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Serena Scores 10th Laureus Nomination

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

The nominees for the prestigious Laureus World Sports Awards have been announced and after a near-perfect season, World No.1 Serena Williams is up for the biggest award of them all, Laureus World Sportswoman Of The Year.

The Laureus World Sports Awards began in the year 2000 and in the 16 previous editions, Laureus World Sportswoman Of The Year has gone to WTA players four times – Jennifer Capriati in 2002, Williams in 2003, Justine Henin in 2008 and Williams again in 2010. Williams and pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva are the only two women ever to win the award twice – Isinbayeva won it in 2007 and 2009.

No woman has ever won the award three times – if she wins this year’s, Williams will be the first.

In addition to the American, the other nominees for Sportswoman of the Year include Genzebe Dibaba (athletics), Anna Fenninger (skiing), Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce (athletics), Katie Ledecky (swimming), and Carli Lloyd (football).

Williams was a wall-to-wall No.1 for the second time in her career, finishing the season atop the WTA rankings for the fifth time (2002, 2009, 2013, 2014). She won a WTA-leading five titles, including the first three Grand Slams of the season at the Australian Open, French Open, and Wimbledon – winning her second Non-Calendar Year “Serena Slam” and becoming the closest to achieve the Calendar Year Grand Slam since Steffi Graf in 1988. With a 53-3 record, she earned the  most prize money in 2015 – surpassing her 2014 record for second highest total prize money won in a single season at $10,582,642.

The 21-time Grand Slam champion is the only WTA player nominated this year, and one of three tennis members of the tennis world, alongside Novak Djokovic and the British Davis Cup Team.

Largely considered “the Oscars of sports”, the Laureus World Sports Awards have been held in major cities all over the world with an all-star cast of hosts, including Jeff Bridges, Heidi Klum, Morgan Freeman, Kevin Spacey and Benedict Cumberbatch. This year’s awards are in Berlin on April 18.

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Kerber Edges Pliskova For US Open Crown

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

NEW YORK, NY, USA – Angelique Kerber capped off her rise to WTA World No.1 by winning her first US Open title, edging past No.10 seed Karolina Pliskova, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4.

“It’s just amazing. I won my second Grand Slam of the year and it’s the best year of my career,” Kerber said after the match.

“For me everything started here in 2011,” she added, referring to when she made the semifinals ranked No.92. “And now here, five years later I’m standing here with the trophy. All the dreams came true this year.”

Pliskova, who was contesting the first Grand Slam final of her career, opened the match looking a bit nervy, hitting four unforced errors in her first service game – including a wild forehand volley at the net. She broke a string just as Kerber broke her serve, and the German consolidated to build up a 2-0 lead.

But now with a couple of games in the bag, both players began to settle into the match and bring out the sparring tennis they’ve produced in their past seven encounters. Kerber defending the ball well then found open court with her famously consistent ground strokes, keeping Pliskova on the run. For her part, the Czech took advantage of Kerber’s short balls and pounced on her second serve, but the loose errors proved to be her undoing as Kerber broke again to take the first set.

More to come…

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News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

DUBAI, UAE – Just days after throwing down the WTA Shot Of The Month gauntlet to trick shots queen Agnieszka Radwanska, World No.2 Angelique Kerber produced yet another highlight-worthy piece of brilliance at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships – and this time she even went right handed for it!

Watch Kerber switch hands for a right-handed reflex volley in her WTA Shot Of The Day from her quarterfinal against Ana Konjuh:

 “I don’t think [I’ve ever hit a right-handed volley before],” Kerber laughed in her post-match press conference. “I think this point — yeah, I have no idea. I just react, so it was just maybe a little bit luck, as well.”

She added, “I’m naturally right handed. Maybe that helps me in this point.”

On Tuesday, Kerber’s 26-shot rally against Mona Barthel prompted the German to muse out loud about displacing perennial hot-shot winner Radwanska, who not only took home January’s WTA Shot Of The Month but also owns the WTA Shot Of The Year Award for the last four years.

Radwanska was game and readily accepted the challenge on Twitter:

But will it be enough for Kerber to dethrone Radwanska and claim February WTA Shot Of The Month? Stay tuned…

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WTA Breakthrough Of The Month: Ostapenko

WTA Breakthrough Of The Month: Ostapenko

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Jelena Ostapenko didn’t enter the Qatar Total Open with high aspirations; two out of the main draw, the 18-year-old Latvian just wanted to win a match in qualifying before finding herself in the main draw.

“I was trying to improve,” she said. “First, it was like second round of quallies, and I was just really happy that I got main draw.

“On the first match, I was just trying to play my best tennis. Match by match, I played better and better.”

An understatement from the typically understated Ostapenko, who earned back-to-back wins over a pair of former World No.2s Svetlana Kuznetsova and Petra Kvitova en route to the second and biggest final of her career. Up a set against Carla Suárez Navarro, she showed off effortless power and gritty resilience through three sets, but ultimately fell to the experienced Spaniard.

Still, it was an impressive week for the Latvian, who jumps up to a career-high ranking of No.41 and joins fellow 18-year-olds Belinda Bencic (No.8) and Daria Kasatkina (No.46) to become the largest cohort of youngsters since April of 2009 (Caroline Wozniacki, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Sorana Cirstea).

“It’s great but it’s just the first step,” she said during the trophy ceremony. “But my goal is to be even higher, so I hope I can make it.”

Final Results for January’s WTA Breakthrough Performance Of The Month

1. Jelena Ostapenko (50%)
2. Daria Kasatkina (23%)
3. Caroline Garcia (15%)
4. Zheng Saisai (12%)

Jelena Ostapenko

2016 Breakthrough Player Of The Month

January: Zhang Shuai

How it works:

Finalists are selected by wtatennis.com
Winner is then determined by a fan vote on wtatennis.com

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News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

DUBAI, UAE – No.7 seed Elina Svitolina conquered top seed Angelique Kerber for a third straight time – the second time in 2017 – to advance into the biggest final of her young career with a 6-3, 7-6(3) victory at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

Svitolina kicked off the season by knocking out Kerber, then No.1, at the Brisbane International, but pulled off a hat trick of wins over the two-time Grand Slam champion on Friday, overcoming a rain delay and a late surge from an experienced – if slightly hampered – opponent to advance after one hour and 39 minutes of play.

“It was really tough,” she said during her on-court interview. “[Kerber] obviously had a medical timeout, so it was in and out all the time. The rain made it even tougher to stay focused, so it was a very tricky match. Hopefully Angelique has nothing serious with her knee and gets better soon.”

“It was a tough match,” Kerber said in press. “I don’t know what’s with my knee now, but I feel pain a little bit.

“I tried my best. This is how I am, and I’m always trying my best until the end.”

In control late in the second set, Svitolina saw her lead slip as Kerber won three straight games to serve for a decider. Digging in her heels, the Ukrainian youngster was riding a big wave of confidence – and an 11-match winning streak after taking home her fifth career title at the Taiwan Open – and broke back to roar though the ensuing tie-break.

“I was just trying to hit the ball, move my legs, think positively, and fight for every ball.”

Kerber was fighting to reclaim the No.1 ranking, needing to win the title to wrest the ranking from Serena Williams.

“I’m not thinking about this,” Kerber said. “I mean, everybody is writing or asking, but for me, I know how it feels to be No.1. I reach it once, and for sure I will try to get back there.

“But for me it’s really important to be healthy, and at the end, if I play consistent the next weeks or months, then we will see what’s happen then. Bfor the moment, I mean, I’m not looking about the number before my name, actually.”

Standing between Svitolina and the biggest title of her career is former World No.1 Caroline Wozniacki, who reached her first final in Dubai since 2011 earlier in the day; Svitolina won their only previous meeting in three grueling sets.

“We played at the Miami Open last year; it was a very late match, and hopefully this next one will be good as well. I’ll give my best and we’ll see how it goes.”

A win in Saturday’s final would also guarantee her long-awaited ascension into the Top 10. 

“It was up and down for me, but towards the end of 2016 I had really consistent results, and I was really consistent with my game,” she said in her post-match press conference. “So I’m really happy that I’m more mature now with my game, and hopefully I will try to stay focused.

“Of course the first thing is it’s important to stay healthy, is the most important for an athlete. Hopefully it will be good, and I will stay – of course, there will be up-and-down, but the only thing matters is how you come back from the downs.”

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WTA Finals: 40 Days Out

WTA Finals: 40 Days Out

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

The 2016 Grand Slam season is in the books, but there is still plenty of tennis before the WTA’s grand finale at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global. Top tier tournaments in Tokyo, Wuhan, and Beijing will help determine the remaining spots for Singapore. Who has already qualified and who has the edge heading into the Asian Swing? 

“With only 40 days to go until the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global, the Road to Singapore is really heating up now with the best players putting in all their final efforts to secure a prized spot among the greatest eight,” said Melissa Pine, Vice-President of WTA Asia-Pacific and Tournament Director of the WTA Finals. “Women’s tennis is truly exciting at the moment and I am sure that this year’s WTA Finals will feature some of the most thrilling action on court. It is definitely going to be a great time for all the fans!”

KEY INFORMATION:
Tournament Level: Tour Championships
Prize Money: $7,000,000
Draw Size: 8 main draw singles (round robin)/8 main draw doubles (knockout)
Main Draw Ceremony: Friday, October 21
First Day of Main Draw: Sunday, October 23, 5pm
Singles Final: Sunday, October 30, NB 7.30pm
Doubles Final: Sunday, October 30, 4pm

MUST FOLLOW SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS:
@WTA
@WTA_Insider – WTA Insider, Senior Writer Courtney Nguyen
@WTAFinalsSG – The official tournament Twitter for the WTA Finals
Get involved in conversations with the official hashtags, #WTAFinals and #WTA.

OPENING DAY ACTION:
This year, fans can look forward to the new Family Day At The Tennis festivities which will complement the scintillating action on Center Court on opening day. Session 1 ticket-holders will be given a Family Day At The Tennis Passport which they can use to earn themselves incentives and prizes such as front-row tickets, fast-track access to special activities, and a meet and greet with WTA legends, while attempting various activities and challenges at the all-new Fan Village.

QUALIFICATION UPDATE:
– Top 2 on the WTA rankings, Serena Williams and Angelique Kerber became the first two women to qualify for Singapore; leading the Road to Singapore leaderboard for most of 2016, Serena and Kerber contested two of the three Grand Slam finals at the Australian Open and Wimbledon championships. The two will be making their 13th and fourth WTA Finals appearances respectively; Serena has won the title five times.
– By winning her second Grand Slam title at the US Open, Kerber moves up to No.1 on the Road to Singapore leaderboard.
– Three doubles teams have already qualified. Australian Open champions Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza were the first women to qualify for Singapore, followed by French Open champions Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic. Olympic Gold medalists Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina became the third team to qualify after reaching the semifinals of the US Open.
– Hingis and Mirza are defending champions and plan to play Singapore despite splitting after the Rogers Cup, while Garcia and Mladenovic will be making their first apperance as a team after debuting in 2015 with different partners. By reaching the US Open final, the French will take over the No.1 ranking on the Road to Singapore leaderboard. 

Elena Vesnina, Ekaterina Makarova

MAKAROVA AND VESNINA QUALIFY FOR SINGAPORE:
– Makarova and Vesnina were forced to withdraw from the WTA Finals last year, but have qualified twice before, reaching the finals in 2013. The Russians rode a 13-match winning streak into the US Open semifinals with a title at the Rogers Cup before Rio. Learn more about Makarova and Vesnina’s qualification story here.

SINGAPORE IN SIGHT FOR BUCIE?
– Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Lucie Safarova were the second team to qualify for Singapore last year, but have played just six events in 2016 due to Safarova’s struggles with illness and injury. Still, the captured their their major title as a pair at the US Open, moving up to No.7 on the RTS leaderboard.

LOOKING AHEAD: THE ASIAN SWING
Six spots in singles and five spots in doubles will be decided during the WTA tour’s final stretch of the 2016 season. The first major tournament of the Asian Swing is the Premier-level Toray Pan Pacific Open, won by defending WTA Finals champion Agnieszka Radwanska last year. From there, the tour heads to China for back-to-back weeks at the Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open (won by Venus Williams) and the Premier Mandatory China Open (won by French Open champion Garbiñe Muguruza).

Here is the current RTS leaderboard in singles and doubles; who will qualify next?

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