timea Babos on Sunday.

“I think yesterday we had a lot of fun on the court. I think the players we had, they were doubles players and they played a good match, an overall complete match. You had to stay focused. And not only that, I think that it’s of course a buildup for today’s match. You know how the court is laid out and you know how the people are going to be.”

Muguruza echoed her partner’s sentiment.

“I think that the doubles is the part that there are two people on the court and we help each other a lot. In the case of Carla and I, we know each other very well. Mutually we support ourselves and take the nerves off ourselves.”

The Rivalry: In a season with few certainties, one thing has been all but guaranteed in 2016: a match between teams Alla Kudryavtseva and Vania King and Julia Goerges and Karolina Pliskova. The pairs have already met three times since the start of the season, with Pliskova and Goerges winning both of their hardcourt encounters at the Australian Open and Indian Wells – the latter after King and Kudryavtseva’s straight-sets win over Hingis and Mirza.

Faced with what Kudryavtseva has called their “kryptonite” for a third time in Charleston, the pair finally defeated the BNP Paribas Open finalists to reach the semifinals, and will have the chance to even the series this week in Madrid, as they are set to face off in the first round. For their part, King and Kudryavtseva have taken the serendipity in stride and enjoying a partnership that has already taken them up to No.9 on the Road to Singapore Standings.

“We’re texting each other every day, and we’re really cute!” the Russian told WTA Insider. “We’re always supporting each other and following each others’ live scores. It’s been a nice connection.”

All photos courtesy of Getty Images.

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