Tennis News

CHARLESTON, SC, USA – Mirjana Lucic-Baroni took down the hometown favorite Shelby Rogers in three sets to reach the semifinals at the Volvo Car Open.

35-year-old Lucic-Baroni – the oldest player left in the draw – first played in Charleston in 2001, the same year her opponent Rogers was a ball girl at this very tournament. The Croat had never been past the round of 16 on the green clay, but on Friday night she mounted a spirited comeback to oust Rogers from her home tournament, 6-7(7), 6-1, 6-1.

“It was beautiful in a way,” Lucic-Baroni said in her post-match press conference. “It was difficult playing against the crowd, because Shelby is from here. It’s normal. It’s always tough, but I felt they were very respectful. They were cheering for their home girl, and it’s totally normal.

“The wind was what was really difficult today. It was incredibly hard, and the fact that I came out yesterday and today playing some great tennis and winning in these conditions, it’s incredible, really, really good effort.

.@Shelby_Rogers_ saves set point and claims the first set 7-6(7)! #VolvoCarOpen pic.twitter.com/MNRXGG6ySb

— WTA (@WTA) 7 de abril de 2017

Just one point made the difference for Rogers as she took the rollercoaster opening set under blustery conditions – which Lucic-Baroni described as, “I would rather play with a live lion running around in normal conditions than play in today’s weather.”

The Charleston-native leveraged the vocal home support to inspire an early comeback as she found herself down a break with Lucic-Baroni serving for the set at 5-4. She dodged a Lucic-Baroni set point to take it to a tiebreaker, then denied the Croat another one as she edged through to take the opening set.

But the big-hitting Lucic-Baroni refused to fold, and reeled in the errors from her all-or-nothing game to shut out Rogers from the next two sets. She didn’t allow Rogers a single break opportunity as she broke the American five times in a row to snatch a dizzying ten games in a row before claiming the match – and her spot in the semifinals – in two hours and thirteen minutes.

Third Semifinal of 2017!

Lucic-Baroni downs Rogers 6-7(7), 6-1, 6-1 at @VolvoCarOpen! pic.twitter.com/Ir5ELxURsr

— WTA (@WTA) 7 de abril de 2017

“I was just trying to fight for every point,” Rogers reflected in her post-match press conference. “Like it was definitely back and forth. I thought we had a very good level. It was super entertaining; and bad luck, I wish I could have kept it up.

“But a lot of positives to take from that, and you know, moving forward into the clay season, this week’s been great for me, and so many good things to move forward and build on.”

Meanwhile, Lucic-Baroni had nothing but praise for her opponent, lauding her to the adoring Charleston crowd.

“You guys should be so proud of Shelby,” she said. “She’s such a wonderful girl, amazing tennis player with a super bright future and present as well. You should really be proud, she represents [Charleston] beautifully.”

CHARLESTON, SC, USA – The unseeded Jelena Ostapenko put together a dominating performance to oust 2011 champion Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets and move into the Volvo Car Open semifinals.

At 19 years old and ranked No.66, Charleston-debutante Ostapenko was the youngest and lowest-ranked player left in the draw. But she backed up her results to reach the second Premier-level semifinal of her career with the 6-2, 6-4 victory.

“It feels amazing to be in the semis here,” Ostapenko told press after the match. “First time I’m in Charleston, and today was a tough match because Caroline is such a great player.

“I just tried, and I think it was not bad.”

Ostapenko closes out the first set 6-2! #VolvoCarOpen pic.twitter.com/yi3oTfBt3f

— WTA (@WTA) 7 de abril de 2017

Ostapenko was dictating from the start against the former World No.1, fearlessly changing the direction of the ball and firing off winners from every angle. After an edgy few opening games as both players acclimated to the tricky, windy conditions, it was the Latvian who kicked into gear, breaking three times to reel off six games in a row and snatch up the opening set and start the second with a break to the good.

Wozniacki earned the break straight back with some rock-solid returning, but found herself down again a couple of games later as Ostapenko outpaced her to bring up a 3-2 lead. Wozniacki saved three match points as the teenager served for the match – she was even a point away from making it 5-5 – but Ostapenko wouldn’t be denied. She kept up the pressure and broke through Wozniacki’s defense, booking her spot into the Charleston semifinals after an hour and twenty-six minutes.

“I just knew before the match that I have to stay aggressive all the time and still be consistent,” Ostapenko explained. “And I tried not to step back, just to be like play in the court all the shots.And I think that’s helped me today.”

What an upset!

Ostapenko races past Wozniacki 6-2, 6-4 to book the last @VolvoCarOpen Semifinal spot! pic.twitter.com/Q4aOgbbi3w

— WTA (@WTA) 8 de abril de 2017

Despite winning just 51% of her first serve points, the Latvian backed it up by firing 40 winners against Wozniacki’s 14, outweighing her 26 unforced errors to Wozniacki’s six. And the Dane will surely rue her missed opportunities – she only converted one of the five break chances she created, while Ostapenko converted four of eight.

“I really tried my best out there,” Wozniacki reflected in post-match press. “I was trying to grind everything down. I tried to change the pace when I had the opportunity, but I mean if she played like this every day, then she would be No.1 in the world.

“She really played well. She went for her shots. Everything was going in. She was hitting the lines. Everything that could go her way today was going her way.

“All I could do today was try my best, try my hardest to fight and try and get somewhat of a grip on it, but you know, it is what it is sometimes.”

The loss also denies Wozniacki a return to the upper echelon of the WTA rankings – she needed to reach at least the Charleston semifinals to guarantee herself a spot inside the Top 10.

CHARLESTON, SC, USA – If Caroline Wozniacki scores just one more victory at the Volvo Car Open and defeats World No.66 Jelena Ostapenko, she’ll be rewarded with more than just a spot in the Charleston semifinals: she’ll be projected to break back into the Top 10 when the new WTA rankings come out, a happy ending to what has been an absolute rollercoaster last few years.

Wozniacki got her first taste of the Top 10 back in 2009, and has been a mainstay at the top of the rankings for the majority of her career – including a stint at World No.1, a ranking she held for 67 weeks.

In fact, from 2009 to 2014 she finished each year inside the Top 10, and her six year run had been the WTA’s longest active streak.  

But a struggle with injuries and recovery derailed the Dane’s progress, causing her ranking to plummet to as low as No.74 during the 2016 US Open.

It was during that US Open fortnight that Wozniacki’s comeback came together; she entered the tournament unseeded and went on to reach the semifinals, knocking out the likes of Svetlana Kuznetsova and Madison Keys along the way.

Once she got going, Wozniacki never looked back, and in the 14 events since her ranking dipped to No.74, she’s put together a stunning run which includes titles at the 2016 Toray Pan Pacific Open and the Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open, runner-up finishes at the 2017 Qatar Total Open, Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships and Miami Open, and a semifinal finish at the US Open.

She’s reached the quarterfinals or better at 11 of her last 14 events and now, by virtue of her incredible consistency, Wozniacki sits one win away from a return to her beloved Top 10 – the first time she’ll be there since September 21, 2015.

It won’t be easy with Latvian teenager Ostapenko standing in her way; Wozniacki lost in straight sets the only previous match they’ve played at last year’s Connecticut Open. And due to extreme weather conditions in Charleston, Wozniacki found herself having to double up and play two matches on the same day to reach the quarterfinals.

“I think I’m well-prepared for tomorrow,” Wozniacki said after her win against Anastasia Rodionova. “I got some clay tennis in today and feel like I’m just going to go out there and have fun and do my best and see how it goes.

“I’m just playing right now. I had one practice session before the tournament started for me, and that was it. I just kind of run on experience and try and figure it out.”

CHARLESTON, SC, USA — Caroline Wozniacki won all four sets she played as day turned to night on Thursday in Charleston, as the 2011 champion ousted Anastasia Rodionova, 6-3, 6-3 to reach the quarterfinals for the fifth time at the Volvo Car Open.

“It was tough conditions to play in this wind, a little chilly tonight as well and then playing someone who doesn’t give you any rhythm,” Wozniacki assessed at the close of her second match of the day. “Obviously she plays a lot of doubles, so she was coming in, doing drop shots and hitting the ball hard and then slow. She was definitely trying to break my rhythm up, and it was difficult. But I managed to pull through.”

The No.5 seed defeated Annika Beck in straight sets earlier on Thursday, and showed no ill effects of having to play two matches in the span of a few hours. The Dane has never lost before the quarterfinals in five career appearances in Charleston, and advances to face Jelena Ostapenko in Friday’s quarterfinals.

The former World No.1 won 15 straight points over the first four games of the match to take command before the qualifier got on the board and a foothold in the match. The Australian broke and held serve in a lengthy game, saving five break points in total, to close the deficit to 4-2, but Wozniacki held on from there to take four of the next five games to lead by a set and a break.

.@CaroWozniacki wraps up the first set 6-3! #VolvoCarOpen pic.twitter.com/Kfr7lvkXQK

— WTA (@WTA) April 6, 2017

Rodionova saved a trio of break points in the fifth game of the second set, and broke the Wozniacki delivery at love to level the match. Nonetheless, the qualifier who scored upsets against Duan Ying-Ying and Sara Errani to reach the third round was unable to conjure another stunner as the Dane secured the final three games to move safely through to the last eight.

Second Round ✅
Round of 16 ✅
Advances to @VolvoCarOpen Quarterfinals ✅

All in a days work for @CaroWozniacki! ? pic.twitter.com/NZbsHpckpX

— WTA (@WTA) April 7, 2017

Looking ahead to Friday night, Wozniacki lost the only match she’s played against the Latvian teenager at the Connecticut Open last year, as she attempts to reach the semifinals in Charleston for the first time since raising the trophy in 2011.

“I think I’m well-prepared for tomorrow. I got some clay tennis in today and feel like I’m just going to go out there and have fun and do my best and see how it goes,” Wozniacki said. “I’m just playing right now. I had one practice session before the tournament started for me, and that was it. I just kind of run on experience and try and figure it out.”