Tennis News

CINCINNATI, OH, USA – World Co-No.1s Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis reached the Western & Southern Open final, but found themselves on opposite sides of the net as Mirza and new partner Barbora Strycova recovered from 5-1 in the opening set to beat Hingis and CoCo Vandeweghe, 7-5, 6-4.

“I’m not going to lie,” Mirza said after the match. “It’s a very difficult situation. It’s not easy because, A, because we are still good friends, so it’s never easy. The first we tournament we split and we come and we have to play each other. Of course there is no better match to play than the final, so was difficult, I think. for both of us.

“But having said that we are professional tennis players. We have to come out and we have to give our best and we have to try and win. That’s all we can do, and we both tried to do that.

“It was going to happen eventually. We had to play against each other at some point. I think it’s better that it happened earlier, as soon as we came out, because next time it’s obviously less difficult to play.”

Hingis and Mirza were indeed playing their first tournament apart since officially confirming their split last week, and with both women advancing into the championship match, only one could remain No.1 as the points earned this week would be counted among their best results that make up their WTA ranking total.

Not that the notion bothered Mirza.

“As cliche as it sounds, a ranking is really just a number. At the end of the day you have to come out and you have to play your best tennis. That’s what we did, and we feel like that’s why we won the tournament.

“For us it’s important to win every time we play. We both fight; we both like to play and we both like tennis obviously.”

In Strycova, Mirza found another great partner, one who’d arrived in Cincinnati having just earned an Olympic bronze medal in women’s doubles.

“She was obviously one of my first choices because I felt like we could play well together given our games.

“We know each other. To be honest, we have not been like friends so to say, but we know each other since we were 15 years old. We’ve always had mutual respect for each other and our games. At least I have had.”

“Me too,” Strycova added.

Enjoying a career-best season with solid results in both disciplines, the Czech veteran admits she enjoys doubles on both a tactical and emotional level.

“I’m very emotional player. I need the communication. I need to put the emotions away.

“But you have to see the balance when it hurts me or when it or helps me. I’m 30 years old and didn’t still find it, but I’m working on it!”

In front of a packed house (and playing together for 1st time), Mirza/Strycova win the doubles title.#CincyTennis pic.twitter.com/9oPKL3aqlU

— W&S Open (@CincyTennis) August 21, 2016

NEW HAVEN, CT, USA – Agnieszka Radwanska took a wildcard into the Connecticut Open with the aim of putting the finishing touches on her US Open preparation and build on the momentum that took her into the quarterfinals in Cincinnati.

“I didn’t play that many matches this summer,” the top seed said during her pre-tournament press conference. “This is a great opportunity to have a couple more good matches against good players. It’s always a strong draw here, and I’m very happy to be back.

“As we know, courts are different everywhere. But here, it’s pretty much the same courts and conditions as the US Open, so this is great preparation.”

Looming in the second round for Radwanska could be former World No.1 and longtime friend Caroline Wozniacki, who plays Jelena Ostapenko to start the week.

“I think it’d be a great match before the US Open; she still has one match to win and it won’t be easy against Ostapenko, but we’ll see.

“We’ve known each other since we played a first round together when we were 10 years old. It’s great to have someone like this next to you your whole career since the under-14s, the under-16s then the 25Ks on the ITF Circuit. It’s more fun to know someone for years, but when we’re on the court, we’re opponents.

“When you’ve played so many matches and practices against each other, it’s tough, but every match is a different story, especially with different surfaces and conditions. I think you play each point as it comes.

“I think we both want to win on the court, but we’ve been good friends for so many years, and it’s good to be able to separate tennis and your private life. That’s what we’ve done well, and it’s why we’re still friends.”

Can't wait to see my @connecticutopen fans! Hope you can come out to watch and support me https://t.co/EqlrW74zCv #CTOpen16

— Aga Radwanska (@ARadwanska) August 20, 2016

The match would come at the end of an up and down summer for Radwanska, who suffered through a grueling travel itinerary to get to the Olympic tennis event in Rio de Janeiro only to fall in straight sets to Zheng Saisai.

“It’s always very tricky, especially since you don’t know how you’ll do before or after. You know scheduling will be very tight with everything in a row; that’s why I hadn’t entered here earlier, because I didn’t know how things would go. I didn’t play enough, and that’s why I’m here.

“I think tournaments like this are always very challenging. There’ll be good matches from the first round, and you have to push yourself 100%; it can be pretty hot and humid, and every match matters.”

Still, it has been a solid season for the Pole, who may rue her lost opportunities at Wimbledon, where she fell in a classic three-setter to rival Dominika Cibulkova, but hopes for a strong finish so that she may mount a defense of her BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global title.

“The beginning of the year was good, a couple of big semifinals, and winning a tournament to start the year. My grass court season was disappointing, and so maybe I’d’ve changed that, but it’s hard to play your best all the time. I was playing good tennis last week in Cincinnati, so hopefully I can do the same this week.

“Singapore was the biggest week of my career, with so many big matches. I remember it like it was yesterday. This year I’m fighting to get back, and plenty of players are hoping to be there as well. I think everything is open, and anyone can be there.”

Around the grounds, American wildcard Shelby Rogers played emphatic tennis to defeat Kristina Mladenovic, 6-1, 6-1, while Russia’s Ekaterina Makarova won a battle of veterans to defeat Sara Errani, 7-5, 6-2.

Madison Keys was set to play in New Haven before she was forced to withdraw due to a neck injury:

pic.twitter.com/J9vlowMHwQ

— Madison Keys (@Madison_Keys) August 21, 2016

CINCINNATI, OH, USA – At the beginning of January few would have pegged Angelique Kerber as the player most likely to overthrow Serena Williams atop the rankings. This number would have dwindled further when she stood match point down against Misaki Doi in the opening round of the Australian Open.

What happened next will go down in tennis folklore, Kerber somehow negotiating her way out of this cul-de-sac and going on to lift her maiden Grand Slam trophy. A wonderfully consistent summer has built on this career momentum, establishing Kerber as a rival to long-time World No.1 Williams at the game’s summit.

Victory over Karolina Pliskova in Sunday’s final of the Western & Southern Open will not only give her more silverware but also the No.1 ranking. Should she do so, it will end one of the most dominant reigns in WTA history. So to mark the potential changing of the guard, wtatennis.com has picked out some notable numbers…

38,473,935 – Williams’ sixth and current spell at the top of the rankings began on February 18, 2013. Since then she has amassed $38,473,935 in prize money – nearly half her career total of $80,899,060.

4,880,887 – Not including her earnings this week, Kerber has already accumulated a career-best $4,880,887 this season.

6,355 – At the start of 2016, then No.10 Kerber trailed Williams by 6,355 points in the rankings.

306 – Williams is currently enjoying her 306th career week at No.1 (third-most weeks at No.1 in WTA history after Steffi Graf’s 377 and Martina Navratilova’s 332).

183 – Of the above total, 183 have come in her latest reign. Williams is spending her 183rd straight week at No.1 (the second-longest streak at No.1 in WTA history after Graf’s 186). Her previous longest streak was 57 (between July 8, 2002 and August 10, 2003).

47 – Kerber has already notched up 47 wins this season, a record not matched by any other player on tour. Williams has posted 33.

34 – Thirty-four-year-old Williams is the oldest No.1 in WTA history, a record she first set when returning to No.1 on February 18, 2013

28 – At 28, Kerber would be the oldest first-time No.1. Her closest competition is Jennifer Capriati, who was 25 years and seven months old.

22 – Kerber is bidding to become the 22nd woman to reach the summit of the rankings.

18 – Williams’ win-loss record in this latest stint at the summit is a staggering 204-18.

12 – When a 20-year-old Williams reached No.1 for a first time in July 2002 she was the 12th different woman to scale the top of the rankings.

2 – Kerber is hoping to become the second German, after Graf, to be ranked No.1. Other nations to have multiple No.1s are the United States (Chris Evert, Navratilova, Tracy Austin, Monica Seles, Lindsay Davenport, Capriati, Venus Williams, Serena), Serbia/Yugoslavia* (Seles, Ana Ivanovic, Jelena Jankovic), Belgium (Kim Clijsters, Justine Henin) and Russia (Maria Sharapova, Dinara Safina).

* Before her change of citizenship Seles, who was born in the Serbian city of Novi Sad, represented Yugoslavia

CINCINNATI, OH, USA – No.17 Karolina Pliskova swept past Garbiñe Muguruza in a dominating straight sets performance, winning 6-1, 6-3 to secure the first spot in the Western & Southern Open final.

Watch live action from Cincinnati this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!

“I know I beat [Muguruza] in the last two matches, so I knew it’s going to be tough for her to beat me if I play well or if I play solid,” Pliskova said afterwards. “I was not thinking about that she’s a French Open champion. This you cannot take on the court.

“I always believe… there is, I would say, 99% of the players, I can beat all of them if I play good tennis.”

Like Simona Halep, Pliskova opted to skip the Olympic tennis event – she’s normally practice-averse but she used the time off to work on her game, and the effort showed in the Czech’s commanding win to reach her third final of 2016.

“That was one of the things what I changed [this year], to don’t play everything possible,” Pliskova explained. “To get ready for some events. I think now, at this time, not always, but it pays off. That’s what I learned.”

Follow live game-by-game analysis from Cincinnati semifinals day on WTA Insider’s Live Blog.

Throughout the match Muguruza looked rattled by Pliskova’s big serving and tricky slices. The Spaniard opened the match with a strong hold of serve, but was shut out of the set she leaked error after error. Pliskova rattled off seven straight games to take the first set and start the second with a strong lead.

Pliskova’s backhand clipped the net to give Muguruza her first break in the second set at 3-2, but she surrendered it immediately as Pliskova broke back to keep them level. Serving down 3-4, Muguruza floated a drop shot just over the net but it was fetched by Pliskova, who replied with a drop shot of her own. The Czech broke once more and, after a pair of Muguruza errors, went on to seal the match with an ace down the tee to become the first Czech to reach the final at the Western & Southern Open.

The Czech’s clear command of the match was reflected in her 17 winners and 17 unforced errors – Muguruza struck just 7 winners and flubbed 23 unforced. Pliskova also served up five aces putting her at 400 aces for the season, a WTA-leading figure.

“You feel the pressure when you have to serve because the other one serves so well,” Muguruza said of facing her opponent’s big weapon. “You kind of have to, ‘Hey, I have to keep my serve. I cannot lose my serve.’

“The whole match was a lot of tension. She plays really fast and goes for shots that are unreal.”

Pliskova’s speedy one-hour victory was timed perfectly, as the skies finally opened up during the Czech’s post-match interview.

“It wasn’t easy today, because the wind was really tricky and it was tough conditions today,” she told the crowd.

“I’m really happy that I made it – and oh, it’s raining now!”

The No.17-ranked Pliskova, who is also the lowest-ranked Cincy finalist since No.92 Nathalie Dechy in 2008, ducked for cover and now awaits the winner of the second semifinal match between Angelique Kerber and Simona Halep.

First #CincyTennis Final for @KaPliskova! ? https://t.co/458dnLa7Gt

— WTA (@WTA) August 20, 2016

CINCINNATI, OH, USA – Top seed Angelique Kerber kept her bid for the WTA’s top ranking alive after defeating Simona Halep 6-3, 6-4 to reach the final at the Western & Southern Open.

Watch live action from Cincinnati this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!

With back to back titles at Bucharest and Montréal, Halep came into the matchup on the back of a 13-match winning streak, and without ever having lost to Kerber on hardcourts. They’d played six times previously and while Kerber owns one win on clay and one on grass, Halep had won all four of their hardcourt matches, including their last meeting in the semifinals of the Rogers Cup.

The players traded breaks to open the match. Halep was playing fast, going for quick winners but earning loose unforced errors, instead. The conditions didn’t help, either, as the win wreaked havoc on her normally sharp timing.

Another spot of Cincinnati’s rain came down again and suspended play for half an hour with both players on serve and Kerber leading 4-3. Upon resumption, Halep’s woes continued as she was quickly broken. The German rattled off five straight games to take the opening set and carve out a 4-0 lead in the second.

Follow live game-by-game analysis from Cincinnati semifinals day on WTA Insider’s Live Blog.

Calmer now in the second set despite the deficit, Halep began leaning into her backhand and taking control of the points. She rattled off three games in a row to narrow Kerber’s lead to just one break. But the German slammed the door on a Halep comeback, saving break point at 5-3 and outrallying her to draw out two errors from the Romanian.

With the finish line in sight, the match had one final hurdle for the World No.2: Kerber broke her string on match point, but a misplaced lob from Halep drifted wide to give Kerber the win anyways.

.@AngeliqueKerber is ONE win away from becoming World No.1! #CincyTennis https://t.co/ii3DU83AYF

— WTA (@WTA) August 20, 2016

“My strings have never broken! And it just broke during the match, and on match point. I was just hoping the ball would go in because I don’t know what to do with the racquet!”

Although Halep hit more winners than Kerber – 21 to Kerber’s 12 – she also hit a whopping 50 unforced errors against Kerber’s 21. The Romanian also struck five double faults and converted just three of five break points, while Kerber won five out of 15.

With the win, Kerber returns to the final of the Western & Southern Open for the first time since 2012, but there’s an even bigger prize up for grabs than just the Cincy title.

Should Kerber win in tomorrow’s final, the reigning Australian Open champion would overtake Serena Williams as WTA World No.1, snapping the American’s streak at 306 consecutive weeks.

“I think of course I’m playing now some of my best tennis,” Kerber said of the possibility of taking the top spot. “It’s one of the best years in my career. I had a lot of up and downs in the last few years and I had a lot of experience from which I learned.

“I think now I’m showing that I’m really one of the best tennis players.

“It’s still one match away, but it’s still a long match. I will not thinking about this yet. It’s a new opponent, a new day, and after that we will see what happened yeah, it’s not over yet. Still one match to go.”

Only Karolina Pliskova stands between Kerber and the top spot, and the No-17-ranked Czech is up for the challenge.

“I don’t know if she would be a little bit in stress or something, but I would love to have her as a No. 1 after few years. But I’ll do anything for her to not getting there,” Pliskova said.