Tennis News

DUBAI, UAE – Day 2 of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships got underway in earnest as Monica Puig and Kristina Mladenovic scored solid wins while former World No.1 Caroline Wozniacki put on a decisive display against young Russian Daria Kasatkina.

Catch up on the top stories right here, courtesy of WTA Insider:

.@CaroWozniacki happy to be back at @DDFTennis! pic.twitter.com/YhEYAbveOt

— WTA (@WTA) February 20, 2017

Caroline Wozniacki welcomes Sascha Bajin to the team.

Less than 48 hours after playing the final at the Qatar Total Open, Caroline Wozniacki was back on court in Dubai, scoring a solid 6-2, 7-5 win over Daria Kasatkina in the first round. In her player’s box for the second week in the row was a familiar face, Sascha Bajin, former hitting partner to Serena Williams and coach to Victoria Azarenka. Wozniacki and Bajin are working together until Charleston, when they plan to re-evaluate the set-up, but so far so good. The Dane is now 5-1 since their partnership began last week.

With the experience he brings to the table, Bajin is more than just a traveling hitting partner for Wozniacki. He’s more of a “hitting partner plus”.

“He helps my dad,” Wozniacki said. “He looks at the matches, too. He scouts and they talk a lot what they feel I can improve on and things like that. He comes with inputs and practices. He’s definitely a hitter plus. Assistant coach, I guess.”

Good win today! On to the next one! @DDFTennis pic.twitter.com/FBUwYIlj7L

— Caroline Wozniacki (@CaroWozniacki) February 20, 2017

Before joining forces with Bajin, Wozniacki said she ran the arrangement past Serena to get her blessing.

“I definitely talked to Serena about it,” Wozniacki said. “Just wanted to hear. And also how she feels about me working with him. You just want to know that you don’t clash. She said he’s a very hard worker, and she has nothing bad to say about him. She likes him a lot.”

Riske moves to 8-2 on the season (includes Fed Cup). Not easy playing a compatriot, but as she says, Americans have to get used to it. pic.twitter.com/4AZlfM48do

— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) February 20, 2017

The Americans run wild on Day 2.

Alison Riske got the better of her Fed Cup teammate CoCo Vandeweghe, putting in a focused effort to knock out the No.11 seed 6-4, 6-4. Christina McHale beat No.13 seed Kiki Bertens 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-4, while Catherine Bellis notched the most surprising result of the day, beating Yulia Putintseva 6-1 7-5.

The shortest straw had to go to Riske, who just over a week ago was playing alongside Vandeweghe in Hawaii for her Fed Cup debut. Riske admitted the match-up was awkward, but with the insurgence of Americans in the Top 100, it’s something they’re all going to have to get used to.

“It can be difficult, especially we just had the best week together at Fed Cup. So it was unfortunate that we played each other first round. But at the end of the day you have to focus on you, and there are so many Americans now in the top. We are all friends, or at least I feel like we are,” she said with a laugh.

“We’re going to be [playing] each other week in and week out, and it’s something that we’ve got to get used to. You just have to focus on you and not worry about the other person on the other side of net.”

Bellis on her comeback from 1-5 down in the second set. #DDFtennis pic.twitter.com/2wraveZ16M

— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) February 20, 2017

CiCi Bellis starts her season with an upset.

Catherine Bellis’ start of the season was derailed by hamstring and glute injuries, forcing her to skip January. In her first main draw match of the year, the 17-year-old American conjured a stunning comeback, rallying from 1-5 down in the second set to beat St. Petersburg finalist Yulia Putintseva 6-1, 7-5.

“I got myself in a bit of trouble in the second set, but I’m glad I got out of it,” Bellis said. “I just thought to myself, stick to my game plan, just keep steady, I can come back.

“I can come back against anyone I set my mind to. I’m really glad I got through it.”

The youngest player ranked in the Top 100, Bellis said her two qualifying matches last week in Doha helped her find her match rhythm quickly. “I think it was a little bit nerve-wracking just in certain parts of it, because I’m still getting used to matches again and getting back into the season. But I think it went well. I didn’t feel too rusty.”

.@KikiMladenovic on what has clicked in her game over the last few weeks. #DDFtennis pic.twitter.com/NW3GQ6FcWz

— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) February 20, 2017

Kristina Mladenovic readies for the Pliskova challenge.

The Frenchwoman is on a roll as of late, winning six of her last seven matches, including a strong 6-3, 6-3 win over Katerina Siniakova on Monday. Next up? The hottest player on tour: Karolina Pliskova.

“It’s a big challenge. First of all, we know each other very well. I mean, we are great friends. We always had tough matches, especially the last one.”

Last season, Mladenovic finished her singles season with a 6-3, 4-6, 16-14 loss to Pliskova in the Fed Cup final. It’s a match that still haunts her. “When I think about it, I still have the ‘I don’t want to see you that soon again’ [feeling],” Mladenovic said laughing. “That was a long one that I had in my mind for quite a long time because it was at the end of the season, and it was a tough one, a tough loss for our team.

“But she’s definitely up there, on fire, like full confidence, I have to say. She’s been improving like for the last two or three years like all the time and being now like a serious tough player, like she proved it with lots of titles already. And especially her game, it’s tough. It’s tough to play. You know, you have to be very, very consistent, try to read her serve, especially. That’s her biggest weapon. So I’m expecting a very difficult match.”

Ana Konjuh said she got her Wednesday after Fed Cup, had lots of time to adjust to conditions. It showed. Lost one game to Zhang. #DDFtennis

— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) February 20, 2017

Ana Konjuh drops just one game to Zhang Shuai.

The 19-year-old rolled in her opening match, winning 6-0, 6-1 to score the first main draw win of her career in Dubai. Next she’ll get her first look at No.12 seed Sam Stosur. When asked if there are any specific players she’s looking forward to playing for the first time, the Croatian teenager’s eyes lit up.

“I haven’t played Serena,” she said with bit smile. “And I grew up watching her, and I think it will be a dream come true to share the court. I think, you know, she’s a legend. Hopefully that day is gonna come soon.”

Twelve years after tennis was relaunched as an exhibition event during the 1984 Los Angeles Games, the sport returned stateside for the centenary Games in Atlanta…

Atlanta, United States, 1996
Stone Mountain Tennis Center
Hardcourt

Now appearing in its third consecutive Games, tennis was beginning to come of age as an Olympic sport by the time it arrived in Atlanta. And by the time the flame had died out above the Centennial Stadium, one of the game’s bright young things had completed her own rite of passage.

Aside from an injured Steffi Graf, all the big names were present in Atlanta. America’s Monica Seles topped the seeds and after a stellar year was many people’s favorite for gold at the recently completed Stone Mountain Tennis Center.

However, by the time the business end of the tournament had arrived, it was another American who was podium bound and winning the hearts of the American public.

Up until then, Lindsay Davenport was known as the big-hitting Californian who had struggled to convert her prodigious talent into titles that mattered. Still just 20 by the time the Games rolled around, Davenport had been a near-permanent fixture in the Top 10 for two years, but still only had a handful of minor titles and Slam quarterfinals to show for her efforts.

Yet at an Olympics where so many of her compatriots were shining on the track and in the pool, Davenport couldn’t help but be inspired, producing some of the best tennis of her career to defeat Anke Huber, Iva Majoli and Mary Joe Fernandez to reach the final.

“For the last two weeks, I’ve been hearing “The Star-Spangled Banner” so much for the other athletes,” Davenport said after defeating Fernández. “And only last night did I really think I could hear it for myself.

“I realized that actually when Michael Johnson was on the stand, and Dan O’Brien. I thought, ‘I want to hear that song so badly now.'”

And hear it she did.

Taking on the tour’s toughest competitor in Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario, the old Davenport may have succumbed to the pressure. The Atlanta version came out fighting like a lion.

With neither player able to break serve, the first set went to the tie-break. Davenport moved ahead, 6-4, only to let Sánchez-Vicario back into it with a backhand that sailed wide and a lob that drifted long.

The American responded with a strong serve and deep volley to go back ahead before taking the set with a touch of good fortune when a backhand drive hit the tape and trickled over.

From here there was no looking back; Davenport secured two early service breaks in the second and soon after was serving out for an emotional 7-6(6), 6-2 win.

“This means everything for me,” Davenport said. “No matter what else happens in my life, I’ll always be a gold medalist.”

——

Olympic Memories: Barcelona
Olympic Memories: Seoul

DUBAI, UAE – Ekaterina Makarova beat No.3 seed Dominika Cibulkova for the second time this year to reach the third round of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

“It was such a great match, very tough and she’s a tough opponent.” said the Russian winner. “We just played at the Australian Open and it’s the first time in nine years that I’ve won a match on the centre court, I’m so happy.”

Makarova had won the most recent meeting between the pair in the third round of the 2017 Australian Open and she again made the better start, breaking the Slovak to love in the third game – a further break helping to seal a comfortable 6-2 opening set.

Upset!@KateMakarova1 wins 6⃣ straight games to beat Cibulkova 6-2, 4-6, 6-2! #DDFTennis pic.twitter.com/eJTf1Ai5ak

— WTA (@WTA) February 21, 2017

Cibulkova came into the match with no shortage of confidence having made the semifinals of last week’s Qatar Total Open and her renowned fighting qualities were in evidence as she fought back to break early in the second set. Despite conceding the break back, she broke again at 5-4 and leveled the match as Makarova double faulted.

It was the fourth time in their last five meetings that a final set was required. The pair traded early breaks before Makarova broke again to wrestle the initiative, the 2015 Dubai quarterfinalist breaking twice more and winning the final six games.

“I started really well but I know that Domi is an unbelievable fighter and she’s fighting until the end,” added Makarova. “The second set was a little up and down and I tried to stay calm into the third set when I was losing 2-0 and it helped me this time, believing I could beat her. I was serving really well and, in the important moments, I hit good returns. When I’m staying close to the baseline, I play much more aggressive than when I’m staying back a little bit.”

Defeat for Cibulkova breaks a run of two consecutive WTA Tour semifinals. Makaraova will play either Lauren Davis or Krystina Pliskova in the third round.