Fed Cup Kicks Off: Meet World Group I & II
After a rollercoaster first month of WTA play Down Under, players have scattered across the globe to compete for their countries in Fed Cup. Meet the teams in action right here!
After a rollercoaster first month of WTA play Down Under, players have scattered across the globe to compete for their countries in Fed Cup. Meet the teams in action right here!
Victoria Azarenka teased a new addition to her coaching team as the former World No.1 remains optimistic of a comeback after giving birth to her first child.
Elena Vesnina makes her attempt at the WTA Net Dash. Check out her personal best right here.
Carla Suárez Navarro, the 2016 champion, has withdrawn from next week’s Qatar Total Open in Doha. World No.8 Svetlana Kuznetsova has also pulled out with a minor abdominal injury.
Suárez Navarro has suffered an injury to her right shoulder and this is the third time it has forced her out of a tournament this year. She also said in January that it had disrupted her preparations for the Australian Open, where she fell in the second round.
Kuznetsova, the two-times runner-up, misses out with what has been described as a minor abdominal strain. The World No.8 said in a statement: “I am sad to announce that I am not able to participate in the Qatar Total Open this year. I recently sustained a minor abdominal injury.
“My doctors have advised me to rest so I can be prepared to get back on the court as soon as possible. Doha puts on an amazing event and I apologize to all the fans that I won’t be joining this year, but I look forward to coming back next year. I extend my best wishes to the organziers.”
Dominika Cibulkova, the reigning WTA Tour Finals champion, is gearing up for Doha and Dubai as she looks for her first tournament win of 2017.
The Slovak’s unprecedented success last year, in which she won tournaments in Katowice, Eastbourne and Linz before taking the title at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global, saw her rise to No.5 in the World Rankings. Now, she goes to the Qatar Total Open as the third seed in a star-studded field.
“This is my highest ranking,” the 27-year-old told Gulf Today. “You can feel the expectation and the pressure. This is something I’m trying to deal with.”
Cibulkova is among the favourites to win in Doha and is confident she knows how to handle the heat. “I have my rituals,” she said. “What I do during the match, I just want to focus on tennis, on the tactics. You put away the wrong thoughts you have on the court, like, I should win, or, I don’t want to lose.”
Doha has not traditionally been a happy hunting ground for the 2014 Australian Open finalist. Her best result came in her first visit in 2008, when she reached the quarterfinals before being beaten in three sets by Agnieszka Radwanska.
However the first Slovak to reach a Grand Slam final has broken into the top 10 of the WTA Rankings for the first time and is confident the weight of expectation for her to improve her record will not prove a burden. “You just put it away,” she said, “and you focus on the right things.”
TALLINN, Estonoia – A straightforward 6-2 6-3 win for the British No.1, Johanna Konta, over Jelena Ostapenko gave Great Britain an unassailable 2-0 lead over Latvia in the 2017 Fed Cup.
It was comfortable for the 25-year-old, with just one minor setback when Ostapenko, 19, broke back after Konta had taken two games against serve in the second set. But the Brit, who won a remarkable 100 per cent of points from her second serve in the match, recovered to close out.
Earlier, Heather Watson comfortably beat Diana Marcinkevica, 6-3 6-0, to put Great Britain 1-0 up.
“We knew coming in today that Latvia was going to be a strong team,” said Konta. “It’s never easy, whichever match you’re playing in. I’ve always said that in the Fed Cup players raise their level and play without inhibition so it can be tricky out there. I know the scoreline doesn’t suggest it was as difficult as I felt, for sure. Because it was hard.
“She is one of the young ones on the tour but she has a big game. She can go through phases in matches where you really don’t have much of a say. I knew going into it that I needed to stay patient and stay as solid as I possibly could, and also when the opportunities presented themselves to really go for them.”
The world No.10 also spoke about the enjoyment she derives from playing for her country. “Last year, the Olympics was one of the best experiences of my life. So whenever I get an opportunity to represent Great Britain in a team environment I look to take it.”
“I'm really enjoying it” @JoKonta91 chats after another strong performance in the @FedCup! #BackTheBrits ?? #GoJoKo pic.twitter.com/FgCOSIBrTV
— British Tennis (@BritishTennis) February 9, 2017
Watson, ranked 72nd in the world, took just 61 minutes to see off the world No.307, Marcinkevica, continuing the fine form that has seen her lose just five games across her two Fed Cup 2017 matches. Yesterday, she cruised to a 6-1 6-1 win over Ines Murta as Anne Keothavong’s team beat Portugal 3-0.
“I’m happy with the win today,” said the British No.2. “I thought I played better than yesterday; I think I had a tougher opponent today as well. I moved better, I struck the ball cleaner. All round I thought I played well, I played positive and aggressive.”
Watson is enjoying the Fed Cup experience, adding: “Last night, we played ‘Heads up’, which is one of my favorite games. It’s a lot of fun, we’re playing a lot of games. There’s a lot of banter flying about, so I’m enjoying it.”
Great Britain will face Turkey on Friday as they bid to top their group and qualify for Saturday’s promotion play-offs.
Former World No.1 Maria Sharapova has picked up one of the wildcards for May’s Mutua Madrid Open as she plans her WTA comeback.
“Sharapova requested an invitation to play in the tournament and after considering it, we decided to give her a wildcard,” said Manolo Santana, the tournament director, in a statement.
“Maria is one of the best players of the last 15 years and also a past winner of our tournament. In Madrid she always plays well and I’m sure she will come back to the courts highly motivated and hoping to do well in her first tournaments.”
Sharapova, 29, last won the event in 2014, beating Simona Halep, 1-6 6-2 6-3, in the final.
“Sharapova is one of those players that all tennis fans want to see,” added Mutua Madrid Open CEO and President Gerard Tsobanian. “Her presence in the Caja Mágica is great news for the tournament, for the fans and also for the city of Madrid.”
The Russian makes her return to the tour in Stuttgart in April following her positive test for a banned substance in 2016.
Tickets and season tickets for the Mutua Madrid Open can be purchased at www.madrid-open.com and entradas.com.
TALLINN, Estonia: Heather Watson soared to a straight-sets win to give Great Britain the best possible start in the Fed Cup opener against Portugal.
Under the watchful eye of new captain Anne Keothavong, Watson made an impressive start to her country’s campaign, beating Ines Murta 6-1, 6-1.
? Boom! @HeatherWatson92 gives Aegon GB @FedCup Team a 1-0 lead after beating Murta 6-1, 6-1 #BackTheBrits ??? pic.twitter.com/L3nkghe6QZ
— British Tennis (@BritishTennis) February 8, 2017
The 2016 Wimbledon mixed doubles champion then assumed her role as “chief supporter”, ready to cheer on her teammates – first Johanna Konta in the singles, then Jocelyn Rae and Laura Robson in the doubles. “I’ll get the pom-poms, and the tambourines!” she joked.
A smiling @HeatherWatson92 ready to cheer on @JossRae91 & @laurarobson5 in the doubles! #BackTheBrits ?????? pic.twitter.com/zl53deFe9G
— British Tennis (@BritishTennis) February 8, 2017
Her cheerleading obviously worked – Konta cruised through her singles rubber 6-2, 6-4 against Michelle Larcher de Brito, giving Great Britain an unassailable 2-0 lead in the tie. It was good preparation for the British No.1, who will be seen in WTA Tour action next in Dubai from February 19.
MOSCOW, Russia – Ekaterina Makarova is looking forward to Russia’s Fed Cup tie against Chinese Taipei this weekend for a very special reason.
It’s hosted at the Druzhba Sport Complex, in Moscow – the venue in her hometown where she first began playing tennis herself.
“It’s in the stadium where I grew up,” she told the official Fed Cup site. “I was practicing for 12 years there – I took my first steps in tennis in that stadium so it’s a special place.”
Makarova, 28, is the senior player in a young Russia squad; this will be her eighth appearance in the competition. It is an experience she enjoys.
“I love to play for a team, for Russia,” she added.
The World No.39 comes into the tie after losing to good friend and doubles partner Elena Vesnina 6-3 6-1 in the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy round of 32. The pair were the 2016 doubles champions at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.
They were seeded third in this year’s Australian Open doubles competition, but were knocked out in the quarterfinals by Andrea Hlavackova and Peng Shuai, 7-5 7-6.
In the singles competition, Makarova boasted a stunning win against Dominika Cibulkova in the third round, coming through 6-2 6-7 6-3, before falling at the hands of Johanna Konta, 6-1 6-4.
Great Britain open their Fed Cup campaign this week in Estonia – and Johanna Konta says they won’t be underestimating anyone as they look to progress from the Europe/Africa zone.