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Bellis Moving On Up

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

NEW YORK, NY, USA – Two summers ago a 15-year-old CiCi Bellis captured the imagination of the New York public by becoming the youngest player in nearly two decades to win a match at the US Open.

Back at Flushing Meadows, she is once again the talk of the town, producing some fearless tennis to make her way through to the third round. The prize money for reaching this juncture – where she will face No.2 seed Angelique Kerber on Friday evening – is $140,000. However, the American, who has verbally agreed to accept a tennis scholarship to Stanford University, must forfeit these winnings if she is to maintain her college eligibility.

NCAA rules do permit money for travel expenses, providing the Californian with some welcome perks: “I just moved up to a regular suite,” she said after her second-round win over Shelby Rogers. “Maybe the presidential suite this time.”

Bellis is sure to receive overwhelming crowd support when she steps on Arthur Ashe to face Kerber. Among their number will be one particularly vocal contingent, who have followed the 17-year-old every step of the way since her run began in last week’s qualifying competition.

“They came out to first-round qualifying and have been to every single one of my matches since,” Bellis added. “One of them messaged me on Instagram and asked for tickets, and so I got them into my box today. Oh, my God, they call themselves Team CiCi, so it was fun.

“I think [the support] puts me in a different world. I feel like I’m not even here when I hear people like that group we are talking about. It’s surreal to me.”

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Insider Podcast: Serena Under The Roof

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

NEW YORK, NY, USA – Serena Williams, cheered on by her A-list fan club, eased through her first outing under Arthur Ashe’s new roof on Thursday evening. Also advancing was one of 2016’s feel-good stories, Zhang Shuai, who toppled former champion and doubles partner Sam Stosur in straight sets.

In the latest Daily Dispatch from Flushing, hear from Serena, Zhang and the WTA Insider team as they analyze the Day 4 action, and look ahead to the start of the third round:

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. You can also get new episode alerts by following us on Twitter @WTA_Insider.

Follow @WTA_Insider

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Makarova & Vesnina Advance In Thriller

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

NEW YORK, NY, USA – No.5 seeds Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina faced down the barrel of five match points – three in a row during the second set tie-break – to turn the tables on Sam Stosur and Zhang Shuai to reach the third round in women’s doubles, 3-6, 7-6(6), 6-4.

Winners in their last two events at the Rogers Cup and Olympic tennis event, Makarova and Vesnina were pushed to the limit by Stosur and Zhang, leading by a set and a break as Stosur held two match points.

“We hadn’t been able to break her the whole match, and then I remember it was 5-4, 40-15 on her serve,” Vesnina said. “It was a crazy match, and they really played well. We played against them at the French Open, and they really played much better here than there.

“Today was a great atmosphere on the court. It was a full stadium on Court 5; so many people came to watch doubles, which was really nice. We just really had fun today on the court as well; the atmosphere was amazing.”

Makarova and Vesnina raised their level to force a tie-break, but the unseeded duo again took an early lead, and the 2011 US Open champion had the chance to serve out the upset twice more before the Russians rebounded.

“They played really good volleys today, reacting so well,” Makarova added. “I can’t say we were missing a lot but the game was really good and they were really good today.”

Playing their first full match since winning the Gold medal, the pair hopes their career-defining achievement will help them hit even bigger results.

“We’re really happy to be playing here at the US Open,” Vesnina said. We have great memories from winning the title here in 2014. Of course, after Rio, we’re just really happy and motivated even more to do well here at a Grand Slam.”

The 2014 champion in women’s doubles two years ago alongside Vesnina, Makarova was more than happy to still be in the tournament after bowing out in the first round of singles to World No.1 Serena Williams. Vesnina has posited that sticking around for doubles is especially helpful if a player’s singles event ends earlier than she’d like, and it was a sentiment with with her partner was in complete agreement.

“I don’t even remember that I lost so early.It was upsetting for me, but doubles helps me still be at the tournament, fighting for the title, practice some other things. Doubles really helps me for singles for sure.”

Around the grounds, top seeds Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic reached the second round with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Japanese alternates Kurumi Nara and Naomi Osaka, while No.12 seeds Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Lucie Safarova were equally efficient, defeating Lara Arruabarrena and Olga Savchuk, 6-4, 6-1.

No.2 seed Chan Yung-Jan and Chan Hao-Ching ended up on the losing end of a topsy-turvy second round against Alla Kudryavtseva and Sabine Lisicki. Playing just their second match as a pair, Kudryavtseva and Lisicki recovered from a second set bagel to knock out the 2015 quarterfinalists, 6-2, 0-6, 6-3.

“It’s difficult to adjust from more of a doubles player to more of a singles player,” Kudryavtseva told WTA Insider after their first round win. “But Sabine has great volleys; she’s not a typical singles player where she doesn’t know what to do at the net. She knows where she is, where to stand. She’s looking to cross. I’m happy with my choice.”

The Russian doubles star later paired with Scott Lipsky to win another match in mixed doubles, upsetting No.8 seeds Lucie Hradecka and Marcin Matkowski, 7-5, 6-7(3), 11-9.

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Race For No.1 Down To Three.

Race For No.1 Down To Three.

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

NEW YORK, NY, USA – Garbiñe Muguruza’s shock exit to Anastasija Sevastova whittled down the number of contestants in the US Open’s No.1 ranking sideshow to three: Serena Williams, Angelique Kerber and Agnieszka Radwanska.

As the tournament enters its opening weekend wtatennis.com updates the state of play in the race for top spot…

Serena Stays On Course: Williams entered the US Open as the World No.1, a distinction she has held since February 18, 2013. Through the two weeks of the US Open, Williams will extend her streak to 186 consecutive weeks, tying the WTA record for most consecutive weeks at No.1 held by Steffi Graf (August 17, 1987-March 10, 1991).

Williams’ reign is all the more remarkable considering the 186 weeks preceding her ascension saw the No.1 ranking change hands nine times, with Dinara Safina, Serena, Caroline Wozniacki, Kim Clijsters, Victoria Azarenka and Maria Sharapova all spending time at the summit.

In the opening two rounds, Williams has answered the questions regarding the health of her troublesome shoulder with business-like wins over Ekaterina Makarova and Vania King. To extend her current stint as No.1, Williams, who is defending 780 points, will need to at least reach the semifinals.

The longer Kerber stays in the tournament, though, the further Williams will need to advance:

– If Kerber reaches the quarterfinals, then Williams must reach the final.
– If Kerber falls in the semifinals, Williams would remain at No.1 by reaching the final.
– A championship match showdown between Williams and Kerber would see the winner walk away not only with the trophy, but the No.1 ranking.

Williams’ ranking points have come from seven tournaments in the last 52 weeks – 2015 US Open (780), Australian Open (1300), Indian Wells (650), Miami (120), Rome (900), Roland Garros (1300) and Wimbledon (2000).

Angelique Kerber

What Will It Take For Kerber To Become World No.1?: Kerber is bidding to become the 22nd player to reach No.1 since the computer rankings were introduced in November 1975. In her previous tournament, the German came within one win of unseating Williams at No.1 in Cincinnati, only to fall short in the final against an on-song Karolina Pliskova.

The disappointment does not appear to have lingered, making short work of her opening two opponents, Polona Hercog and Mirjana Lucic-Baroni.  Last year, Kerber lost to Victoria Azarenka in the third round at the US Open and as a result is only defending 130 points in Flushing Meadows. Kerber will have a 460-point advantage from the start of the tournament, therefore even a surprise third-round loss to crowd favorite CiCi Bellis does not rule her out of contention.

Kerber consistently has reached the business end of the WTA’s biggest events with six finals appearances this year, winning the titles at the Australian Open and Stuttgart, finishing as runner-up at Brisbane, Wimbledon, Cincinnati and the Olympics*. As a result, Kerber’s ranking has been on a steady incline after finishing 2015 at No.10.

* There were no ranking points awarded for this year’s Olympic tennis competition.

US Open Title Could Vault Radwanska To Top Spot: Agnieszka Radwanska will need to win the US Open title, to have reach the top spot. However, if Kerber reaches the final, Radwanska could only move as high as No.2.

The Pole came through her first test in the second round, surviving an epic opening set tie-break to eventually defuse the big-serving Naomi Broady. Next up is the gifted, if unpredictable, Caroline Garcia

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US Open Friday: Kerber’s Quest Continues

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

NEW YORK, NY, USA – Angelique Kerber continues her quest for No.1 as the bottom half of the draw contests its third-round matches in New York on Friday. Chris Oddo previews a busy schedule at wtaennis.com.

Friday, Third Round

[2] Angelique Kerber (GER #2) vs. [Q] CiCi Bellis (USA #158)
Head-to-head: First meeting
Key Stat: Kerber will ascend to the No.1 ranking if Serena Williams does not reach the semifinals in New York.

Angelique Kerber will bid for her 50th win of the season against a 17-year-old fan favorite that relishes the big stage. That 17-year-old would be Catherine Bellis, a diminutive Northern Californian with a surprisingly big game. Bellis came through in three sets on Wednesday, defeating Shelby Rogers to reach the third round at the Open for the first time. Bellis famously became the youngest player to win a match at the US Open since 1996 when she defeated Dominika Cibulkova as a 15-year-old two years ago. On Friday her challenge will be even greater. Bellis will face No.2-ranked Angelique Kerber, a player very much in form and in her prime, and the American knows she’s in for a tough test. Kerber is in the hunt for the No.1 ranking and will bid to reach the second week at the US Open for the fourth time, and first time since 2013. “She’s No.2 in the world obviously and an amazing player,” Bellis said of the German. “It will be a lot of fun for me.” Kerber, who leads the tour in wins, hardcourt wins and Top 10 wins this season, will do her best to ensure that the youngster doesn’t have too much fun.

Pick: Kerber in two

[14] Petra Kvitova (CZE #16) vs. [22] Elina Svitolina (UKR #19)
Head-to-head: Kvitova leads, 3-1
Key Stat: Kvitova reached her first US Open quarterfinal in 2015.

What has Petra Kvitova been up to on her off days at the US Open? Oh, just not practicing. It may sound strange, but it’s true. The Czech says she has been doing everything she can to avoid the stress of the big city, so she passes on the New York City commute on her off days and instead practices on the day of her matches only. “I didn’t practice yesterday,” Kvitova told WTA Insider Courtney Nguyen on Wednesday after her straight-sets win over Cagla Buyukakcay. “I had a day off, so I didn’t come on-site. So that’s a new tradition I think from last year.” Kvitova says she instead does fitness off-site and spends the time saved luxuriating with a coffee in Manhattan. The Czech will hope the new routine leaves her rested and ready for her second meeting in less than a month with Elina Svitolina. Kvitova pummeled the Ukrainian 6-2, 6-0 at the Rio Olympics. The No.22-seed has needed three sets in each of her first two matches in New York.

Pick: Kvitova in two

[8] Madison Keys (USA #9) vs. Naomi Osaka (JAP #81)
Head-to-head: First meeting
Key Stat: Keys owns a 13-4 record in three-setters in 2016.

After Garbiñe Muguruza’s sudden departure from the draw on Wednesday, 21-year-old Madison Keys is the highest-seeded player remaining in her quarter of the draw. Will she take advantage of the opportunity? To do so she’ll have to get by the young, powerful Naomi Osaka of Japan in a first-time meeting. Osaka has yet to fail to reach the third round in all three of her career Grand Slam appearances, but has yet to go beyond. To do so at the Open, she’ll have to upend a blossoming star on her home soil. Keys trounced 16-year-old Kayla Day, 6-1, 6-1 on Wednesday, but the American knows her next test could be a tricky one. “She’s an aggressive player,” Keys said of Osaka. “She’s been playing well. She’s steadily been moving up the rankings. She’s going to be a tough opponent.”

Pick: Keys in three

[13] Johanna Konta (GBR #14) vs. [24] Belinda Bencic (SUI #26)
Head-to-head: Bencic leads, 2-1
Key Stat: Bencic reached the US Open quarterfinals as a 17-year-old in 2014.

Johanna Konta barely survived a harrowing struggle on Day 3, but the top Brit lives to see another day in New York. Konta wilted in the heat and collapsed to the court during her second-round encounter with Tsvetana Pironkova, and was immediately treated by medical staff. Remarkably, the 25-year-old made a stunning return to form to complete her victory over the Bulgarian. It took courage and resilience for Konta to continue; now she’s hoping for a strong recovery before she meets Belinda Bencic on Friday “We push our bodies to the limits… I definitely hit, you know, one of my limits,” Konta said, before adding: “I feel very fortunate that I have one more chance to play here, to give my best again.” Bencic had a much simpler second-round match. She emphatically moved past Andrea Petkovic in straight sets to reach the third round in Queens for the third consecutive year.

Pick: Konta in three

By the Numbers…
3 – Players with a shot at the No.1 ranking at the end of the US Open (Serena Williams, Angelique Kerber and Agnieszka Radwanska).
20-13 – Roberta Vinci‘s US Open record. The Italian was 12-12 at New York through 2014.
1 – Number of players in Top 10 to have yet to play in a Grand Slam final (Madison Keys).

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Halep Safely Into Third Round

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

NEW YORK, NY, USA – No.5 seed Simona Halep moved safely into the third round of the US Open with a straight set win over Lucie Safarova .

In the first ever women’s match under Arthur Ashe’s new roof, Halep recovered from a break down in the second set to complete a 6-3, 6-4 victory.

“It was not an easy match. It was difficult. At one point I lost the rhythm a little bit because she’s left handed, not easy to play against,” Halep said. “I knew that she’s very tough. She’s fighting till the end.

“I played many times against her, and all the matches were very close. So I expected that. I’m not the happiest with my game today, but I’m really – you know, I have the good mood that I could win the match in two sets and I could finish in the important moments.”

Since the start of the summer, Halep has lost only to Angelique Kerber, winning 19 matches and two titles during this period. Her latest triumph was by no means a formality, however, Safarova’s inability to convert the odd purple patch into scoreboard dominance ultimately proved costly. 

Halep overcame the frustration of surrendering an early lead by reeling off three games on the trot, pocketing a see-saw opening set with a brilliant backhand winner. Her joy did not last long, the Romanian soon finding herself in something of a hole in the second set.

Yet with Safarova looking well placed to force a deciding set her hitherto secure groundstrokes went walkabout, a trio of unforced errors handing back the break in the sixth game. This swung the momentum irretrievably away from the Czech, who erred again when serving to stay in the match, her fifth double fault of the afternoon sending Halep through.

While Halep was unable to replicate her flawless first-round display against Kirsten Flipkens, offsetting her nine winners with 20 unforced errors, she will be pleased to have dodged a potential banana skin on her journey through the Flushing Meadows draw. A semifinalist 12 months ago, Halep will continue her bid for a maiden Grand Slam title against Timea Babos after she saw off Richel Hogenkamp, 6-2, 6-4.

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Venus Serves Up 70th Win At US Open

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

NEW YORK, NY, USA – Venus Williams recorded her 70th match win at the US Open to sweep past Julia Goerges in straight sets and clinch a spot in the third round.

The No.6 seed shined in her first match under the roof of Arthur Ashe Stadium to reach the third round for the 15th time in her storied career, improving her record at her home Slam to 70-14.

“I’m grateful that I can still play the game I want to play right now,” the 36-year-old said. “As an athlete, as a tennis player, that’s what you want. You want to be out there and play the game you want to play.”

After trading breaks to opening the match, it was a decidedly one-sided affair as Williams took charge, covering the court and staying rock-solid at the net, allowing Goerges to commit the errors. She broke the German three more times to take the first set and a lead into the second.

Goerges’ aggressive returning brought up two break points just as Williams was serving out the match, but the American replied with a pair of huge serves into the body to jam her opponent and erase the opportunity. After masterfully chasing down a drop shot, Williams eased her way into the third round, winning 6-2, 6-3.

“I just felt like I had to dial it back a little bit, maybe play a little bit more percentage tennis, play within myself, keep my errors down,” Williams explained after the match. “Very happy that it worked out against an opponent who is seasoned, who can play, who can serve, who has a lot of big shots. So it was a nice test to come through.”

The 27-year-old German will likely rue her missed chances, having brought up five break opportunities but only able to convert one. Though their winner’s count was nearly the same – 18 for Venus and 17 for Goerges – they were separated by their unforced errors count, 17 for Venus and 22 for Goerges.

Williams awaits the winner in the match between No.26 Laura Siegemund and fellow American Nicole Gibbs.

More to come…

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Radwanska Edges Past Broady

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

NEW YORK, NY, USA – No.4 seed Agnieszka Radwanska survived a roller encounter against Great Britain’s Naomi Broady to move into the third round at the US Open, 7-6(9), 6-3.

“I was just couple points better today,” Radwanska said after the match. “Definitely she pushed me 100% today.”

It took Radwanska a few games to get used to the Brit’s powerful serves and unconventional groundstrokes, and by the time Radwanska found her footing in the match Broady had her down 1-4, then 2-5. The No.4 seed reeled in Broady’s big game, pulling her into the net time and time again to draw out the errors.

She took the set into a tiebreak, where Radwanska blew a big 5-2 lead and misfired a routine backhand passing shot to allow Broady to claw her way back. The Brit fired off a timely ace to rattle off five of the next six points, bringing up two set points in the process. Radwanska wrestled both away, playing tug of war until the No.4 seed broke the big Broady serve to squeeze through in the opening set.

“I think I was just too slow and didn’t really come in,” Radwanska explained the dramatic tiebreak. “You know, I pay the price, a couple set points down, it’s not fun. Especially, you know, she was serving unbelievable.

“So every point mattered in that tiebreak, especially when I could break her at least at one point.”

Broady didn’t give Radwanska any time to catch her breath, though, breaking her serve in the first game and immediately putting her in a 0-2 deficit to start off the second set. But after last’ set’s comeback, Radwanska was feeling much more comfortable against Broady’s style of play and quickly broke back to leave them even. Another late break sealed the match for Radwanska after a tense hour and 49 minutes.

Radwanska will play Caroline Garcia for a spot in the fourth round. The Pole is looking for her first quarterfinal berth, having never been past the fourth round in 11 appearances.

“Playing her is never easy,” Radwanska assessed the Frenchwoman’s game. “She’s very solid player, really hitting the ball hard, coming in. Just hitting really fast from the bounce. She’s not giving you much time.

“I think I will need to focus on the first ball, first shot, just not make her put everything in the middle because then I’ll be in trouble.”

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Serena Reigns Over King On Home Court

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

NEW YORK, NY, USA – Top seed Serena Williams lit up the Arthur Ashe Stadium night session once more with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Vania King to reach the third round of the US Open.

Coming off a high-powered and high-profile first opponent in Ekaterina Makarova, Williams was even more aggressive against King, who spent most of 2015 off the court nursing an injured back. As celebrity superfans Beyoncé and Jay-Z looked on, Serena was particularly dominant on serve, striking 13 aces in the 64 minute match, and losing just six points behind her first serve.

Still, Serena told press she wasn’t totally satisfied.

“I just think it should have been a different scoreline for me,” she said in her post-match press conference. “I feel like I made a lot of errors.

“But, you know, there’s nothing I can do about that now. What really matters is I got the win. Hopefully I’ll just get better.”

Breaking serve three times over the two sets, Serena didn’t face a break point at all on Thursday night, ending the match with a +10 differential in winners to unforced errors (38-28).

Serena continued to discuss the shoulder injury that reduced her summer schedule to just three matches between Wimbledon and the US Open, and felt optimistic that the injury had largely subsided.

“It’s stable,” she said with a laugh. “I just got to keep it like that. It’s two matches in, and usually you want to be able to play seven matches. It’s not even close to the halfway point.

“I definitely want to keep it as good as it can be.”

Up next for the six-time US Open champion is Sweden’s Johanna Larsson, a semifinalist at last week’s Connecticut Open. Larsson dispatached Ana Ivanovic’s conqueror Denisa Allertova, 6-3, 6-1, to set up the the third round encounter.

A win over Larsson would gaurantee Serena passes Martina Navratilova’s record of 306 Grand Slam wins; she tied the record on Thursday.

“I knew it was on the horizon. I knew at Wimbledon that I wanted to get there. Obviously I’m excited about that. But I would like to take one more step, several more steps.”

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