Google Play App Download

Tennis News

From around the world

Getting To Know: Maria Sakkari

Getting To Know: Maria Sakkari

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

MELBOURNE, Australia – Greece’s Maria Sakkari scored her first main draw win at a Slam on Monday, defeating Wang Yafan 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 in her Australian Open debut. Current ranked No.170, the 20-year-old worked her way through qualifying and will now play No.10 seed Carla Suárez Navarro – one of her favorite players – on Wednesday.

Get to know the affable young woman, who has Spartan blood from her father and tennis in her veins from her mother, Angeliki Kanellopoulo, who was once a Top 50 player on the WTA tour.

WTA Insider: How does it feel to get your first main draw win at a Slam?
Sakkari: I’m so excited; I cannot believe it. It’s really tough to get through the qualifying with three tough matches and then a match that you have chances to win and you make it through to the second round and then you have to play against a top player. It’s so exciting.

WTA Insider: You qualified and drew another qualifier. Were you excited about that?
Sakkari: On one side, it’s good. But on the other side, it’s pressure, because you know that you’ll have many chances to win the match, but it’s the same for her. If you control it good and you do what you have to do, I think it’s gonna work.

WTA Insider: Last year, as you looked towards this season, what were your goals?
Sakkari: It’s always tough for everyone at the beginning of the year, because we’re coming from our off-season and it’s tough to get back to the matches and into the mentality. I lost first round in my tournament this year, second round qualies in the second tournament. I was a bit tense, afraid for this tournament, but you know, with your heart and a good mind you can always do well. At the end of the season, I played good, so I was positive for the beginning.

WTA Insider: You spent your off-season in Spain?
Sakkari: I’m in Spain, Barcelona. I didn’t have so much time; I only had two weeks because I finished my tournament in Carlsbad. Then I took a week off to relax a bit and then I went two weeks and a half in Spain for my pre-season, and then I went home for Christmas, and then I came here.

WTA Insider: Your mother is a former WTA player. What is that like, growing up with a mother who was on tour?
Sakkari: When you are like 5, 6, 7, 8, you can’t realize it. I realized my mom was a tennis player when I played my first tournament, because everyone was saying, ‘it’s the daughter of Angeliki,’ and then everyone started talking about me, that I’m her daughter. So then I started realizing who my mom is, because for Greece, it was a pretty big, that time. She made the quarterfinals at the Olympics and then third round of Roland Garros, 43 in the world. We didn’t have anyone until that time, and after her was Daniilidou. I didn’t start playing tennis because of her; this is what everyone thinks.

Maria Sakkari

WTA Insider: How did you start playing tennis?
It was next to my house; the courts were, like, three minutes from my house. I was doing all kinds of sports because I was a sporty kid, and then I liked tennis. I started playing with my grandfather because he was a coach, and it started from there.

WTA Insider: Do you talk to your mom about your career? What’s the best advice she’s given you?
Sakkari: She totally understands every single situation. She never asked me, ‘Why did you lose?’ Many parents say that to their kids. When I win or lose, she’s proud of me, if I’m doing the right thing. She’s always next to me and always supports me. She always says, ‘Enjoy; this is the thing you like to do, so enjoy.’

She’s coming for a few weeks because my coach has family as well, and he cannot always leave his family. I enjoy going around with her.

WTA Insider: What other sports did you play and how did you choose to focus on tennis?
Sakkari: I was doing ballet – that’s not really a sport – but they kicked me out because I wasn’t that good. Then they kicked me out from karate as well, because I was laughing all the time. And then I said I have no choice I have to play tennis because they are kicking me out of everywhere.

WTA Insider: You play Carla Suárez Navarro next. Have you ever practiced with her? How well do you know her?
Sakkari: I admire her because I really like her game; she’s one of my favorite players. I will enjoy the match; you don’t get this chance on the ITF Tour. I will enjoy and do my best.

WTA Insider: Since you train in Spain, is it safe to say your favorite surface is clay?
Sakkari: Everyone thinks it’s clay because I train in Spain, but it’s not clay! I like hard courts.

WTA Insider: What’s your favorite shot?
I think serve because you can hit it as hard as you want, and you have more possibilities to put it in.

WTA Insider: How would you describe your personality?
Sakkari: On court, I think I’m a player, because I’m from Sparta – my dad is from Sparta – so I have the Spartan inside me, and I give my heart and everything until the last point. I’m good fighter, and I run for every single ball. Outside of the court, everyone says I’m smiling all the time, a happy person. That’s the thing: I’m a happy person, and I’m always positive.

Follow Sakkari on Twitter @mariasakkari!

All photos courtesy of Getty Images.

Source link

Sam Stosur's Pre-Match Waffles

Sam Stosur's Pre-Match Waffles

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

USANA brand ambassador Samantha Stosur shared with us her tried and true recipe for her favorite pre-match snacks – which you can make right at home with only three ingredients and some waffles.

For a healthy, anytime snack (or for some pre-match fuel), spread toasted waffles with a layer of peanut butter for a dose of protein then top with freshly sliced bananas. Sprinkle in some chia seeds, which are packed with omega-3 fatty acids, fiber, and calcium, for a nutritious energy boost.

Here’s everything you need:

Samantha Stosur

USANA is the Official Vitamin & Supplement Supplier of the WTA, and over 170 Athletes – including 8 out of the Top 10 and 15 out of the Top 20 use USANA products. Former No.1 Caroline Wozniacki, Samantha Stosur, Eugenie Bouchard, and Madison Keys are among several USANA ambassadors, and 2016 marks the 10th Anniversary of the USANA-WTA partnership.

 

Source link

News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

MIAMI, FL, USA — Former World No. 5 Lucie Safarova recorded her first top 10 win since 2015 at the Miami Open on Monday, defeating World No. 4 Dominika Cibulkova, 7-6(5), 6-1 for a place in the quarterfinals.

“It was a great match and I’m really excited to be for the first time here in the quarterfinals,” Safarova told WTA Insider after the match. “I knew I had to come out really strong and play fast, and [not] let Dominika play her game. She puts a lot of balls back and she’s a very big fighter so I had to be really sharp and strong, which I was. I’m really happy it worked out.”

Now ranked World No. 36 and on the comeback trail from a bacterial infection that hampered her for parts of the past two seasons, Safarova earned her first win against a member of the WTA top 10 since defeating Angelique Kerber at the 2015 BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.

Added Safarova: “[Winning today] means a lot. It feels great to be there again with the best players, being able to beat them means my level is there again.”

The pair, who were meeting for the eighth time overall in Miami, saw an opening set decided in a tie-break for the fourth time after trading breaks twice in the set. Trailing 4-3 in the tie-break, Safarova rifled a backhand return winner to pull level before running off three of the final four points to take a one-set lead.

“We’ve played so many matches against each other, of course also practices,” Safarova said about her history with the Slovak. “We know each other very well and we know what to expect!”

The second set proved closer than the score indicated inside the lines, as Safarova wrapped it up in 55 minutes — just one minute shy of the mark in the first. Four of the set’s seven games went to deuce, and the Czech was forced to save three break points before converting on her third match point for the win.

Safarova will take on Caroline Wozniacki in the quarterfinals, who advanced after Garbiñe Muguruza retired with illness after the opening set. The pair have played seven times, with Wozniacki holding a 4-3 head-to-head lead.

“She’s playing great tennis again,” Safarova said of the Dane. “I think it’s a little bit similar game to Dominika — Caroline puts a lot of balls back. I have to be patient but play aggressive and again come up strong and try to go for it. I feel healthy now — thank God! (laughs) — and I’ll…keep trying to push my limits more and more.”

Source link

Ivanovic Into Oz Open Third Round

Ivanovic Into Oz Open Third Round

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

MELBOURNE, Australia – Former No.1 Ana Ivanovic had to deal with a half hour break when a spectator took a spill on Rod Laver Arena, but the Serb maintained her focus to close out Latvia’s Anastasija Sevastova, 6-3, 6-3.

Sevastova first made waves in 2011 when she reached the round of 16 at the Australian Open, but a brief retirement took her out of the game for nearly two years before she came back last January. Coming through three rounds of main draw qualifying, the 25-year-old played Ivanovic tough over two sets, but was ultimately undone by unforced errors – 27 to Ivanovic’s 17.

Ivanovic, by contrast, played a much cleaner match, breaking serve four times and winning 83% of her first serves.

“I enjoy playing here so much; this is one of my favorite courts in the world,” Ivanovic said during her on-court interview. “It’s always good to be back.”

The No.20 seed has looked solid through her first two matches, a major improvement over her last appearance in Melbourne, when a broken toe hampered her through an opening round loss.

“I tried to work on my fitness during the off-season; that needed improvements after last season. I hired a new fitness coach, so it’s been really great. We did a lot of prevention work for injuries, and fitness and on-court work.

“It’s a work in progress.”

Up next for Ivanovic is the winner of the second round match between No.15 seed Madison Keys and Yaroslava Shvedova, the latter of whom pushed her to three sets at last year’s French Open.

“Every match is tough and we’ve seen that throughout the week. Every opponent is tough and there have been a lot of tricky first round matches.

“But I’m really thrilled be to be through and you guys are amazing, so excited about your tennis, so keep it up!

Source link

Johanna Konta Ends 33-Year Drought

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Johanna Konta won an absolute nail-biter against Ekaterina Makarova to become the first British woman in 33 years to reach the quarterfinals of the Australian Open.

Source link

News | WTA Tennis English

News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

MIAMI, FL, USA – Nearly two decades after her first Indian Wells/Miami “Sunshine Double,” former World No.1 Martina Hingis is on the precipice of a third with new partner and fellow top doubles star, Chan Yung-Jan.

Hingis’ first double came with two different partners back in 1999, winning the BNP Paribas Open with Anna Kournikova and the Miami Open with Jana Novotna; the Swiss Miss followed that up at long last with Sania Mirza in 2015, kickstarting what became the most dominant partnership of the last decade, foreshadowing a 41-match winning streak and a run through three straight major titles at Wimbledon, the US Open, and Australian Open.

The idea to partner with Chan first came about Down Under, when Hingis was still playing with CoCo Vandeweghe and the Taiwanese No.1 was one half of a sister act with Chan Hao-Ching.

“It started at a practice in Melbourne, when we were sharing a court,” Chan, who also goes by Latisha, told WTA Insider after their straight-set win over Andreja Klepac and María José Martínez Sánchez. “I was hitting with Angel, my sister. Martina and I stayed on the same side of court and played some points together.

“At one point, she said that if Angel can’t play with me because of injuries or some other reason, to give her a call, and she’d be happy to play with me. I was so flattered! But I didn’t tell her that.”

The sisters split after defending their home title in Chinese Taipei, and she found herself back on the same side as Hingis by the start of the Middle East Swing.

“My sister and I didn’t do well at the Australian Open and we started to talk about splitting up, and I think it was great timing.

“We still practice together and watch her matches. It’s kind of like three against two because we have Angel behind us against the other teams.”

The pair stuck through tough losses at the Qatar Total Open and the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, the former for which Hingis takes full responsibility.

“When we started in Doha, I wasn’t quite up to it in the super tie-break, and wasn’t much of a help,” Hingis said. “Otherwise, I think we could have done better there. But Doha and Dubai helped us get a feel for each other and to trust each other, so we know what to do on the court.”

On an eight-match winning streak since winning in Indian Wells, it was clear the duo were already in sync.

“It’s not fair for her to say she wasn’t playing well at the beginning,” Chan immediately disagrees. “I had a similar partner like her, a net player. For me it was easier to adapt, but for her, I might be a little bit different than her previous partners, so she needed more time to understand and get a rhythm.”

“It was good to know that there was actually some consistency from somebody,” Hingis banters back. “I could trust with her, that she was going to put the ball in!”

Both agreed that the fortnight in the California desert was key for their confidence, winning the title without dropping a set against tough teams like Mirza and Barbora Strycova, and World No.1 Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Lucie Safarova.

“In Indian Wells, we got two weeks to practice and be together, having cheesecake and going shopping!” Hingis laughed. “That helped a lot with our communication, and that brought us closer together. That’s why we won and that’s why we’re in the semifinals here.”

Martina Hingis, Chan Yung-Jan

Standing between them and a second straight final is Mirza and Strycova in a rematch of last week’s quarterfinal.

“Playing them, it’s one of the best teams out there. We have to take it seriously, and I know they’ll probably want to get back at us from Indian Wells…” Hingis started.

“Everyone around here is going to give you a tough match, and they’re very strong,” Chan finished.

“We’ll just try to play our best tennis and we’ll see how it goes.”

All photos courtesy of Getty Images.

Source link