Tennis News

World No.56 Yulia Putintseva arrived in Miami after a career-best run at the BNP Paribas Open, where she reached the third round and pushed World No.1 Serena Williams to a first set tie-break. After heading to the American Airlines Arena for a Rihanna concert, Putintseva got down to business on Thursday, showing off what she called her “new way to serve:”

New way to serve ??? pic.twitter.com/cwSNDtxmy5

— Yulia Putintseva (@Yulka1995P) March 17, 2016

The moment was reminiscent of when colleague Elina Svitolina lit up social media at the end of 2014 with her own trick serve at the China Open:

Putintseva and Svitolina will undoubtedly get competition from Tweener Queen Kristina Mladenovic. The Frenchwoman debuted the shot under the lights of Arthur Ashe Stadium en route to the quarterfinals of the US Open, bringing it back once (or twice) during the off-season for IPTL:

How can you not love @KikiMladenovic? #showgirl #IPTL2 pic.twitter.com/elwHQfxpv2

— Noémie. (@Saschatard) December 16, 2015

But few have been able to work their magic into a match quite like Agnieszka Radwanska, who reached the semifinals in Indian Wells – and returned to the No.2 ranking – on Wednesday with a 6-2, 7-6(3) win over two-time Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova:

#SCTop10 anyone? @ARadwanska was on FIRE! ? https://t.co/ctucReiGbc

— WTA (@WTA) March 13, 2016

Which are some of your favorite trick shots? Let us know on Twitter @WTA!

INDIAN WELLS, CA, USA – And then there were four. The BNP Paribas Open draw has dwindled down to a quartet of elite talents, including two former champions. Wtatennis.com breaks down a blockbuster semifinal day here.

Friday, Semifinals

Stadium 1
[1] Serena Williams (USA #1) vs. [3] Agnieszka Radwanska (POL #3)
Head-to-head: Williams leads 9-0
Key Stat: Williams has won 18 of 19 sets against Radwanska.
Will Serena Williams make it a perfect 10-0 against Agnieszka Radwanska on Friday to claim her spot in her first BNP Paribas Open final in fifteen years? If the scintillating form the two-time BNP Paribas Open champion displayed in her quarterfinal victory over Simona Halep is any indication, the American will be an extremely tough player to knock out of this draw. “She was moving really good, and hit it so strong,” an impressed Halep said after falling on Wednesday night to Williams. “I think she’s in good shape now. Yeah, maybe she’s going to win this title.”

In order to stop Williams from winning it all, Agnieszka Radwanska will likely have to play the match of her career. But if there was ever a time for Radwanska to pull a jaw-dropping upset, it could be now. The Pole has been the WTA’s most consistent performer since the US Open, going 34-6 with four titles, including the biggest of her career at last October’s BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global. The momentum has certainly been building for Radwanska, but how to take that extra step to get past the daunting Williams? When they met two months ago at the Australian Open semifinals, Radwanska got off on the wrong foot and never recovered. “I think she started unbelievable, with such a power and speed,” she said at the time. “I was just standing there kind of watching her playing.” To avoid a similar situation Radwanska will have to make a high percentage of first serves and do everything in her power to stay in rallies and keep Williams off balance.

Williams is well aware that Radwanska is a threat, particularly on the gritty hard courts here in the desert, despite the lopsided victory in Australia and the 9-0 lifetime advantage. “Obviously she does everything so well, including running, and this is a good surface for her because it’s a slow surface,” Williams said. “I expect there will be a lot of long rallies. I will be ready.”

Pick: Williams in three

[13] Victoria Azarenka (BLR #15) vs. [18] Karolina Pliskova (CZE #19)
Head-to-head: series tied 1-1
Key Stat: Azarenka will return to the Top 10 (at No.8) for the first time since August 2014 if she wins the title at Indian Wells.
Victoria Azarenka reached only one WTA final in 2015, but the Belarusian is closing in on her second title of 2016 and we’re not even through March yet. It has happened in fits and starts over the last two years, but could we finally be witnessing the return to elite status of one of the WTA’s most talented — and decorated — players? Whether she reaches the final or not, one thing is certain: Azarenka is relishing the opportunity to prove herself on the big stage. “I love pressure,” she told reporters this week at Indian Wells. “That’s what makes me a good player and a great player. That’s what motivates me. Without pressure I get bored and it’s not fun. So to be able to compete in that high situation, that’s what I’m always looking forward to.”

Azarenka may be fine with the pressure, but how will the 2012 BNP Paribas Open champion handle the searing heat of Karolina Pliskova’s world-class serve? The tall, cool Czech ripped nine aces and won 24 of 26 first-serve points to take down Russia’s Daria Kasatkina on Thursday. How well Pliskova can dictate with her heavy offerings will be the key to her survival in this intriguing matchup, but in Azarenka she’ll be facing one of the WTA’s elite returners.

Pick: Azarenka in two

– Chris Oddo, wtatennis.com contributor

INDIAN WELLS, CA, USA – Friday’s evening session at the BNP Paribas Open will see all four semifinalists in action. Read on to discover 10 need-to-know facts heading into the two showdowns.

(1) Serena Williams (USA #1) vs (3) Agnieszka Radwanska (POL #3)
H2H: Williams leads Radwanska, 9-0

1) Serena resumes desert domination.
Serena Williams has cruised through the draw this fortnight – she is the only player yet to drop a set – to improve her win-loss record at Indian Wells to 22-1 (.957). This winning percentage is second only to the great Martina Navratilova*:
Martina Navratilova 10-0 (1.000)
Serena Williams 22-1 (.957)
Steffi Graf 17-2 (.895)
Kim Clijsters 24-5 (.828)
* Minimum of five matches played at tournament

2) Chasing another record.
No player has won the title at Indian Wells more than two times. Serena is one of eight players to lift the title in Indian Wells twice (1999, 2001) and is attempting to add it to an impressive list of titles she has won on three or more occasions:
Eight – Miami
Six – Australian Open, US Open, Wimbledon
Five – WTA Finals
Three – Charleston, Roland Garros, Rome, Stanford, Toronto

3) Radwanska moving up in the world.
Agnieszka Radwanska will move to No.2 in the WTA Rankings on Monday. It will be her eighth week at No.2 having previously held this career-best ranking in July and August of 2012.

4) But she is still searching for an answer to Serena’s questions.
A runner-up finish at Wimbledon propelled Radwanska’s previous ascent to the No.2 spot. Denying her the title in a three-set thriller was Serena, who has dominated their rivalry ever since. In fact, the Pole’s solitary set in their nine meetings came that afternoon at the All England Club.

5) Radwanska on a roll since Flushing Meadows setback.
Since losing to Madison Keys in the third round of the US Open, no player on tour has won more matches than Radwanska. During that time she has posted a 34-6 record (Angelique Kerber is next with 25 wins), reaching the semifinals or better at eight of her previous nine tournaments and going on to lift the trophy four times.

(13) Victoria Azarenka (BLR #15) vs (18) Karolina Pliskova (CZE #19)
H2H: series tied, 1-1

6) Happy memories for Azarenka.
The last occasion Victoria Azarenka made the last four at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden she was in the midst of the most purple of purple patches. Rewind four years and Azarenka was busy compiling what would become the best start to a season since 1997, defeating Kerber and Maria Sharapova to add the Indian Wells trophy to the ones already picked up at Sydney, the Australian Open and Doha.

7) Top 10 beckons.
Should Azarenka head for Miami on Sunday evening with the trophy in her suitcase, she will return to the Top 10 (at No.8) for the first time since August 2014. If she reaches the final she will rise to No.11 and No.13 should she fall in the semifinals.

8) Pliskova no longer a flat track bully.
It is no secret that Karolina Pliskova has long been frustrated by her inability to make an impression at tennis’ flagship events. Prior to this fortnight, her best showing at a Grand Slam or Premier Mandatory tournament was a quarterfinal run last year in Miami.

9) Semifinal specialist.
While Azarenka may lord it over her in terms of big-match experience, Pliskova can draw confidence from her fine record at the business end of tournaments; of the 15 semifinals she has contested, she has come out on the winning side 12 times.

10) Long wait for a Czech finalist.
Should she make it 13 on Friday, Pliskova will become the first Czech finalist at the tournament since Helena Sukova in 1990. On that occasion Sukova lost out to former compatriot Navratilova**.

** Navratilova was born in Czechoslovakia but became a US citizen in 1981.

KEY INFORMATION:
Tournament Level: Premier Mandatory
Prize Money: $6,314,605
Draw Size: 96 main draw (32 byes)/48 qualifying
Main Draw Ceremony: Sunday, March 20, 6pm EDT
Qualifying Dates: Monday, March 21 – Tuesday, March 22
First Day of Main Draw: Tuesday, March 22
Singles Final: Saturday, April 2, 1pm EDT
Doubles Final: Sunday, April 3, NB 1pm EDT

MUST-FOLLOW SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS:
@WTA
@WTA_Insider – WTA Insider, Senior Writer Courtney Nguyen
@MiamiOpen – official tournament handle
Get involved in conversations with the official hashtags, #MiamiOpen and #WTA.

TOURNAMENT NOTES:
· Defending champion Serena Williams is bidding to capture her ninth Miami Open title. Only three other players have won the same WTA event eight or more times – Chris Evert (8 at Hilton Head), Martina Navratilova (12 at Chicago, 11 at Eastbourne, 9 at Dallas, Washington DC and Wimbledon and 8 at Los Angeles, WTA Finals and Orlando) and Steffi Graf (9 at Berlin).
– There have been five different champions in the past ten years in Miami. There are five returning champions in the field this year – Williams (2002, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2013, 2014, 2015), Agnieszka Radwanska (2012), Victoria Azarenka (2009, 2011), Svetlana Kuznetsova (2006), Venus Williams (1998, 1999, 2001).

MAIN DRAW ENTRIES:
Serena Williams
Angelique Kerber
Simona Halep
Agnieszka Radwanska
Garbiñe Muguruza
Carla Suárez Navarro
Petra Kvitova
Lucie Safarova
Belinda Bencic
Venus Williams
Karolina Pliskova
Victoria Azarenka
Timea Bacsinszky
Roberta Vinci
Svetlana Kuznetsova
Caroline Wozniacki
Jelena Jankovic
Ana Ivanovic
Elina Svitolina
Sara Errani
Andrea Petkovic
Madison Keys
Sloane Stephens
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
Samantha Stosur
Shuai Peng
Johanna Konta
Anna Karolina Schmiedlova
Kristina Mladenovic
Ekaterina Makarova
Sabine Lisicki

WILDCARDS:
Bethanie Mattek-Sands (USA), Cici Bellis (USA), Heather Watson (GBR), Laura Robson (GBR), Naomi Osaka (JPN), Paula Badosa (ESP), Beatriz Haddad Maia (BRA), Sofya Zhuk (RUS)

It’s time for the sweet 16 at the Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open! Four of the top five seeds will be in action, and eight Top 10 players will take the court in total. Chris Oddo previews the action right here at wtatennis.com.

Wednesday
Round of 16

[1] Angelique Kerber (GER #1) vs. [14] Petra Kvitova (CZE #16)
Head-to-head: Kerber leads, 5-4
Key Stat: Kerber is one of four players to have won three titles this season (also Azarenka, Halep and Stephens).

Angelique Kerber stretched her current winning streak to eight matches on Tuesday with a three-set win over Kristina Mladenovic, and the German has won 20 of her last 23 since playing her first hardcourt match of the summer. It’s autumn now, but the World No.1 has shown no sign of slowing down. On Wednesday she’ll face Petra Kvitova for the tenth time, and Kerber won’t need to think too hard to remember their last meeting. Kerber defeated Kvitova for the third consecutive time in the round of 16 at the US Open. From there the 28-year-old went on to win her second major title and became the WTA’s 22^nd World No.1, while Kvitova has parted ways with coach Frantisek Cermak and continued to search for the missing ingredients in her game. Though she has not achieved the results she wanted in 2016 (she’s yet to reach a final), Kvitova did win the Bronze medal in Rio and has won 14 of her last 18 matches. Kvitova is a very dangerous player at the moment and she has proven that by trouncing Jelena Ostapenko and Elina Svitolina in back-to-back matches in Wuhan. Kerber will likely have to summon her best tennis to win on Wednesday, but it’s something the German has been able to do pretty much without fail in 2016.

Pick: Kerber in three

[3] Agnieszka Radwanska (POL #4) vs. Caroline Wozniacki (DEN #22)
Head-to-head: Wozniacki leads, 9-4
Key Stat: Wozniacki has won 12 of her last 13 matches.

Caroline Wozniacki keeps winning. And winning. The Dane notched her 500^th career WTA win on Tuesday, defeating Katerina Siniakova to make it 12 victories in her last 13 matches. Wozniacki’s run of form has been remarkable, but when one considers that she carried a 13-14 record into the US Open, it’s even more mind-boggling. Confidence breeds confidence and with each passing win Wozniacki becomes even tougher to defeat. “It’s been clicking for me, probably for about a month and a half now,” Wozniacki said in her post-match press conference on Tuesday. “Even before the US Open, for about a month, I felt really good during practice. It just took me a little bit to get that out when I was playing matches.” On Wednesday Wozniacki will battle it out with Agnieszka Radwanska for the second consecutive week. The Dane eked out a 4-6, 7-6, 6-4 win against Radwanska in the Tokyo semifinals, and she says there are no secrets when these two friends get together on court. “We’ve known each other for 15 years or something, so I’m pretty sure we know each other’s game by now,” she said. “If we don’t, then we have a problem. I think we know what to expect. It’s just who can execute best tomorrow.” Can Wozniacki keep this remarkable run going, or is it time for Radwanska to exact a little friendly revenge?

Pick: Radwanska in three

[6] Venus Williams (USA #7) vs. [9] Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS #10)
Head-to-head: Tied, 4-4
Key Stat: Venus Williams has won 21 of her last 30 tiebreaks.

They last met nearly six years ago at the WTA Finals. Since then, Venus Williams and Svetlana Kuznetsova have had their ups and downs, but in 2016 it has been up, up, up, as is indicated by the pair’s current Top 10 rankings. That said, both Williams and Kuznetsova have their work cut out if they want to claim a coveted Singapore slot. Kuznetsova currently stands at 11^th in the Road to Singapore leaderboard standings and Williams is tied for 13^th. With very little wiggle room and precious points on the line, a victory today is crucial. Both players breezed through their second-round tilts in straight sets on Tuesday, so they should have plenty of energy left to let the fur fly when they meet for the ninth time in a matchup that promises to be intense from start to finish. The margins should be very thin—Williams and Kuznetsova have split their previous eight meetings and their previous two hardcourt meetings

Pick: Kuznetsova in three

[8] Madison Keys (USA #9) vs. [Q] Daria Kasatkina (RUS #28)
Head-to-head: Keys leads, 1-0
Key Stat: Keys is just one point behind No.8 Carla Suárez Navarro in the Road to Singapore standings.

One of the more intriguing battles of the round of 16 in Wuhan pits the two youngest players remaining in the draw against one another. But don’t let the age fool you—Madison Keys and Daria Kasatkina can compete at the elite level. Keys, 21, is the more accomplished player with the bigger game, but Kasatkina is a tremendous athlete that plays a refreshingly diverse brand of tennis and possesses an impressive on-court demeanor. Keys rattled the cage of Kasatkina at this year’s Olympics, dropping just four games against the rising Russian, and it will be interesting to see what Kasatkina learned from the experience of dealing with Keys’ jaw-dropping power. Did the 19-year-old discover a way to more effectively attack the American? Or will it be more of the same on Wednesday in Wuhan?

Pick: Keys in three

Around the Grounds: With so much attention on World No.1 Angelique Kerber, not much is being said about No.5-seeded Karolina Pliskova.The US Open runner-up fell in her first match at Tokyo but recovered nicely by defeating Lucie Safarova in straight sets on Monday in Wuhan. As one of the biggest breakout stories of the summer, all eyes will be on Pliskova on Wednesday to see if she can handle the feisty attack of Dominika Cibulkova. Also slightly under the radar this week is No.4-seeded Simona Halep. The Romanian will bid to reach the quarterfinals at Wuhan for the first time when she meets the ever dangerous Yaroslava Shvedova in Wednesday’s first match on Centre Court.

Also in Action: Great Britain’s Johanna Konta will continue her push for the Top 10 when she takes on No.7-seeded Carla Suárez Navarro in a first-time meeting, and Jelena Jankovic will look to back up her upset of Garbiñe Muguruza when she faces the crafty Barbora Strycova for the first time since 2011.

SAN ANTONIO, TX, USA – The No.6 seed Misaki Doi claimed the second WTA-level title of her career with a win over Anna-Lena Friedsam, 6-4, 6-2 in the final of the inaugural San Antonio Open.

“I’m so happy to win the first San Antonio Open,” Doi said after the final. “Today it was very very difficult conditions – it was so windy. But I’m so happy.”

The swirling wind gave both players plenty of trouble throughout the match, and neither was able to play herself into a rhythm. Despite the tough conditions, Doi found her footing first and grabbed the first break at 4-3 before going on to take the first set.

Doi and Friedsam traded holds in the second set, but the No.6 seed had the momentum at her back and she reeled off four straight games to go up 5-1. The lead would prove to be too much for Friedsam to overcome, and Doi captured the win in one hour and 14 minutes.

“I think I just tried to focus on every ball,” Doi said of overcoming the high winds. “Since the conditions were so tough, I just focus on one point, one point, one point.”

The 125K Series title at San Antonio is one more step on the 24-year-old’s steady upward trajectory. In the last six months, Doi has reached two finals – at the 125K Series event in Taipei and at this year’s Taiwan Open – and won two titles – at Luxembourg, where she battled past Top 25 players Andrea Petkovic and Jelena Jankovic en route to her first WTA title, and now San Antonio.

With the win, Doi will enter the Top 50 rankings for the first time in her career next week.

TASHKENT, Uzbekistan – Nao Hibino stayed on course to defend her Tashkent Open title after Lesia Tsurenko retired from their quarterfinal on Thursday.

Watch live action this week from Tashkent and Wuhan on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!

Tsurenko arrived in Tashkent fresh from a run to the title in Guangzhou, and against Hibino this hectic schedule finally took its toll when a back injury brought her seven-match winning streak to a sudden end.

The anticlimactic conclusion to the contest was all the more disappointing given the competitive nature of the set they did play; after trading breaks, Hibino fended off two set points to take it 7-6(6). “I’m relieved after winning the first set. It was very close and I managed to hold on and fight in spite of being down,” Hibino said.

Standing between Hibino and another final in the Uzbekistani capital is World No.114 Denisa Allertova, a surprise 7-5, 6-4 winner over No.2 seed Kirsten Flipkens. Allertova produced the steadier tennis to edge the opening set, before claiming the decisive break in the final game of the match courtesy of a brilliant running passing shot.

In the top half of the draw, Kateryna Kozlova reached her second semifinal of the year after taking little over an hour to defeat Stefanie Voegele, 6-3, 6-3.

“I’ve played here before and made it to the quarterfinals last year, it’s great to play here,” Kozlova said. “I started to play aggressively from the word go and put my opponent under pressure early. I think I played brave and aggressive tennis, I’m happy with my level.”

Her reward is a meeting with big-serving Kristyna Pliskova, who fired down 12 aces during a 6-3, 6-4 win over Irina Khromacheva.