"I Want To Keep Going": CoCo Vandweghe On Her Quarterfinal Win
CoCo Vandeweghe discusses her quarterfinal win over Garbine Muguruza in a press conference at the Australian Open.
CoCo Vandeweghe discusses her quarterfinal win over Garbine Muguruza in a press conference at the Australian Open.
Venus Williams discusses her performance in her quarterfinal win against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in a press conference at the Australian Open.
MELBOURNE, Australia – Unseeded American CoCo Vandeweghe looks to back up her win over the WTA World No.1 Angelique Kerber with another big upset, this time against No.7 seed Garbiñe Muguruza. Venus Williams hopes to stay on course to another all-Williams final, but a tricky opponent stands in her way. Who will grab the first two spots into the semifinals?
We preview all the Day 9 matchups right here on wtatennis.com.
Tuesday, Quarterfinals
CoCo Vandeweghe (USA #35) vs [7] Garbiñe Muguruza (ESP #7)
Head-to-head: Vandeweghe leads 2-1
Key Stat: Vandeweghe is the first American (other than Serena Williams and Venus Williams) to defeat a WTA World No.1 since Jennifer Capriati defeated Martina Hingis at 2001 French Open
Unseeded American CoCo Vandeweghe is making her Australian Open quarterfinal debut in style, upsetting World No.1 Angelique Kerber in a commanding straight-sets performance.
The battle-tested Vandeweghe also comes into her quarterfinal matchup with an extra bit of confidence, having already defeated her next opponent Garbiñe Muguruza two times previously.
But both of those wins came on grass – Vandeweghe’s favored surface – and both came back in 2014, before the Spaniard rocketed up the rankings and claimed her maiden Grand Slam title.
“It’s an interesting matchup because [Muguruza] holds a different aspect to a playing style of she’s an aggressor, as well.She is going to play that way, and no other way,” Vandeweghe assessed after her win over Kerber.
“For me it depends on if I can match it, as well as if I can beat her to that punch of getting first strike, first play.”
Muguruza struggled with form earlier in the season, but in Melbourne she looks locked in. After overcoming her usual slow starts, Muguruza has rediscovered her lethal aggression, winning matches more decisively and as a result, hasn’t dropped a set all tournament long.
[13] Venus Williams (USA #17) vs [24] Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS #27)
Head-to-head: Venus leads 3-2
Key Stat: 2017 Australian Open marks Venus’ 73rd Grand Slam main draw appearance – the Open Era record
The oldest woman in the draw is turning back the years as Venus Williams is back into the Australian Open quarterfinals for the ninth time. And on the other side of the draw sits Serena Williams, with the sisters looking on course for yet another all-Williams final.
But let’s not get too ahead of ourselves, because standing between Venus and a semifinal berth is No.24 seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. Venus leads the pair’s head-to-head 3-2, with Pavlyuchenkova’s last victory coming in 2009.
But the veteran former No.1 understands that, at this stage of the tournament, everyone is a threat – especially the younger players.
“Today I played a qualifier, and she hardly ever missed. So it doesn’t matter who you come up against, they are coming and they want to win, too,” Venus told press after her win against Mona Barthel.
“They have nothing to lose. I’m going to be focused on winning one round at a time and focus on doing what it takes to be there.”
Around the Grounds…
The doubles tournament is heating up as the top seeded Frenchwomen Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic are back in action in the quarterfinals, eying their first Australian Open title – and the doubles No.1 ranking. But they’re up against their biggest test of the tournament as they take to Rod Laver Area against the all-Aussie duo of Ashleigh Barty and Casey Dellacqua. The Australians harnessed all the home support in their second-round upset of No.5 seeds Martina Hingis and CoCo Vandeweghe, and will look to strike again on the tournament’s biggest stage.
Also in action, No.2 seeds Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Lucie Safarova take on No.11 seeds Raquel Atawo and Xu Yifan, and No.3 seeded Russians Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina square up against No.12 seeds Andrea Hlavackova and Peng Shuai.
Venus Williams discusses her longevity and impact on tennis in a press conference in the Australian Open.
34-year-old Mirjana Lucic-Baroni blasted past qualifier Jennifer Brady to reach her first Grand Slam quarterfinal in 18 years at the Australian Open.
Venus Williams discusses her upcoming match against CoCo Vandeweghe in a press conference at the Australian Open.
No.5 seed Karolina Pliskova ended home hopes at this year’s Australian Open with a comfortable win over Daria Gavrilova.
Serena Williams discusses Venus Williams’ success and their longevity in tennis in a press conference at the Australian Open.
MELBOURNE, Australia – Johanna Konta will play the biggest match of her career on Wednesday when she faces six-time champion Serena Williams in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open. By all accounts, the 25-year-old doesn’t even see it that way.
Konta, who is riding an eight-match winning streak after taking the Apia International Sydney title, has won her last 18 sets of tennis. Her serve, a weapon that has emerged as the cornerstone of her game, has been broken just twice in Melbourne. There’s no reason for Konta to be short of confidence going into her first career meeting against Serena, but the humble Brit’s approach to her tennis these days is what sets her apart from the pack.
Look no further than the final game she played to beat Ekaterina Makarova, 6-1, 6-4 in the Round of 16 on Monday. Serving to close out the match, Konta found herself down 0-40, a point away from finding herself back on serve against the talented Russian. She saved the first break point with an unreturnable first serve, the second with a forehand winner, and the third with an ace, cool as you like. Four points later, the match was over.
Closing out matches, handling one’s nerves with so much on the line, these are the marks of a resilient competitor. Just 48 hours earlier, 19-year-old Jelena Ostapenko had No.5 seed Karolina Pliskova on the ropes and twice failed to serve out the match, blowing a 5-2 lead and losing. The young Latvian immediately copped to her nerves, saying she was impossibly tight as she stared down the biggest win of her career. Konta, serving for a spot in her second career quarterfinal, didn’t even flinch.
So how did Konta do it? Here’s her eloquent response from the interview room after the match:
Q. You said the other day that you were surprised how you close out sets and matches as if it was any routine service game. Where do you draw that confidence in those big moments?
JOHANNA KONTA: I think more than anything it’s more trying to disassociate myself from the importance of the moment. I think it’s more keeping things in perspective and not panicking if I were to lose that service game or that point.
I think just keeping things in good perspective and just having trust in myself that however the match will swing, I will always be there to give my best and to always try to leave it all out on court and fight till the very end.
So nice to finally meet @JoKonta91 fun chat & Jo has great vision & a positive attitude to the future of her tennis. Exciting times pic.twitter.com/06HjbPn2gG
— Jo Durie (@Jodurie) January 23, 2017
Q. When you talk about disassociating yourself from the big moments, obviously a lot of players struggle to do it, and I’m sure you struggled to do it five years ago. Why is that so difficult for most players? Why was it difficult early on to kind of be able to not be overwhelmed by the importance of moments in a match?
JOHANNA KONTA: I think it’s difficult, because you have also got to put things in perspective. Everyone you see playing has been playing since they were a little girl. And it’s no secret that to get to whatever sport or even whatever area of life, if you want to be part of the elite and if you want to get to the top of your field, there will be numerous sacrifices you’ll need to make.
And I think when you get to a position where you might see a glimmer of what you have dreamed of as a little girl or what you hoped for, what you’ve worked so hard for, it can feel kind of an all-or-nothing moment or what if I never get this chance again?
I think it’s more a bit of possibly fear of being able to replicate the position you’re in more than anything, but then I think that’s where you have also got to have a good perspective on things, and you’ve got to keep, I guess, the simple things in mind of what’s important to you.
Are you healthy? Is your family healthy? Do you have people around you that you love? Do you have people around you that love you?
I know it might sound really mundane and simple, but I guess you’ve got to go back to things that have got substance, and then in the end just trust in the work that you do, if it’s in the cards for you that you will get another opportunity or you won’t. I think [you have to] really love the sport for what it is and be grateful for the opportunities that it brings you, not necessarily what you wish it would.
Q. Going back to the separating yourself from the importance of the moment, in that nanosecond where the little voice in your ear goes, Psst, it’s match point, what is the trigger that you can shut that voice out, and how long does that take for it to become automatic?
JOHANNA KONTA: I don’t think it’s about necessarily, for me personally, anyway, about shutting it out. It’s more accepting that, Oh, I have got a little bit of tension. Or accepting that my mind might be yapping away, not necessarily fighting against it, but relaxing into it and saying, It’s absolutely normal to think like this.
I think it’s then easier for your motions to take over more than anything because you’ve got to trust the tennis in you, the motions in you, years and years of playing that I’m all of a sudden not going to forget how to serve. I have been doing it, I don’t even know how long, so I think it’s more just having that trust in the repetitions that you’ve had over the years.
Konta’s transformation over the last 18 months has been one of the most confounding stories in the women’s game. How does a player, one who was once a terrible closer who would let her emotions impede her game, suddenly learn to set it all aside and trust the tennis within her? Experience and maturity certainly play a role, as does Konta’s work with a sports psychologist.
But the rapidity of the change and her unwavering commitment and belief in herself is remarkable and a fantastic example to players up and down the rankings. Asked whether she believed she could beat Serena, Konta dismissed the premise of the question.
“I believe in my own ability,” she said. “I believe in the good things that I bring to the court, and I believe in my ability to fight till the very end.
“Now, there’s that and then there’s also an opponent out there, and this one’s going to be Serena Williams. I think it’s about playing, me going out there and doing what I want to do against her, and it will be about just staying focused on that. And if that brings me good things on that day, and if that puts me in a position to come through, then that’s great.
“But I’ve got to focus on the work and not think of whether I can or cannot beat her. I just need to stay on the work.”
All photos courtesy of Getty Images.
Serena Williams discusses Venus Williams’ success and their longevity in tennis in a press conference at the Australian Open.