Konjuh & Vekic Host WTA Charities Clinic In St. Petersburg
WTA Charities brought together Ana Konjuh, Donna Vekic and dozens of young Russian players and wheelchair tennis players for a Masterclass Clinic at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy.
WTA Charities brought together Ana Konjuh, Donna Vekic and dozens of young Russian players and wheelchair tennis players for a Masterclass Clinic at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy.
Steffi Graf won her second straight Wimbledon final against Arantxa Sanchez Vicario in 1996.
16-year-old Martina Hingis became the youngest Wimbledon winner since Lottie Dodd in 1887, but did so at the expense of good friend and doubles partner Jana Novotna, who was playing her first major final since her heartbreaking loss to Steffi Graf in 1993 at the All England Club.
But Novotna finally won her Wimbledon trophy one year later in 1998, upsetting Hingis in the semifinals and defeating Nathalie Tauziat in the championship match.
Lindsay Davenport ended Steffi Graf’s hopes for a 23rd Grand Slam title by winning her second major in under a year and defeating the German in her final Wimbledon appearance.
Venus won the first of her five Wimbledon titles to kick off the new millennium, knocking out Hingis, sister Serena, and defending champion Davenport for her long-awaited first Grand Slam title.
Venus repeated the feat in 2001, becoming the first woman to win two Wimbledons in a row since Graf in 1996, defeating a young Justine Henin, who was playing her first major final, in three sets.
Venus and Serena played the first of four all-Williams Wimbledon finals in 2002, with younger sister coming out on top for her first victory at the All England Club, which became the second leg of her 2002-2003 Serena Slam.
The sisters met again in 2003 for an epic three-set final that saw Serena capture her fifth Grand Slam title in six appearances.
Wimbledon at 17: Maria Sharapova toppled Serena Williams in straight sets to capture her first major title, catapulting her to the top of the women’s game in 2004.
Seeded No.14, Venus Williams overcame all kinds of adversity to up-end Davenport for her first major title since 2001, saving a match point and winning the longest women’s final in Wimbledon history back in 2005.
Less than six months after her first major title, Amélie Mauresmo struck gold at Wimbledon, denying Henin of the Career Grand Slam to clinch her first Wimbledon title in 2006.
Ranked outside the Top 30, Venus became the lowest ranked and lowest seeded woman in Wimbledon history to capture the Venus Rosewater dish, taking out surprise finalist Marion Bartoli for her fourth title at the All England Club.
Venus made it two in a row once more in 2008, earning her first win over sister Serena in a Grand Slam final since 2001 for her fifth Wimbledon title.
Serena got her revenge in 2009, defeating Venus in straight sets for her second major title of the season.
Serena defended her Wimbledon title for the second time in her illustrious career, defeating Vera Zvonareva in straight sets.
Petra Kvitova became the first woman born in the 1990s to win a Grand Slam, surprising Maria Sharapova to win her first of two Wimbledon titles in 2011.
After a harrowing two-year odyssey dealing with injuries and illness, Serena won her first major title since 2010, surviving a second-set fightback from Agnieszka Radwanska in the final. Serena came back to the All England Club three weeks later to win a pair of Olympic Gold medals.
Marion Bartoli made her Grand Slam dream come true in 2013, stunning Sabine Lisicki in straight sets as the Frenchwoman won her first major title before retiring a few weeks later.
Kvitova won her second Wimbledon title in 2014, playing emphatic tennis over the fortnight leading up to a brilliant display in the championship match against Eugenie Bouchard.
Serena’s sixth Wimbledon title may have been her most special, as it helped her clinch her second Serena Slam. The World No.1 will nonetheless be in the hunt for title No.7 next week at the All England Club.
Kristina Mladenovic had Sunday’s shot of the day at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy.
EASTBOURNE, England – 2013 champion Elena Vesnina got her Aegon International Eastbourne campaign off to a winning start, storming past British No.2 Heather Watson in straight sets for a spot in the second round.
Watch live action from Eastbourne this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
The Russian needed just over an hour to oust the home favorite 6-2, 6-3, and grab her first grass court win of the season.
“It was really a nice atmosphere on the court because a lot of people came to watch our match,” the Russian said. “It was really tough conditions: windy, smoggy at the end. I’m really happy that I won this difficult match.”
Despite the conditions, Vesnina was in full flight against the Brit in the overcast Eastbourne. After starting out in a deadlock, Vesnina left Watson reeling when she rattled off four games in a row to snap up the first set 6-2. Watson continued to struggle in the second set before giving up a late break to hand Vesnina the match.
Vesnina won 71% of points behind her first serve and not facing a break point in the entire match. She struck 24 winners to 16 unforced errors, compared to Watson’s 13 and 17. Vesnina was especially dominating at the net, winning 12 of her 14 net points.
“I’m really happy to be back in Eastbourne,” Vesnina said after her win. “It’s bringing me some good memories from winning the title here in 2013. Of course, it’s tough to play Heather here in England again with everyone supporting her.”
Nevertheless, the win is a good omen for the Russian: in 2013, Vesnina beat out Watson in the second round on her way to the title.
After ousting the home favorite in commanding fashion, Vesnina will next look to thwart Belinda Bencic’s happy homecoming to Eastbourne. Bencic, the defending champion, kicked her 2015 season into high gear at the Aegon International last year and already has a semifinal appearance at the Ricoh Open under her belt.
Watson wasn’t the only local who took a tumble in the first round. Of the four Brits in the main draw, three lost today as Tara Moore and Naomi Broady were sent crashing out.
Monica Puig played through a thick fog in her 6-1, 6-1 against Broady, and admitted that the blustery conditions were difficult to adjust to.
“Just keeping my focus was the main key, Puig said. “I knew the points weren’t going to be long, so I just had to be very aware of what was going on.
“I’ve never played in a sea mist before. It was really something, it was tough to see the ball!”
Joining Vesnina and Puig in the second round are Eugenie Bouchard, Andrea Petkovic and Ekaterina Makarova.
Whoops! ? Nice to get the win today with some pretty tough conditions as you can probably see! ? On to the next!! ? pic.twitter.com/MaxJlQqcB2
— Monica Puig (@MonicaAce93) June 20, 2016
A new UK-wide campaign to promote gender equality in tennis has just launched – and coach and former Great Britain Fed Cup captain Judy Murray is right behind it.
Murray, a strong supporter of women in tennis, is running ‘She Rallies’ in partnership with the Lawn Tennis Association, which aims to encourage more girls into tennis by providing more female coaches.
Girl gang. Me and my #SheRallies ambassadors after long day training at @DavidLloydUK Shady Lane. Thats not a typo ? pic.twitter.com/LKlfhrZpLy
— judy murray (@JudyMurray) February 4, 2017
The project launched last weekend with a conference in Birmingham attended by key figures from sport and business – and Murray urged them to get behind the scheme’s objectives.
@BritishTennis SE #SheRallies Ambassadors with Queen Bee @JudyMurray at the helm!! “Be the change you want to be” – we're ready ??? pic.twitter.com/w5QDTTGAur
— Jo Ward (@Jo_Ward33) February 6, 2017
“We have now trained a team of female ambassadors to go out and empower women and girls to play, compete and deliver tennis,” Murray told the audience.
“This is our first step to addressing the gender imbalance in our sport.”
EASTBOURNE, England – Former No.1 Caroline Wozniacki stormed into the round of 16 at the Aegon International Eastbourne with an emphatic win over No.7 seed Sam Stosur, 6-2, 6-1.
Watch live action from Eastbourne this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
Back in early April, Wozniacki suffered an ankle injury that sidelined her for the clay season and saw her dip to No.35 in the rankings, her lowest ranking since May 2008. But after two matches at Eastbourne, it seems like the worst is behind the Dane: she’s dropped serve just once and no more than three games a set all tournament long.
Against Stosur, 2009 champion Wozniacki scored her first Top 20 win of the year, and she did so in commanding fashion.
“I feel good. The ankle is feeling good,” Wozniacki assured in her post-match press conference. “As long as I’m stable and moving well, it feels good.
“I’m pleased with the way I have been playing.You know, the first match I played quite well, but today I feel I played even better. Hopefully there is more tennis to come.”
Wozniacki got off to a roaring start against the Australian, staying aggressive and targeting Stosur’s second serve.
She broke Stosur early on to climb to a 4-1 lead before closing the set, 6-2, after 37 minutes. She didn’t let up in the second set, breaking twice to climb to a 5-0 lead and winning 80% of her second serve points to Stosur’s 17%. Despite a fierce tug-of-war in the last game, Wozniacki sent Stosur packing in straight sets.
Despite the one-sided score line, Wozniacki is pleased with her progress and
“In the end of the day, some results might look easy on the grass but it never is,” Wozniacki said. “You always have to focus and take advantage of the break points you get.
“I mean, Sam is a big server, so I was really pleased about the way I was able to return today.”
Also in action today, Andrea Petkovic backed up her round of 16 appearance at Birmingham by scoring an upset win against No.13 seed Sara Errani. She overcame a mid-match wobble to advance 6-1, 3-6, 6-4, notching her career-first Top 30 win on grass against the No.22 Errani.
Joining Wozniacki and Petkovic in the round of 16 are Ekaterina Makarova and local favorite Johanna Konta. No.11 seed Konta fought through a sluggish start against Lesia Tsurenko to advance 7-6(4), 6-1, while Makarova scored the upset of the tournament by coming back from a set down to knock out the No.2 seed Roberta Vinci 4-6, 6-4, 6-3.
First Top 20 win of 2016 for @CaroWozniacki at the #AegonInternational–> https://t.co/MYHk2uF6xl pic.twitter.com/BwYxz8Ng66
— WTA (@WTA) June 21, 2016
EASTBOURNE, England – Former champion Agnieszka Radwanska advanced at the Aegon International Eastbourne when Mirjana Lucic-Baroni retired from their second-round encounter on Tuesday.
Watch live action from Eastbourne this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
Radwanska, who was leading 6-4, 2-1 when Lucic-Baroni retired with gastrointestinal illness, will now face Eugenie Bouchard for a place in the quarterfinals.
“It was still a tough match – she was playing really good tennis – and I’m happy I could get some time on the grass, but we’re all hoping she gets better soon,” Radwanska said.
Since making her debut a decade ago, Radwanska has been an ever-present at Devonshire Park, lifting the title in 2008 and finishing runner-up to Belinda Bencic in 2015. This time she is top seed and following an early exit in Birmingham is in need of time on grass ahead of Wimbledon.
“I really like these courts and I’m always feeling great here – it’s my 10th time here!”
Not every day you buy tickets from @ARadwanska! See Aga in #AegonInternational action at https://t.co/JtHMBtT7rU pic.twitter.com/TNrP3yms0K
— British Tennis (@BritishTennis) 21 June 2016
Her next opponent, Bouchard, is also no stranger to success on grass, reaching the Wimbledon final two years ago. Since then, Bouchard has endured an up and down time on tour, but is eager to rediscover the form that fueled her initial rise up the rankings.
“I’ve had some results that I wasn’t satisfied with, so coming into this week I really kicked myself in the butt,” she said. “I told myself to go after it and not have any regrets.”
There were certainly no regrets against No.15 seed Irina-Camelia Begu, whom Bouchard brushed aside, 6-3, 6-1.
Also springing an upset in the top half were Kristina Mladenovic, who saw off No.4 seed Timea Bacsinszky, 6-1, 7-5, and Kateryna Bondarenko, a 2-6, 6-4, 7-5 winner over No.6 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova.
EASTBOURNE, England – No.11 seed Johanna Konta is back into the quarterfinals at the Aegon International Eastbourne after coming back from a set down to oust two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova.
Watch live action from Eastbourne this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
Konta, an Eastbourne resident, has enjoyed vocal support from the home crowd at the event that last year saw her reach her career-first Premier-level quarterfinal. But the levelheaded Brit, as always, keeps even the support at arms’ length.
“Quite honestly, it makes a difference in the sense that it’s nice to be at home,” she said ahead of the match. “But in terms of how I mentally prepare or how much I let in, it does not make a difference.I really do try to keep myself in my own head space.”
The Brit has faced off against the No.5 seed Kvitova once before, when Kvitova halted Konta’s big breakthrough at last year’s US Open in the round of 16. Konta learned her lessons and, despite facing the Czech on her best surface, was able to put her nerves aside and defeat her, 5-7, 6-4, 6-0.
“She plays incredibly well on the grass,” Konta acknowledged. “She’s a two-time Wimbledon champion, so I think her results speak for themselves.
“I just need to stay in points when I need to but also look to take my opportunities whenever they arise.”
That’s easier said than done against the two-time Grand Slam champion – something that Konta discovered early on in the first set when she saw her 5-2 lead erased by Kvitova. Konta was serving for the set – she even held a set point – when Kvitova broke serve and rattled off the next four games to turn the match around on the Brit.
“I told myself to just really keep going,” Konta said. “Really keep in mind the things that I did well and take as much from that as I can. I just tried to have a very short memory and keep moving forward, keep moving on.”
Konta switched up her strategy against Kvitova in the second and third sets, becoming more aggressive on the return to neutralize Kvitova’s powerful serve and keep her back on her heels. She won over 70% of the points behind her first serve in the last two sets, whereas Kvitova struggled to put pressure on Konta, and couldn’t bring up a break point in the final sets.
Konta grabbed a decisive break in the fifth game of the second set, then dealt Kvitova a surprising bagel set to close out the match after two hours and fourteen minutes.
“I’m not sure there are words that are big enough to describe that win!” Konta grinned after the match.
“It’s definitely one of my biggest wins, even though I don’t think she’s in the Top 10 this week. She has been a Top 10 player or Top 5 player for years and years and years now.
“She really is a champion, and so I am very happy with the level I was able to produce, you know, even if it didn’t go my way and just kept plugging away throughout that whole match.”
Konta will face the winner of the round of 16 match between Andrea Petkovic and Ekaterina Makarova which has been postponed for tomorrow due to rain.
“I'm not sure there are words big enough to describe it!”
-@JoKonta91 reaction after defeating Kvitova https://t.co/T20is8UVla
— WTA (@WTA) June 22, 2016