Kerber First Into Wimbledon Quarterfinals
Angelique Kerber moved confidently into the Wimbledon quarterfinals with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Misaki Doi on Monday.
Angelique Kerber moved confidently into the Wimbledon quarterfinals with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Misaki Doi on Monday.
Who is the lowest-ranked player left in SW19? Whose famous footsteps is Serena Williams looking to follow? And how many hours has her indefatigable sister spent on court?
It’s one of the most glorious days of the tennis season: Wimbledon’s manic Monday. All eight fourth-round battles will take place at SW19 and we’re previewing them right here at WTATennis.com, courtesy of contributor Chris Oddo.
Monday
Round of 16
[1] Serena Williams (USA #1) vs. [13] Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS #14)
Head-to-head: Williams leads, 9-3
Key Stat: Williams earned her 300th Grand Slam win on Sunday, which is second-most in WTA history.
After a tough second round scuffle with Christina McHale, six-time Wimbledon champion Serena Williams pushed past Germany’s Annika Beck on Sunday in 51 minutes to set up a heavily anticipated round of 16 battle with Svetlana Kuznetsova. Pleased with Sunday’s form, Williams says the McHale challenge has set her up nicely for the challenges ahead. “I think the McHale match really helped me,” she said. “To be honest, I felt like losing that first set so tight and her playing better than she’s ever played in her life really helped me to realize that I can play better and I can lift my game.” And of her Day 7 walk in the park past Beck? “It gives me a lot of confidence,” she told reporters on Sunday. “I know what it takes to win these tournaments. It’s just about now just doing it.” Kuznetsova’s confidence is also buoyed by her upset of Williams this spring in Miami. “It’s a great thing to play Serena in Wimbledon,” she said of facing the world No.1 on Monday. “I’m really happy about it. She will be the favorite, but I enjoy playing those kind of matches. I will just try to do my best.” Will her best be good enough to shock Centre Court on Day 8, or will Williams move a step closer to an elusive 22nd Grand Slam title on Monday?
Pick: S. Williams in three
[27] CoCo Vandeweghe (USA #30) vs. [21] Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS #23)
Head-to-head: Vandeweghe leads, 1-0
Key Stat: Pavlyuchenkova has won three matches consecutively on grass for the first time in her career.
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova looked stunning in her straight-sets takedown of Timea Bacsinszky on Sunday; CoCo Vandeweghe was in fine form during her straight-sets victory over Roberta Vinci on Sunday. Which one of these two powerhouses can keep it rolling on Manic Monday? Vandeweghe has had more success on the grass in general. The American has now won 11 of 12 on the surface this summer and has taken all six sets she has played at Wimbledon. A quarterfinalist last year, Vandeweghe will be the favorite heading into this tilt, but if Pavlyuchenkova’s current form holds we could be in for a high-octane scuffle. “It’s going to be a totally different animal,” Vandeweghe said of facing the hard-hitting Russian just 24 hours after facing slice-and-dicey Roberta Vinci. “She beat a tough player in Bacsinszky. We’ll see what happens when I wake up Monday morning.”
Pick: Vandeweghe in three
[3] Agnieszka Radwanska (POL #3) vs. [19] Dominika Cibulkova (SVK #18)
Head-to-head: Radwanska leads, 7-5
Key Stat: Cibulkova has won eight matches in a row.
The 13th meeting between Agnieszka Radwanska and Dominika Cibulkova should be a cracker. The pair have played three times in 2016 and all three tilts have gone the distance with Cibulkova winning two including their last meeting at the Aegon Classic just a few weeks ago. That victory has springboarded the Slovakian to some of her greatest success on grass – she took the Birmingham title and has reached the second week at Wimbledon for the first time since 2011. Can Cibulkova keep it going against a former Wimbledon runner-up who has her eyes on another deep run here in London? Or will the crafty Radwanska be the one to finally cool Cibulkova off?
Pick: Radwanska in three
Ekaterina Makarova (RUS #35) vs. Elena Vesnina (RUS #50)
Head-to-head: Makarova leads, 6-1
Key Stat: In her 42nd major, Elena Vesnina will bid to reach the quarterfinals for the first time.
Doubles partners and compatriots will battle to end each other’s singles runs on Day 8, as Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina meet for the eighth time. The matchup has favored Makarova, who has had the more distinguished singles career, but both players have shown good form at SW19. Makarova took out two-time champion Petra Kvitova on Day 6 and bounced right back on Sunday to defeat Barbora Strycova. Vesnina, meanwhile, has yet to lose a set at Wimbledon and has won six of seven on grass this season.
Pick: Makarova in two
[5] Simona Halep (ROU #5) vs. [9] Madison Keys (USA #9)
Head-to-head: Tied, 1-1
Key Stat: At 21 years of age, Keys is the youngest player remaining in the draw.
Skipping the grass tune-ups may have been the best thing for Simona Halep. Not only did she give herself time to get her Achilles injury ready, she also had ample time to gain comfort at Wimbledon, both with the surroundings and with the surface. She says she wanted to keep playing after pulling out of Birmingham with an injury, but her coach urged her to come to Wimbledon and start preparing for the Championships. “I wanted to play Eastbourne but Darren [Cahill] told me I have to come here to practice,” she told reporters on Saturday. “It’s better to get used to this club. It was a good idea. I came here very early, and I practiced every day, hard practices.” Will that practice pay off when she meets rising American Madison Keys on Monday? Keys proved to be a Wimbledon warrior in week one, twice coming through in three sets to reach the second week for the second consecutive year.
Pick: Halep in three
[4] Angelique Kerber (GER #4) vs. Misaki Doi (JAP #49)
Head-to-head: Kerber leads, 4-0
Key Stat: Doi is the first player from Japan to reach the fourth round at a major since Wimbledon 2006 (Sugiyama).
Misaki Doi is a name that holds a special place in Angelique Kerber’s heart. Kerber had “one leg on the plane” in Melbourne before rallying in the second-set tiebreaker to finish off Doi in three sets at this year’s Australian Open. So much changed for Kerber after that fateful first-round match. She won her first major title two weeks later and has reached as high as No.2 in the rankings. After flaming out of Roland Garros in the first round, Kerber is looking to continue to build on that Melbourne success by pushing further at Wimbledon. Doi, meanwhile has already reached further than she’s ever been before at the Championships. She took out Anna-Lena Friedsam in the third round to reach the second week of a major for the first time. Can the 25-year-old avenge her four career losses to Kerber with one career-defining win on Monday?
Pick: Kerber in three
[8] Venus Williams (USA #8) vs. [12] Carla Suárez Navarro (ESP #12)
Head-to-head: Tied, 3-3
Key Stat: Venus Williams is the oldest player to reach the round of 16 at a major since 1994 Wimbledon (Navratilova).
Back in the second week at Wimbledon for the 14th time, 36-year-old Venus Williams will attempt to take the next step of what could be a run for the ages. But standing in her way is an energized Carla Suárez Navarro, a player not known for grass prowess but nonetheless improving on the surface with each passing year. Williams and Suárez Navarro’s seventh meeting promises to be a battle—they’ve split the previous six. Does Williams have enough in the tank to forge ahead despite having to play three sets in each of her last two matches? One thing’s for certain: she’s up for the challenge. “Of course, I want to win,” Williams said. “There are 128 people in this draw who theoretically are here to win. But you have to do the right things at the right time. That’s what I’m trying to do. I’m trying to push myself to be right there.”
Pick: V. Williams in three
[28] Lucie Safarova (CZE #29) vs. Yaroslava Shvedova (KAZ #96)
Head-to-head: Shvedova leads, 3-0
Key Stat: Safarova is back in the second week of a major for the first time in a year.
Lucie Safarova is finally reclaiming the form that saw her reach her first Grand Slam final and claim a spot in the Top 10 for the first time in 2015, after a long period of illness and injury. Is she ready to take the next stop and reach the last eight at Wimbledon for the second time in the last three years? She’ll have to get past Yaroslava Shvedova to get there. The Kazakh owns an unblemished lifetime record against Safarova, and will be high on confidence after an upset of Sabine Lisicki on Day 6.
Pick: Safarova in three
By the Numbers:
4 – Number of Russian players in the round of 16 at Wimbledon, most at Wimbledon since 2009. There are also four Americans remaining. Eight other countries have a single representative.
11-1 – Coco Vandeweghe’s record on grass this season.
33 – Number of three-set matches played in the first three rounds at Wimbledon out of a possible 112.
123 – Fastest serve of the tournament, produced by Serena Williams during her Day 7 win over Annika Beck.
7 – Players to have reached the round of 16 without the loss of a set (Cibulkova, Doi, Halep, Kerber, Pavlyuchenkova, Vesnina, Vandeweghe).
LONDON, Great Britain – The first to play on this rare People’s Sunday at the Wimbledon Championships, No.27 seed CoCo Vandeweghe clinched a spot in the second week for the second year in a row, ousting No.6 seed Roberta Vinci, 6-3, 6-4.
Vandeweghe reached her first Grand Slam quarterfinal at this very tournament one year ago, and has only gotten more comfortable on the grass courts since, winning a second Ricoh Open title and reaching the semifinals of the Aegon Classic with a win over World No.3 Agnieszka Radwanska.
She played another emphatic match against the Italian on Centre Court, dropping just four points behind her first serve and hitting 21 winners to 17 unforced errors to earn the upset in just over an hour.
Along with the Williams sisters and Madison Keys, Vandeweghe became the fourth American woman to reach the second week at this year’s Championships.
Pavlyuchenkova Propels Into Round Four
Standing between the American and a second straight Wimbledon quarterfinal is No.21 seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, who surprised No.11 seed and 2015 quarterfinalist Timea Bacsinszky, 6-3, 6-2.
Heading into the Wimbledon fortnight, the Russian had never been past the third round, and hadn’t won back-to-back matches on grass since 2012, but overcame tough battles against Hsieh Su-Wei and Yulia Putintseva to play some of her best tennis against Bacsinszky to claim victory on her 25th birthday.
Maintaining a positive winner to unforced error differential at 24 to 20, Pavlyuchenkova had a stellar serving day of her own, winning 82% first serve points and missing just 14 first serves in the one hour and 18 minute encounter. The two-time Grand Slam quarterfinalist and former World No.13 lost her only previous match with Vandeweghe back at the 2014 Miami Open, though the match was played over two tight sets.
Makarova Meets Vesnina In Singles Face-Off
Backing up her big win over two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova in an endlessly rain-delayed second round, Ekaterina Makarova showed no signs of a let down against 2014 Wimbledon quarterfinalist and Aegon Classic runner-up Barbora Strycova, knocking out the No.24 seed, 6-4, 6-2 to reach the fourth round.
Makarova’s superb start to the 2015 season had been derailed by a lower leg injury; unseeded at a major tournament for the first time in four years, the Russian veteran has played phenomenal tennis since reuniting with doubles partner Elena Vesnina at the Mutua Madrid Open.
It’s only right then, that the two have a full circle moment in the round of 16 at the All England Club. In the midst of her own singles reurgence, Vesnina began the year playing Grand Slam qualifying after 40 straight main draw appearances, but after a season of solid wins over Simona Halep, Venus Williams, Belinda Bencic, and Caroline Wozniacki, the Russian veteran is back in the Top 50 and into the second week of a major for the first time since the 2013 Australian Open.
Vesnina has never beaten her doubles partner in a WTA match, losing 12 straight sets to Makarova – including four in their two 2015 matches.
Four Russians through to R16 (Kuznetsova, Makarova, Pavlyuchenkova, Vesnina) the most at #Wimbledon since 2009
— Kevin Fischer (@Kfish_WTA) July 3, 2016
All photos courtesy of Getty Images.
LONDON, Great Britain – Defending champions Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza eased into the third round of Wimbledon with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Japanese pair Eri Hozumi and Miyu Kato.
After a tense two-set win in their much-anticipated first round on Saturday, Hingis and Mirza were far more efficient on People’s Sunday, needing just 52 minutes to advance past Hozumi and Kato, who were broken a combined five times out on the No.3 Court.
The first players to qualify in singles or doubles for the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global and winners at the All England Club one year ago, the co-World No.1s next face the unseeded duo of Christina McHale and Jelena Ostapenko. Fresh off her near win over top seed Serena Williams in singles, she and Ostapenko sealed the deal against No.14 seeds Vania King and Alla Kudryavtseva – who upset Hingis and Mirza a few months ago at the BNP Paribas Open – 6-1, 6-4.
On the other half of the draw, No.2 seeds Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic recovered from a disatrous start to dismiss Zhang Shuai and Peng Shuai, 0-6, 6-3, 6-4 on No.14 Court.
The French pair are riding a eight-match winning streak at major tournaments, having just captured their maden Grand Slam in women’s doubles at Roland Garros, but survived a titanic tussle agains the Chinese veterans, who managed to engineer 11 break points against Garcia and Mladenovic, but only converted four in the one hour and 43 minute epic.
Up next for the pair are either No.14 seeds Anabel Medina Garrigues and Arantxa Parra Santonja or Gabriela Dabrowski and María José Martínez Sánchez, who have yet to play their second round match.
Of the Top 4 seeds in action, only sisters Chan Yung-Jan and Chan Hao-Ching failed to advance on Sunday, as the No.3 seeds suffered an unexpected loss to Serbs Jelena Jankovic and Aleksandra Krunic. Set to play doubles together at the upcoming Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Jankovic and Krunic’s preparation got a big boost when they were able to survive the Chans, 6-2, 4-6, 6-2.
Standing between them and a spot in the quarterfinals are Anna-Lena Groenefeld and former No.1 Kveta Peschke, who has recently returned to the game after over a year away.
Among the last to finish were No.4 seeds Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina, who each won their third rounds in singles earlier in the day. Despite a second set hiccup, Makarova and Vesnina managed to dispatch British wildcards Anna Rae and Jocelyn Smith, 7-5, 4-6, 6-4. Due to the inclement weather and singles obligations, the Russians were playing just the first round of doubles, and will need to get past Annika Beck and Yanina Wickmayer in order to match Santina and the French.
For the first time since 2004, and only the fourth time in history, there will be play on Wimbledon’s middle Sunday. We preview the key matchups right here at wtatennis.com.
LONDON, England – No.4 seed Angelique Kerber booked her place in the last 16 of Wimbledon with a straight set victory over Carina WItthoeft on Saturday.
While her title rivals labored, Kerber has quietly gone about her business in the opening week, continuing her unfettered progress with a 7-6(11), 6-1 win over fellow German Witthoeft.
An evenly contested first set looked to be going Kerber’s way when she broke in the 11th game. However, Witthoeft hit straight back, capitalizing on a series on uncharacteristic errors from the No.4 seed. This fighting spirit was evident in the tie-break, too, a series of winners helping her fend off four set points before a relieved Kerber converted at the fifth time of asking.
The second set was a more stop-start affair, Kerber taking a couple of rain delays in her stride to secure a fourth-round meeting with Misaki Doi.
A warm embrace between compatriots Kerber and Witthoeft as the No.4 seed advances to the fourth round#Wimbledon https://t.co/ECgQhRbd1w
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) 2 July 2016
Kerber is through to the second week at the All England Club for just the third time in her career, and despite finding herself in a wide-open section of the draw will not be looking beyond Doi. At this January’s Australian Open, the German came from match point down to defeat Doi en route to the title.
“I am expecting a really close match. She is a lefty, as well. We never played on grass before. I think this is also a little bit different than to Australia,” Kerber said about her rematch with Doi. “But I know that she is a tough opponent. I was match point down in Australia.
“But I will try not to think about who I’m playing. I will go out there trying to play my game like always, and let’s see.”
There were also hard-fought wins for Sloane Stephens and Timea Bacsinszky in a couple of the rain-affected second-round matches. Resuming midway through the final set, No.18 seed Stephens held her nerve to see off Mandy Minella, 3-6, 7-6(6), 8-6.
Meanwhile, Bacsinszky, the No.11 seed, came out all guns blazing against Monica Niculescu, reeling off six straight games to close out a 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 victory.
LONDON, Great Britain – No.19 seed Dominika Cibulkova moved on to the fourth round at Wimbledon for the first time since 2011 after a comprehensive win over former finalist Eugenie Bouchard.
“Today I was 100 percent sure I could win and I stayed calm, played brave in tough situations and went for my shots,” Cibulkova said afterwards. “The things I’ve been working on, especially the serve have really helped me.”
Cibulkova smelled success early on, getting the first break in the fourth game of the match. Despite facing break points in her opening service game, the Slovak’s speed around the court and powerful groundstrokes, especially off the forehand wing, were clicking together and she was able to see off the challenge.
She held three set points on her serve at 5-3 when Bouchard finally roared back to get her first break of the match. Her delight was short lived, however, as Cibulkova put away the set on her next chance.
Bouchard got broken once more in the second for a 4-1 lead to Cibulkova and her frustration was clear, receiving a point penalty for throwing her racquet after yet another of her usually-reliable groundstrokes sailed long.
“I definitely was a bit emotional out there,” Bouchard said. “It’s frustrating to feel like you’re not playing your best tennis at Wimbledon. You know, sometimes when I get it out, I can turn it around and play a bit better. It didn’t really happen this time, though.”
After an hour and twenty-six minutes, Cibulkova became the first player in the top half of the draw to punch her ticket into the fourth round, and she celebrated the occasion with a mighty roar of elation.
“That's a primeval roar!”
Dominika Cibulkova is celebrating after beating Eugenie Bouchard 6-4, 6-3#Wimbledon https://t.co/jw2P80YI2t
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 2, 2016
Despite hitting 24 winners to Cibulkova’s 17, it was Bouchard’s unforced error count that cost her in the important moments, hitting 16 to Cibulkova’s 19. The Canadian also failed to capitalize on her break point chances, converting just one of four while Cibukova put away three of nine.
With the victory, Cibukova has now won eight matches in a row on grass courts, a streak extending back to her run to the title at the grass court tune up event in Eastbourne. Cibulkova also grabbed her first win over Bouchard, having lost to her in three sets in both of her previous matches.
This marks the first time since Cibulkova’s quarterfinal run in 2011 that she’s reached the second week at Wimbledon, and she awaits the winner between Agnieszka Radwanska and Katerina Siniakova.
“It’s all coming together,” Cibulkova said. “Here we are, I won Eastbourne and now I’m in the fourth round here and it feels great. I just want to keep going.”
LONDON, Great Britain – No.3 seed Agnieszka Radwanska dug deep from her bag of tricks to see off Katerina Siniakova in a straight sets tour de force, needing just 63 minutes to advance to the fourth round 6-3, 6-1.
Radwanska put on a clinic on the No.3 Court against Siniakova, who at 20 years old was the youngest woman left in the draw. Against the big hitting Czech, Radwanska employed her famous ability of drawing out her opponent’s errors with her signature mix variety and anticipation, running Siniakova ragged all along the court.
The first set unfolded as a tightly-contested affair with Radwanska bringing up and converting the only break point for a lead at 4-2. She struck early on in the second set, frustrating Siniakova with a drop shot after pushing her out far behind the baseline.
Radwanska grabbed the second break of the second set at 4-1 when she fetched a wide-angled return with a vicious forehand loaded with sidespin, then calmly put away the next shot at the net. Siniakova was forced to hit one more ball as her would-be winners were returned time and time again.
Siniakova clawed to her first break point of the match at 5-1, but it was calmly brushed aside as the Pole looked locked in, breaking Siniakova once more and crushing a swinging crosscourt forehand pass to move on to the second week of Wimbledon for the eighth time in her career.
Cibulkova awaits Radwanska in the fourth round after the Slovak put away former finalist Eugenie Bouchard in straight sets earlier in the day.
Agnieszka Radwanska produces some wonderful tennis to see off Katerina Siniakova 6-3, 6-1. The Pole is into the 4R. pic.twitter.com/QTDjatxfeE
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 2, 2016
Ekaterina Makarova caused the latest upset at this year’s Wimbledon by knocking out two-time champion Petra Kvitova in straight sets.