Singapore: Cibulkova Vs Halep
Dominika Cibulkova takes on Simona Halep in the round-robin stage of the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.
Dominika Cibulkova takes on Simona Halep in the round-robin stage of the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.
SINGAPORE – Agnieszka Radwanska’s strong return of serve was key to her win over Karolina Pliskova 7-5 6-3 in the final round robin match of the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global. The victory earned Radwanska a spot in the event’s semifinals.
One of the best returners in the game, Radwanska was facing one of the best servers in the game in Friday’s match.
Through this season, Radwanska is among the Top 3 on the WTA for return points won (49%), return games won (49%) and break points converted (54%).
She was facing an opponent in Pliskova who led the WTA in aces (530) and was second for first serve points won (74%) in 2016.
The SAP Coaches View shows that it was Pliskova’s second serve that was vulnerable to Radwanska’s return, with the Pole winning 61% of those points.
The “Return of Serve” tracking with Coaches View shows that a key to Radwanska’s success was her aggressive approach in taking those Pliskova second serves. Radwanska returned 78% of Pliskova’s second serves from inside the baseline.
During the first two round robin matches of the tournament, Pliskova won 47% of second serve points, compared to 36% against Radwanska. Neither of her first two opponents, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Garbiñe Muguruza, were as aggressive as Radwanska in taking the ball early. Kuznetsova returned 57% of Pliskova’s second serves inside the baseline, while Muguruza did so just 10% of the time.
The SAP Coaches View combines scoring information direct from the chair umpire with tracking data from HawkEye to allow for an in depth look at five different aspects of a match. Each tracking option can be filtered to narrow the focus to specific situations within a match, such as break points.This information is available directly to coaches in real-time during a match on their SAP tablet and also available to them online after matches.
“Return of serve” tracking shows where each service return was struck, differentiating between first and second serves, with an emphasis on how many serves are returned from inside the baseline. This data can be filtered by a particular score.
Radwanska broke Pliskova five times in 10 games during Friday’s match, giving the defending champion a berth in the semifinals as she aims for a second straight WTA Finals title.
Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Lucie Safarova take on Timea Babos and Yaroslava Shvedova in the quarterfinals of the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.
The order of play for Friday at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.
Svetlana Kuznetsova talks after her win over Karolina Pliskova at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.
SINGAPORE – Before taking the court at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global, we grabbed Sania Mirza, Martina Hingis, Kristina Mladenovic, Carolina Garcia and more doubles partners for a hilarious challenge.
They might be serious competitors on the court, but off of it, who can keep a straight face against their doubles partner in a staring contest?
Check out the video below to find out, and look out for Bethanie Mattek-Sands’ sure-fire strategy for making Lucie Safarova laugh!
Karolina Pliskova gives her thoughts after losing to Svetlana Kuznetsova at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.
SINGAPORE – Dominika Cibulkova is staying optimistic. Even though she has lost her first two matches at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global, she still has a slim chance of qualifying for the semifinals.
That’s if she can beat Simona Halep in straight sets – and that’s always going to be tough to do.
“I have to see it in a good way,” she said after her 6-1, 6-4 loss to Madison Keys. “If I see it in a bad way that I lost two matches then I will be really down.
“It’s a big challenge for me. [It’s my] first time playing here…I want to give 100 per cent on the court. Knowing this, that I can still go into semifinals, I will…be as positive as I can and to win my match against Halep.”
Cibulkova will need to be quick off the mark against the Romanian – and she struggled to do that against Keys.
“I tried,” she recalled. “In the second set I tried to change something. Even my coach came. He helped me with the strategy a little bit. [We] tried to change, but it was still not enough. Maybe I needed a little bit more time. It was too late when I started to get into the match the right way where I wanted.”
Cibulkova did not have the best start to her match against Keys when she forgot to walk out with her ball kid and had to go back for her.
“I was just waving to the people around and forgot!” she admitted. “I didn’t see the ball kid. And then from my box they tell me, like, ‘You forgot the ball kid.’ I’m like, ‘Oh, my God, no way.’ So I went for her bag and I took her bag, so it was nice.”
She is, of course, enjoying the opportunity of competing in Singapore, but there is a hint of disappointment in her reflection on her matches so far – losing to Keys after having lost to Angelique Kerber
“I’m happy I’m experiencing this for the first time,” she explained. “It is different. You feel like, ‘Okay, this is only eight top players in the world,’ and you want to try to play your best tennis. Of course it’s different because you can lose two matches and now the situation – I can win the third one and still can go on [to the semifinals].
“So it’s [a] very new experience for me. I’m happy to be here and to see and to live it, but I’m hoping to win a match. I will do everything to win a match this year.”
Highlights from round-robin action at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.
SINGAPORE – There’s squad goals, and then there’s the WTA Legends, who were out in full force on Thursday morning to take in the incredible view from the top of the Marina Bay Sands before Day 5 action began at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.
WTA Finals Ambassadors Martina Navratilova, Chris Evert, Monica Seles Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario, Iva Majoli, and Mary Pierce took to the highest peak of the world-famous hotel to pose for a series of photos at the Marina Bay Sands’ SkyPark, offering sprawling views of the city; they later enjoyed some Singapore delicacies at Spago, hosted by Chef Joshua Brown.
“We have a clear day today, so I’ve never seen this far away,” noted Navratilova to WTA Insider. “It’s an amazing, bustling city. I drove around yesterday, went shopping at the Mustafa Centre that’s open 365 days a year, 24 hours a day; it was amazing. There’s so much energy here.”
#WTA Legends were introduced to Singaporean delicacy chicken rice by Chef Joshua Brown @marinabaysands when they're in town for #WTAFinals pic.twitter.com/4nP2mPkcPr
— WTA Finals Singapore (@WTAFinalsSG) October 27, 2016
Navratilova has been on hand for much of the week, looking forward to the start of the doubles event, where eight teams will compete for a trophy named in her honor.
“It’ll be interesting because Kristina Mladenovic and Caroline Garcia had the best year, but mostly because Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis stopped playing together. They had a bit of a falling-out, but they’re playing here. That dynamic between Sania and Martina, how they get along, will be crucial.
“If they can put whatever happened between them behind and play good tennis – because doubles is a team sport, and you really need to play together – I’m looking forward to that more than anything.
“At their best, Hingis and Mirza are the favorites because they have the biggest weapons and know-how, how to play the points. But Mladenovic and Garcia would be a close second favorite.”
The WTA Legends convene for a Skypark photoshoot: pic.twitter.com/PwmqfQcqSv
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) October 27, 2016
Evert arrived on Wednesday night, but is in familiar territory, having visited Singapore three times before.
“Oh my god, it’s beautiful!” she enthused. “The tough thing is getting here; it’s a long way from Florida – 21 hours – but once you get here, it’s breathtakingly beautiful, especially the Marina Bay Sands.”
A longtime commentator for ESPN, the 18-time Grand Slam champion tagged Angelique Kerber as her Player of the Year, and the one most likely to lift the Billie Jean King Trophy at week’s end:
“Angelique Kerber’s impressed me, winning two Grand Slams. No one’s done that in so many years besides Serena Williams, really.
“She’s been playing some really great tennis, more aggressively. She’s really stepped it up with her game. Mentally, she’s gotten tougher, and she’s looking tough here too.”
.@28dolfan #AskWTALegends pic.twitter.com/PXToIho17v
— WTA (@WTA) October 27, 2016
Navratilova echoed her old rival’s sentiments on Kerber, but gave an honorable mention to No.8 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova, the first of Singapore’s semifinalists following her three-set win over Karolina Pliskova.
“It’s great to see because a couple of years ago, we all thought she was probably done, that she was going to fade away and retire. She kept coming back and, lo and behold, played some of her best tennis this year.
“It’s really good to see her out there, still fighting, still enjoying it and competing so well, emotionally, mentally, and most of all, physically.”
.@greensolo9 #AskWTALegends pic.twitter.com/eSFMcxjh1V
— WTA (@WTA) October 27, 2016
Qualifying on the last day of the regular season, Kuznetsova’s effort completed the closest Road to Singapore leaderboard in WTA history. Evert believes the photo finish presented a strong case for just how tough the tour has become.
“It just shows the depth at the top. In previous years, you’d have Serena, and then a gap between her and the other women.
“Now, there’s no gap; the Top 8 are all relevant, and are all capable of winning this WTA Finals. I’m really happy to see that the depth is finally there again at the top of the game.”
.@kvittycat53 #AskWTALegends pic.twitter.com/LuKfXceawd
— WTA (@WTA) October 27, 2016
With this season nearly in the books, Evert is already looking ahead to what promises to be an exciting 2017.
“Let’s put it this way. Victoria Azarenka is going to have a baby in December and she’s thinking about coming back; that’ll be interesting. Serena’s always interesting; can she break Stefanie Graf’s record? They’re both at 22 right now, and how much longer is Serena going to be at the top of her game? Maria Sharapova’s coming back in April or May.
“There’s going to be a lot of big stories.”