Stanford: V. Williams vs. Bellis
Venus Williams takes on Catherine Bellis in the quarterfinals of the Bank of the West Classic.
Venus Williams takes on Catherine Bellis in the quarterfinals of the Bank of the West Classic.
BASTAD, Sweden – Johanna Larsson moved one step closer to reclaiming her Ericsson Open title by knocking out No.4 seed Annika Beck in Friday’s quarterfinals.
Watch live action from Bastad, Stanford and Washington DC this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
Appearing at this stage for the fifth time in the past six years, Larsson looked surprisingly ill at ease early on, at one point even dropping her racquet mid-rally as she slipped 3-1 behind. However, urged on by a supportive crowd, she did not trail for long, a run of four straight games turning the set on its head.
While the Swede was unable to serve out the set at 5-4, she hit back immediately, guiding a forehand winner down the line to earn three more break points. Beck surrendered with a backhand into the net and when the same wing let her down a few minutes later the set was over.
As the disappointment lingered, Larsson sensed her moment establishing an early second set lead and wrapping up a 7-5, 6-1 victory after an hour and 20 minutes.
Larssons break ball to 4-1 in 2d was as important as it was spectacular. #ericssonopen @WTA pic.twitter.com/6nacZQsuvz
— Swedish Open Tennis (@swedish_open) July 22, 2016
“I played very well today, I’m happy with my performance – I thought I was really solid out there, I took advantage of the crowd and was just really happy to be out there,” Larsson said. “I think I’m on a good path – today was a good match – and if I can just keep going and keep solid, and if I can keep going and take my chances I’ll have a very good chance in the semifinals.”
There she will face Katerina Siniakova after she upset No.2 seed Sara Errani, 7-6(2), 6-3. On the other side of the draw, Laura Siegemund and Julia Goerges succeeded where their compatriot Beck failed by advancing to the semifinals.
In the schedule’s opening match, Siegemund defeated Lara Arruabarrena, 7-5, 6-3, before Goerges followed up with a 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 win over Karin Knapp.
Alison Riske takes on CoCo Vandeweghe in the quarterfinals of the Bank of the West Classic.
WASHINGTON, DC, USA – Yanina Wickmayer put friendship to one side on Friday afternoon to defeat No.4 seed Kristina Mladenovic and take her place in the semifinals of the Citi Open.
Watch live action from Washington DC, Bastad and Stanford this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
Breaks at the end of the second and third sets proved the difference in a tight affair as Wickmayer prevailed, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, to book a meeting with No.6 seed Yulia Putintseva for a place in the final.
Wickmayer and Mladenovic are close off the court, a relationship which complicated matters going into their quarterfinal meeting. “Yeah it’s difficult, I think we went for dinner five or six times in the past week, it’s tough playing her and being her opponent today,” Wickmayer said afterwards. “I had to work hard because she plays such good tennis.”
Early on it appeared like it would be the Frenchwoman bringing the bragging rights to their next dinner date. However, after dropping the first set, Wickmayer grabbed the initiative in the second, three forehand winners bringing her the decisive break in the eighth game.
The third was just as evenly contested. Wickmayer made her move early, only to surrender this advantage with a misjudged drop shot at 3-2. A game later, the Belgian was back in front, and this time there would be no second chances, confidently serving out for a place in just her second semifinal of the season.
Putintseva ensured she would be fresh for their last four showdown by comfortably seeing off the unseeded Risa Ozaki, 6-4, 6-2.
Also impressing was wildcard Jessica Pegula, who knocked out top seed and former US Open champion Samantha Stosur, 7-6(4), 6-3, to reach her maiden WTA semifinal. There she will face the winner of the evening session between another American, Lauren Davis, and Camila Giorgi.
An interview with Johanna Konta after her win in the quarterfinals of the Bank of the West Classic.
STANFORD, CA, USA – This week at the Bank of the West Classic proved one to remember for 17-year-old Catherine Bellis, who reached her first WTA quarterfinal, where she played former No.1 Venus Williams.
Bellis first turned heads at the 2014 US Open, when she became the youngest woman to win a match in Flushing since Anna Kournikova in 1996, upsetting then-reigning Australian Open finalist Dominika Cibulkova in the first round. The youngster went on to reach the third round of the Miami Open in 2015 – where she played Venus’ sister Serena for the first time – and with wins over No.6 seed Jelena Ostapenko and Sachia Vickery, kept dreams of a pro career alive in Stanford, even as she committed to play college tennis for that very university.
Here from Bellis as she spoke with reporters following her first round win over Ostapenko, how she doubted whether she’d even be able to take the court after a traumatic left eye contusion left her faced with “the scariest moment of her life,” and how her game has improved since bursting onto the scene nearly two years ago.
Subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn or on any podcast app of your choice to ensure you never miss an episode when they go live. Reviews are always helpful, so if you like what you’ve heard so far, leave us one. Get new episode alerts by following us on Twitter @WTA_Insider.
An interview with Dominika Cibulkova after her win in the quarterfinals of the Bank of the West Classic.
STANFORD, CA, USA – Former No.1 Venus Williams put on a vintage performance to dismiss 17-year-old wildcard Catherine Bellis, 6-4, 6-1, to reach the semifinals of the Bank of the West Classic.
Watch live action from Bastad, Stanford and Washington DC this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
Bellis was playing in her first-ever WTA quarterfinal, and her quest to become the sixth youngest woman to defeat the five-time Wimbledon winner (at 17 years, 105 days old) was boosted by an opening service break.
The top seed quickly took the break back, however, and remained in the driver’s seat throughout the 61 minute masterclass. Breaking serve once more with a thunderous backhand winner down the line, Williams clinched the opening set and lost just one more game to guarantee the Top 3 seeds advanced into the semifinals.
Into her eighth career Stanford semi, Venus next faces fellow American Alison Riske, who was up a set on No.4 seed CoCo Vandeweghe when her higher ranked opponent turned her ankle and was forced to retire one game into the second.
More to come…
Dominika Cibulkova takes on Misaki Doi in the quarterfinals of the Bank of the West Classic.
MONTREAL, Canada – 2015 Rogers Cup runner-up Simona Halep arrived in Montreal, the site of compatriot Nadia Comaneci’s Olympic triumph, in time to ring in the 40th anniversary of her Perfect 10s at 1976 Summer Games.
A dynamic gymnast, Comaneci won three gold medals, registering six perfect scores – including the first ever recorded – along the way.
“When I was 14, I didn’t understand what was happening because I was too young,” she said, reflecting on the other-worldly achievement. “As time goes by, I treasure more and more what happened and I realize it was a big deal.”
Check out tweets from Comaneci and Halep, who have become friends as the young Romanian has risen up the ranks. After winning her second Premier Mandatory title at the Mutua Madrid Open, Halep was presented the trophy by Comanci during the winner’s ceremony.
Thank you @Simona_Halep and @darren_cahill for being with us in Montreal for the 40 th anniversary of the perfect10 pic.twitter.com/Uj7o4IYthD
— Nadia Comaneci (@nadiacomaneci10) July 22, 2016
Congratulations, @nadiacomaneci10 – 1976-2016! #nowords #respect #theperfect10 #montreal1976 #olympics pic.twitter.com/P6KuThG5Bk
— Simona Halep (@Simona_Halep) July 22, 2016