Doubles Semifinals Set In Paris
Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina weathered a rain-delayed match to continue on a collision course toward local favorites Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic.
Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina weathered a rain-delayed match to continue on a collision course toward local favorites Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic.
BOL, Croatia – Ana Konjuh, the Croatian No.5 seed at the inaugural Bol Open 125K, continues to cruise in her home country. She booked her spot into the quarterfinals with a commanding win over Turkish trailblazer Ipek Soylu, 6-2, 6-1.
Watch free live streaming from Bol, Croatia all week right here on wtatennis.com!
Awaiting Konjuh in the quarterfinals is fellow Croat Tereza Mrdeza. A wildcard entry, Mrdeza beat Belgium’s Ysaline Bonaventure, 6-3, 6-3.
Mandy Minella had to pull double duty on her way to the Bol Open 125K quarterfinals. When yesterday’s rain delay interrupted play, Minella’s first round match against Evgeniya Rodina left her down a set but rallying back at 3-6, 4-1. She stormed all the way back to complete the comeback, 3-6, 6-1, 7-5, but her day was not over yet.
Awaiting her in the Round of 16 was the well-rested No.2 seeded American Varvara Lepchenko. She didn’t face a single break point in the first set and quickly grabbed a 6-1 lead, but Lepchenko won the second in a tiebreak to ensure the match went the distance. Despite narrowing Minella’s 4-2 lead to 5-4, the No.2 seed was no match for the on-form Luxembourger, who stormed into the quarterfinals 6-1, 6-7(4), 6-4 after two hours and twenty-three minutes.
Lepchenko wasn’t the only American who faltered today in Bol; despite a strong Day 1 showing, all of the Americans in the draw were defeated today, with Sachia Vickery, Jennifer Brady and Anna Tatishvili all bowing out. Marina Erakovic defeated Vickery 6-4, 6-4; Stefanie Voegele edged Brady 6-4, 4-6, 7-5; and Kristina Kucova downed Tatishvili 6-7(1), 6-2, 6-4.
The two other remaining seeds in the draw, No.7 Polona Hercog and No.4 Nao Hibino, both advanced in straight sets to reach the quarterfinalist. Hercog needed just over an hour to down Bulgarian qualifier Elitsa Kostova 6-1, 6-0, while Hibino overcame a late resistance from Ivana Jorovic on her way to a 6-2, 7-6(5) victory.
When was the last time a Dutch player reached the final? What first is Garbiñe Muguruza hoping to achieve? And just how impressive has Samantha Stosur’s serving been?
Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic cap a near-perfect clay court season by winning their first Grand Slam women’s doubles crown in front of their home crowd in three dramatic sets.
With the French Open officially in the books, how do the rankings stand as the tour heads into the third major tournament of the season?
Defending champion Serena Williams remains No.1 for a 174th straight week, a streak that began all the way back on February 18th, 2013, after reaching the final of the Qatar Total Open.
Garbiñe Muguruza is not too far behind at her career-high ranking of No.2, trailing the 21-time Grand Slam champion by 1564 points thanks to her maiden major title at Roland Garros, where she defeated Serena in the final.
Muguruza became the first Spanish woman ranked inside the Top 2 since Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario in December 1996; Sanchez-Vicario is also the first and most recent Spanish woman to be ranked No.1 back in 1995.
Ahead of the grass court season, Wimbledon finalists Serena and Muguruza have the greatest number of points to defend, with 2000 and 1356, respectively. World No.3 Agnieszka Radwanska fell to Muguruza in last year’s semifinal and is defending 1195 points, having also made the semifinals of Nottingham and the final of Eastbourne, where she lost to Belinda Bencic.
Bencic is making her return from a lower back injury, one which precluded her from nearly all of the clay court season. The Swiss star reached the fourth round of Wimbledon and the final of the Ricoh Open, and is defending 920 points.
Who made the biggest leaps during the clay court season?
|
PLAYER |
4/4/2016 |
6/6/2016 |
CHANGE |
|
BERTENS, KIKI (NED) |
96 |
27 |
+69 |
|
CHIRICO, LOUISA (USA) |
126 |
74 |
+52 |
|
ROGERS, SHELBY (USA) |
108 |
60 |
+48 |
|
BUYUKAKCAY, CAGLA (TUR) |
120 |
77 |
+43 |
|
CIRSTEA, SORANA (ROU) |
135 |
98 |
+37 |
By reaching the second week of the French Open, Bertens rocketed up into Olympic contention, as did quarterfinalist Tsvetana Pironkova, who now has a chance to qualify for the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. Yulia Putintseva made her career-best ranking and Top 35 debut by reaching the last eight in Paris, pushing Serena to three sets. Venus Williams also made her return to the Top 10 on the back of her best French Open result since 2010, reaching the fourth round.
Click here to check out the full WTA rankings as of June 6, 2016!
It’s time to vote for May’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, June 10.
May 2016 WTA Player Of The Month Finalists
Garbiñe Muguruza: Muguruza not only held off history by halting Serena Williams’ quest for a 22nd Grand Slam title, but the Spaniard made a little history of her own. The first French Open champion from Spain since 1998, Muguruza rose up to a career-high ranking of No.2, becoming the first Spanish woman to be ranked that high since December of 1996. Playing pitch-perfect tennis throughout the fortnight, Muguruza dropped the first set of her first round against Anna Karolina Schmiedlova and never looked back, winning 14 straight sets en route to the title – including wins over 2009 champion Svetlana Kuznetsova, and 2010 finalist Samantha Stosur.
Serena Williams: The new No.1 on the Road to Singapore leaderboard acquitted herself well in just her fifth tournament of 2016, reaching a fourth final at the French Open following a title run at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia. Serena fought valiently through a thrilling three-set quarterfinal against Yulia Putintseva, and saved four championship points against Mugurua before ultimately bowing out in straight sets.
Simona Halep: Halep’s rise began back in 2013, when she earned a wildcard to the Mutua Madrid Open; the Romanian came full circle just three years later by winning her second Premier Mandatory title of her career, defeating Stosur and Dominika Cibulkova in the final. Halep returned to the Top 5 thanks to that win and went on to reach the fourth round of the French Open for the second time in three years.
2016 Winners
January: Angelique Kerber
February: Carla Suárez Navarro
March: Victoria Azarenka
April: Angelique Kerber
How it works:
Finalists are selected by wtatennis.com
Winner is then determined by a fan vote on wtatennis.com
STRASBOURG, France – For the Czech Republic’s top players, reuniting for Fed Cup finals has almost become an end-of-the-season tradition. The two-time defending champions are back in action this weekend in Strasbourg, where they’re seeking their fifth title in six years.
Karolina Pliskova, Petra Kvitova, Barbora Strycova and Lucie Hradecka will take on the underdogs France in the Fed Cup final – here’s everything you need to know about the team and the tie, right here on wtatennis.com!
Fast Facts:
Tie: Fed Cup Final, France vs Czech Republic
Dates: Nov 12 & Nov 13, 2016
Venue: Rhenus Sport – Strasbourg, France (indoor hardcourts)
Czech Captain: Petr Pala
– The Czech Republic’s last three ties have been decided in the final doubles rubber
– All of the ties in their 2016 campaign have been away, including the final
Meet the team:
Karolina Pliskova
The new Czech No.1 Pliskova earned her career-high ranking of No.5 after the best season of her career saw her lift two titles, including the Premier-level Western & Southern Open – defeating Angelique Kerber in the final – and reach the US Open final, defeating Serena Williams in the semifinals.
After such a banner season, Pliskova is looking to continue her rise with her second Fed Cup crown. Dangerous both in singles and in doubles with partners Barbora Strycova or Lucie Hradecka, the versatile 24-year-old is valuable asset for the Czech team.
Fed Cup debut: 2015
Ties played: 4
Fed Cup win-loss record: 9-2 (singles 6-2, doubles 3-0)
Fed Cup indoor record: 9-2
Petra Kvitova
Fresh from her win at the Huajin Securities WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai, a rejuvenated Kvitova dons the white, blue and red Czech national colors with a renewed sense of purpose. She always shines while playing for her country, and this year she was able to use her impressive run to the Olympic bronze medal as a catalyst to put behind her a disappointing start to the season.
Though her last appearance for the Czech Republic ended in two disappointing defeats, suffering a straight sets loss against Monica Niculescu and a three-set heartbreaker to Simona Halep in the World Group quarterfinal against Romania, Kvitova has been a crucial component to the team for years, competing in all five of their most recent finals.
Kvitova said: “I think the tennis in Czech Republic has a huge [tennis] history. When Navratilova played, all of them, we always kind of been strong for tennis, but the women’s side a little bit stronger right now, and that’s why we playing final again probably.
“Of course we should be confident to get the title for us again. I think we have a great team, and we’re going to do everything what we can. We always love playing. It will be great week for sure, and the weekend will be more special.”
Fed Cup debut: 2007
Ties played: 19
Fed Cup win-loss record: 26-10 (singles 26-9, doubles 0-1)
Fed Cup indoor record: 24-6
Barbora Strycova
The Czech No.3 Strycova sits at No.20 on the WTA rankings after reaching two finals this year, at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships and the Aegon Classic Birmingham. She’s added three doubles titles to her impressive haul, too, including a win at Birmingham with her countrywoman Pliskova.
As a result, Strycova is one of the Czechs’ go-to doubles players, though she’s also been showing off more of her singles game lately. She defeated Timea Bacsinszky in straight sets in the World Group semifinal against Switzerland before falling to Viktorija Golubic in three sets.
Strycova said: “All the Czech players, we know how to be a teammates in the week where is Fed Cup. Tennis is individual sport, so we know how to separate it.Most of the time of the year you play for yourself.
“But three weeks in a year we are so close together and we are like really – I can’t describe it, because it’s like a routine for us that we are really doing everything together in the week where we play Fed Cup.”
Fed Cup debut: 2002
Ties played: 15
Fed Cup win-loss record: 16-9 (singles 7-6, doubles 9-3)
Fed Cup indoor record: 5-5
Lucie Hradecka
As one half of the “Silent Hs” along with partner Andrea Hlavackova, Hradecka’s season in doubles has been a success. The pair started the year with an appearance in the Australian Open final, continued on to reach the quarterfinals or better at Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid and Rome, then capped it off by lifting two titles, the Coupe Banque Nationale and Kremlin Cup as well as competing at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.
As the Czech Republic’s longtime doubles specialist, Hradecka’s role could prove even more crucial this weekend – the team’s last three ties have been decided in the final doubles rubber.
Fed Cup debut: 2010
Ties played: 12
Fed Cup win-loss record: 7-5 (singles 1-3, doubles 6-2)
Fed Cup indoor record: 6-1
– Photos courtesy of Getty Images
Peng Shuai was a few months removed from a US Open semifinal appearance when a back injury took her out of the game for almost a year.
“For me, two years ago, I was at a peak level,” Peng said at the China Open. “I could choose whether I would like to play or not. Actually, my friends and family did not agree with my surgery, because it’s too risky. Now I’m near 30 years old.”
The former Chinese No.1 agreed to have surgery, and was determined to get back to playing her best tennis.
“After the surgery, no one could guarantee I could come back to the court. What if I have more injuries if I come back to the court? I’d like to thank them for their support and care. I was a little bit stubborn to have the surgery. My friends and family supported me to undergo this surgery. It was quite a challenge for me.”
Peng began showing flashes of brilliance at home, upsetting former World No.1 Venus Williams in Beijing before finally adding a WTA title to her illustrious resume, winning the Tianjin Open.
Just shy of the Top 100 heading into 2017 (from a low of No.768), Peng is your Breakthrough Player of the Month!
Final Results for October’s WTA Breakthrough Performance Of The Month
1. Peng Shuai (70%)
2. Johanna Konta (23%)
3. Daria Gavrilova (8%)
2016 Breakthrough Performance Of The Month Winners
January: Zhang Shuai
February: Jelena Ostapenko
March: Nicole Gibbs
April: Cagla Buyukakcay
May: Kiki Bertens
June: Elena Vesnina
July: Kristina Kucova
August: Karolina Pliskova
September: Naomi Osaka
How it works:
Finalists are selected by wtatennis.com
Winner is then determined by a fan vote on wtatennis.com
Angelique Kerber hit many a hot shot in 2016 on her way to becoming World No.1 – watch all of her best shots of the year right here!
LONDON, England – How many tennis outfits does one Grand Slam champion need? When you’re Serena Williams and going for your twenty-second career title at Wimbledon, the answer is a lot.
Earlier today, Serena gave Bleacher Report’s UNINTERRUPTED an inside look into her 2016 Wimbledon wardrobe, and it looks like the World No.1 is totally outfitted for a long fortnight.
VIDEO: @SerenaWilliams gives us a peek at her Wimbledon closet, showing off her tennis whites, stacks of @NIKE gear.https://t.co/HOa000F4M1
— UNINTERRUPTED (@uninterrupted) June 24, 2016
Take a look at the video above and watch as Serena walks us through every piece of her extensive Wimbledon outfits – a different look for singles and for doubles – and see everything from her signature Swoosh headbands to her socks adorned with pom-poms.
However, there’s one crucial item noticeably absent from Serena’s Grand Slam ensemble: it looks like the defending champion is still missing her grass court shoes. Serena accidentally left them behind in the United States before flying out to London, but we’ve got no doubt that Nike will have them to her before the start of her Wimbledon campaign.
.@serenawilliams forgot her grass court shoes for @Wimbledon in the U.S. but @nike hooked her up with a fresh pair.https://t.co/5Qod2oT2kU
— UNINTERRUPTED (@uninterrupted) June 21, 2016
Despite the close look into every single piece in her London closet, Serena still held back on one item: you’ll have to wait until she steps out onto Centre Court at the All-England Club to see her Nike dress in action, though you can still get a sneak peak of it on her Twitter account.
A new look for a new year in London. Check out my @NikeCourt collection here https://t.co/OTYbn7yhLK #stealtheshow pic.twitter.com/kWux1VKmjw
— Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) June 23, 2016