Miami: Kerber Interview
An interview with Angelique Kerber after her second round win at the Miami Open.
An interview with Angelique Kerber after her second round win at the Miami Open.
MIAMI, FL, USA – A former World No.21 and perennial doubles threat, Elena Vesnina needed to fight through qualifying just to reach the main draw of the Miami Open, but the veteran Russian caused one of the biggest shake-ups of the event thus far, outsteadying No.10 seed and former No.1 Venus Williams, 6-0, 6-7(5), 6-2.
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“That was a great match, great fight,” she told Andrew Krasny during her on-court interview. “It’s always an honor to play against Venus. She’s a great champion. We played many times against each other and it’s always been a pleasure to play her and it’s always been a tough match-up.
“I’m really happy that I won today.”
Far from the typical underdog, Vesnina came into the match with a solid week at the Qatar Total Open – where she earned back-to-back wins over Simona Halep and Caroline Wozniacki and ended Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza’s 41-match winning streak in doubles – and an even head-to-head against the illustrious American. Landing 74% of her first serves to start, she took advantage of a flat opponent to race through the opening set without losing a game.
“I honestly was a little bit shocked after the first set, thinking, ‘Ok, what’s going on?'”
The second set was a more even affair; though Vesnina took what appeared to be a decisive break in the seventh game, Venus broke back at the eleventh hour, saving a match point on the Russian’s serve at 5-4.
“Even when I was up 5-3, I felt Venus was playing better and better and she raised her level up.”
Pushing the second set into a tie-break, the momentum swung back and forth before Venus swept the final two points, ensuring that the crowd would see a final set.
“She was serving incredibly; on the tie-break she played at a very high level of tennis.”
Undaunted – and perhaps aware that she won their only prior three-set match at the Western & Southern Open back in 2013 – Vesnina raced out to another 3-0 lead; though Venus pegged her back to within a game of level terms, the reigning Australian Open mixed doubles champion ultimately hit more winners (35 to 28) and fewer errors (35 to 39) to clinch the victory.
“Even though I lost the second set, I still believed in myself, and I knew everything could happen. It was a pleasure to play on this center court.”
Up next for Vesnina is No.24 seed and Australian Open semifinalist Johanna Konta, who defeated Danka Kovinic, 6-4, 6-2. With No.6 seed Carla Suárez Navarro out at the hands of American CoCo Vandeweghe, the highest seed left in this quarter of the draw is BNP Paribas Open champion Victoria Azarenka, who is ranked in the Top 10 but seeded No.13.
Vesnina is also in the doubles draw, set to play her first round with 18-year-old Daria Kasatkina, with whom she ended the Santina Streak. Kasatkina started the year with a win over the elder of the Williams sisters at the ASB Classic, and could be seen supporting her partner from the stands.
“She told me a couple of things before the match, but she said, ‘That’s Venus; you have to expect everything,'” Vesnina said when asked whether her countrywoman had given her any advice. “It was great to have her in my player box alongside my husband and my dad.
“The center court atmosphere was really amazing. Even though I felt like Venus was the favorite and everyone really wanted her to win, there will still some people cheering for me, so that was really nice. It’s great when you can have a big team behind you, supporting you and believing in you.”
MIAMI, FL, USA – Angelique Kerber will look to recapture her Australian Open magic on Friday as the seeds in the lower half of the draw kick off their Miami Open campaigns.
Friday, Second Round
[2] Angelique Kerber (GER #3) vs. Barbora Strycova (CZE #32)
Head-to-head: Kerber leads, 3-0
Key Stat: Kerber has dropped only 12 games in six previous sets versus Strycova.
After producing the most brilliant performance of her career in Australia, Angelique Kerber suddenly finds herself in a bit of a funk. The German, now ranked No.3 in the world, has lost three straight and has dropped six consecutive sets since winning the Australian Open title. But Kerber is not panicking. “I had a lot to do after Australia, and I was really enjoying it.” Kerber said. “Now I had a little bit of time to rest, to work very hard again on the practice courts. I’m fit and I’m healthy and that’s the important thing, so I’m ready to go again.” The German will be tested by the always pesky Barbora Strycova in the second round. Though troubled by Kerber in the past, the wily Czech will surely be ready to pounce on the opportunity if Kerber isn’t up to snuff.
Pick: Kerber in two
[4] Garbiñe Muguruza (ESP #4) vs. Dominika Cibulkova (SVK #54)
Head-to-head: Muguruza leads, 2-0
Key Stat: As a wildcard, Muguruza reached the round of 16 in her first two Miami appearances.
Perhaps a trip back to the place where the magic started will help Garbiñe Muguruza get her lethal game back on track in 2016. In 2012, the Spaniard was given a wildcard into Miami and proceeded to notch her first career WTA-level win before defeating two seeded players (Vera Zvonareva and Flavia Pennetta) on her way to the round of 16. Four years later, Muguruza is a proven Top 5 talent who is reeling a bit, and in search of her mojo. The Spaniard will look to find it against one of the most ornery fighters on tour in Dominika Cibulkova. The Slovakian was in play for an upset last week at Indian Wells, but squandered a match point and dropped the last five games to fall to Agnieszka Radwanska in three sets. Like Muguruza, Cibulkova is no stranger to having success in Miami. In her last appearance here (2014), she reached the semifinals for the first time.
Pick: Muguruza in three
[6] Carla Suárez Navarro (ESP #6) vs. CoCo Vandeweghe (USA #38)
Head-to-head: Suárez Navarro leads, 2-0
Key Stat: Suárez Navarro had to pull out of Indian Wells with a right ankle injury.
Last year Carla Suárez Navarro reached the final in Miami and secured her place in the WTA’s Top10 for the first time. This year, the Spaniard returns with a lot of points to defend, some questions about her health and a very powerful second-round opponent to deal with. Suárez Navarro has never dropped a set against Vandeweghe, but the American is one of the few players on tour that can take the racquet out of her opponent’s hands when she is on. Still, on the slow-playing hard courts of the Crandon Park Tennis Center, one has to like the consistent grind of Suárez Navarro’s methodical attack against the hit-and-miss aggression of Vandeweghe, particularly if the Spaniard is well enough to capitalize on her fitness advantage.
Pick: Suárez Navarro in three
[13] Victoria Azarenka (BLR #8) vs. Monica Puig (PUR #67)
Head-to-head: First meeting
Key Stat: Azarenka leads the WTA Tour in percentage of service games won thus far in 2016.
Victoria Azarenka is one of two players to have won multiple titles on the WTA Tour this year. Can she make it three in Miami? The red-hot Belarusian will square off against Puerto Rico’s Monica Puig in the first round and the match-up should favor Azarenka. Puig is a hard hitter when she is in control of rallies and able to step in and rip, but with Azarenka serving and returning so well of late, it’s hard to imagine many rallies where Puig will be in the driver’s seat. Azarenka, who improved to 16-1 on the season with her victory over Serena Williams in the Indian Wells final, should be able to dictate, and advance, without too much fuss.
Pick: Azarenka in two
Around the grounds…
Three-time champion Venus Williams will look to get back to winning ways against Elena Vesnina of Russia. The pair have split four previous meetings with 10th-seeded Williams winning the last two. No.7 seed Belinda Bencic will take part in a study of contrasts when she takes on hard-serving southpaw Kristyna Pliskova in a first-time meeting. Madison Keys will begin a new era with Mats Wilander as her part-time coach by facing Kirsten Flipkens. Keys has only played once since the Australian Open, losing to Nicole Gibbs at Indian Wells.
– Chris Oddo, wtatennis.com contributor
Agnieszka Radwanska takes on Alizé Cornet in the second round of the Miami Open.
Eugenie Bouchard and Bethanie Mattek-Sands out in three sets: Lucie Hradecka’s hard-hitting game came online just in time in the final set as she ousted No.45 Bouchard 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 in the 1st round of the Miami Open. Polish qualifier Magda Linette rallied to beat Bethanie Mattek-Sands 6-4, 6-7(7), 6-3.
Must-see second rounds set: With the first round of the Miami Open complete, here are the matches to watch in the second round: Garbiñe Muguruza vs. Dominika Cibulkova, Angelique Kerber vs. Barbora Strycova, Andrea Petkovic vs. Caroline Garcia, Sloane Stephens vs. Heather Watson, Daria Kasatkina vs. Simona Halep, Elina Svitolina vs. Zhang Shuai, Alize Cornet vs. Agnieszka Radwanska, Sara Errani vs. Naomi Osaka, Timea Bacsinszky vs. Margarita Gasparyan, Julia Goerges vs. Sam Stosur, Venus Williams vs. Elena Vesnina, Kristina Mladenovic vs. Nicole Gibbs.
Billie Jean King and Chris Evert hold court: The two legends called a press conference on Wednesday afternoon in response to the discussion of equal prize money kicked off by former BNP Paribas Open CEO Raymond Moore on Sunday. Moore has since resigned. King and Evert told reporters they had since been inundated with media requests and decided a press conference would be more efficient.
Here are some of the highlights:
– Chris Evert recalls the 70s: While King spoke about the future, Evert spoke of the importance of understanding the past in order to understand just how far women’s tennis has come.
Many of you were too young to even know what happened in the early ’70s. Some of you weren’t born. But there were a lot of struggles and there were a lot of sacrifices being made in the early 70s, and I think I’m going to talk a little bit about those.
In the early ’70s, the men had it really easy. Men athletes were very respected, admired, looked up to, and there was something almost unsettling about a strong, muscular athletic woman running around the court sweating. That was the early ’70s and that was the stigma.
Then Billie Jean King came into the picture with the Original 9. First of all, Billie Jean scared me to death with her forward thinking. She was bold and she was aggressive and she was damn smart. That was very intimidating to me, a teenager at that point.
In my mind, she was right up there with Gloria Steinem. At that point, every time I turned on the TV I saw demonstrations and I saw bra burning and I saw rallies. I sensed at my young age that there was a revolution of some kind going on. I sensed also that it was very, very important for women.
But I still couldn’t relate to her. I mean, I was a teenager. I was a kid in Ft. Lauderdale growing up in a culture where dads worked and moms stayed home and worked in the home and took care of the kids.
In the early ’70s I was lucky enough to see how hard these women tried to sell the sport of tennis. The clinics and the cocktail parties and press conferences and the endless WTA meetings. Even bucking the establishment, who were at the time the USTA, when they threatened to be banned from US Open.
In 1974, when I was a teenager, I played Billie Jean in a tournament in San Francisco in the finals and lost to her quite easily. The next weekend, because we were No. 1 and No. 2 in the world, I played her in Sarasota, Florida and beat her quite easily. I openly wondered why she was so sluggish and just didn’t seem to play her best out there.
I was informed that the day of the finals Billie Jean had flown out from Sarasota and spent the whole day in New York City doing meetings with potential sponsors, and then she flew back to Sarasota at 5:30. Didn’t even warm up and just went on the court and played.
She put the tour before her career so many times. How many men or women do that? Ask yourself that. By the way, she and her husband at that time, Larry King, took me to Dairy Queen after. (Laughter.) Billie Jean loves her ice cream.
This was the era in the early ’70s of no coaches, no entourages, no agents. We practiced together; we traveled together; we hung out together. We were all friends, comrades, and we had each other’s backs. We were family. It was the best time in tennis. Ever.
So if there is a silver lining to all this that’s gone on in the last week, it’s the fact that there has been such outrage from the players and from the media and from the public defending the women’s game.
I think from time to time we all need a reminder of the evolution of women’s tennis and sacrifices every generation has had to make, from Billie Jean to myself and Martina, Steffi to Monica, to the Williams sisters. What we’ve done to get the credibility, the respect, and equality that we have now.
– Progress made, more progress needed:
To hear the men and women weighing in, tennis players just having this dialog, a discussion, is actually progress. To have Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka say that about their daughters, that’s progress.
So this next generation of men are going to make a huge difference. We need them, but they need us. We need each other. I think if we can just keep that in our minds all the time, then we’re going to win. The WTA and the ATP, ITF, USTA in this country, we all have an opportunity to help make the world a better place. I just hope that’s what we’re going to do.
.@ChrissieEvert & I had a great talk w/ @DjokerNole today at @MiamiOpen. He's a class act and a true champion. pic.twitter.com/6Ow8nBkKEl
— Billie Jean King (@BillieJeanKing) March 23, 2016
– Equality over all: King emphasized her position is not about women vs. men but about equality and continuing to use tennis’ platform to effect change.
We represent tennis. Because we have men and women’s, we are one of the few that can lead globally on these issues. That is what my life is about and what I care about. Tennis was secondary to me. The reason I would go and do the sponsor meetings is tennis was secondary.
This, inclusion, when it’s about all of us, is everything. We have a chance to continue to lead. To have equal prize money in the majors sends a message. It’s not about the money, it’s about the message. Any time you discount another human being by gender, race, disability, however, we’re not helping ourselves.
You want everyone to make a lot. At least I do. We want to make the pie bigger, the marketplace bigger for all, for all of you so you have jobs. To argue over the prize money issue, what about when Chris and Martina were playing and their ratings were better than the men? We didn’t go, Oh, we deserve more than the men. No. Let’s just keep it equal and help each other.
So anyway, let’s have some fun. It’s not a “he” thing or a “she” thing; it’s a “we” thing. I’m telling you, this is the only way the world is going to make it.
– Nicole Gibbs weighs in: The American has been a vocal defender (and explainer) of the concept of equal prize money on Twitter, and she was in the audience listening to King and Evert’s remarks when King called on her to chime in:
NICOLE GIBBS: First of all, I just want to thank you guys for your words today. You guys have been such mentors to me throughout my career just with your tennis, but also using your platform, which I think is so, so important.
I was just talking to Jeff over here. I got into a little spat on Twitter last night. I wouldn’t call it a spat but I was just hearing some negative opinions towards women on court with some statistics and some of my own thoughts about equality and finding a way everybody can support one another, like you said.
I had multiple girls in the locker room come up to me and say, Hey, I saw your tweets last night, your messages, but my coach told me not to get involved, or I didn’t think it was smart for me to get involved.
BILLIE JEAN KING: Really?
NICOLE GIBBS: I’m not going to name names, but it’s really disappointing. It’s like, Okay, so you see me out there putting myself out there and trying to give myself an opportunity to use my platform, and you think, Oh, I have an opportunity to use mine too but I’m not going to do that because maybe the media won’t like it or maybe even men who are following me who have these opinions won’t like it.
I think there is far too much worrying about what other people are going to think when you’re campaigning for equality as a woman. I think it’s really important for us to do as you’re saying, use our platform and really just fight the good fight.
BILLIE JEAN KING: What do you say to the ones that say they don’t want to get involved or get committed to this?
NICOLE GIBBS: You know, I try not to be too heavy- handed because…
BILLIE JEAN KING: That doesn’t work. You’re right.
NICOLE GIBBS: Yeah, like you’re saying, though, you can never really fully put yourself in someone else’s shoes, so I’m not going to say, You need to do this…
What I’ll say is, Hey, I would really appreciate some support on that. Or, Hey, I’m writing a blog in the next couple weeks. Would you be willing to give a quote for that that’s authentic and unfiltered?
I get a lot of positive responses, so I think it’s appealing to people in a way that scares them.
CHRIS EVERT: If I could give you some advice: Never be fearful of telling your truth. I think I’m saying that because in my generation there was always so much fear about telling the truth and about consequences and about image and about how you’ll look and how you’ll sound.
You know what? It’s all wrong. It’s all wrong. So I admire you for speaking out as a current player. Just keep doing it.
NICOLE GIBBS: Thank you. Hopefully I can get past 74 in the world so I can have a little higher platform.
BILLIE JEAN KING: Doesn’t matter. You have a platform because we’re global now. We weren’t global when we started. This is fantastic.
To clarify, my statements today were meant to address the undercurrent of fear of speaking out that some WTA players experience…
— Nicole Gibbs (@Gibbsyyyy) March 24, 2016
…myself included at times. Not to talk down about anyone else!! Came to my attention that maybe it would be read differently.
— Nicole Gibbs (@Gibbsyyyy) March 24, 2016
U r a future leader, girl… You've got what it takes.. https://t.co/WubgvGOmPD
— Chris Evert (@ChrissieEvert) March 24, 2016
Cake not crumbs: King recalled her early interactions with an all-male press corp, and how they struggled to grapple with a strong, outspoken woman advocating for equality.
You have to remember, when I would go to a press conference, and I don’t know about you, Chris, but there wasn’t one woman sportswriter.
There wouldn’t have been one woman in the crowd my whole life. When I played Bobby Riggs, there wasn’t one women sportswriter there. I grew up with guys. It was fun actually. They were funny. We got laughing a lot.
I used to ask them before we started the press conference, I would like each person here to tell me what it means to be a feminist. It was hilarious. All the guys start thinking about it. Whoa, whoa. Let’s go to each [person]. If I say that word, I want to make sure we’re on the same page.
You cannot believe the differences. It was hilarious. Nobody was really sure what they thought. So I just said equal rights and opportunities for boys and girls. Exactly what I’ve said since I was 12. Just means equality. Everybody gets their knickers in a twist. Oh, oh. What are the girls asking for? No, we just want the same. Not more.
Everyone thinks women should be thrilled when we get crumbs. I want women to have the cake, the icing, the cherry on top, too. And every man and every women and every — now we have more than just men and women, so however they self- identify. I have to honor that. I just think every single human being deserves the cake and the icing and everything. Okay? Everyone. Everyone.
Insider Podcast: Lastly, check out WTA Insider’s look ahead to the Miami Open draw in the latest episode of the WTA Insider Podcast:
All photos courtesy of Getty Images.
An interview with Agnieszka Radwanska after her win in the second round of the Miami Open.
MIAMI, FL, USA – Top seed Serena Williams nearly saw her quest for a ninth Miami Open title end in her opening match against Christina McHale, who saved a match point to force a deciding set; Williams nonetheless prevailed with her 12th ace, 6-3, 5-7, 6-2.
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Looking to shake off a runner-up finish at the BNP Paribas Open by playing in one of her favorite tournaments, Williams looked well in control through most of the match, taking a set and a break lead, serving for the match at 5-4 in the second set. But McHale – who has enjoyed a solid start to 2016, including a doubles title in Hobart and a singles win at an ITF Challenger in Maui – ended up saving a match point to break back and win four games in a row to level the match.
“She definitely started to fight harder, and is clearly capable of playing great tennis,” Serena told Andrew Krasny during her on-court interview. “She showed it today.”
Despite not playing her best tennis, the 21-time Grand Slam champion still managed 33 winners on the day and two more breaks of serve to clinch her spot in the third round, where she will play Kazakhstan’s Zarina Diyas, who took out No.31 seed Daria Gavrilova earlier in the day.
Before the start of the tournament, Williams penned an op-ed in the New York Times about how much she loves the Miami Open, which may yet move from its present location in Crandon Park. The American reaffirmed her love of what she considers a second home in front of an adoring crowd.
“Miami is such a special place for me. I live so close to here; in fact I was just home yesterday,” she said with a laugh.
“When I was younger, I used to watch so many people play here. I know a lot of the kids have that same experience. I grew up wandering the grounds like everyone here, and now I’m playing here and it’s always such a special moment.”
Williams’ good friend and former No.1 Caroline Wozniacki earned a much-needed win over a resurgent Vania King, 7-5, 6-2, setting up a third round encounter with No.12 seed Elina Svitolina. Svitolina recently added 2016 International Tennis Hall Of Fame Inductee Justine Henin to her coaching staff, and earned a solid win over Australian Open quarterfinalist Zhang Shuai, who beat Wozniacki last week in Indian Wells, 6-3, 6-0.
Abierto Monterrey Afirme champion and wildcard Heather Watson allowed just four points from American Sloane Stephens in their second round match, winning 11 straight games to improve their head-to-head to 5-2 with a 6-3, 6-0 victory. France’s Caroline Garcia survived a topsy-turvy afair against No.21 seed Andrea Petkovic, earning the upset, 7-6(5), 3-6, 7-6(2).
An interview with Heather Watson after her win in the second round of the Miami Open.
MIAMI, FL, USA – No.3 seed Agnieszka Radwanska sailed into the third round of the Miami Open with a straight set win over Alizé Cornet on Thursday afternoon.
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In a typically polished display, Radwanska pulled out all the usual party pieces to wrap up a 6-0, 6-1 victory in 68 minutes.
“I’m just very happy with that win, maybe the score was not showing everything that was happening on the court,” Radwanska said. “But I think it was a great start and a couple of tight games at the beginning of both sets was the key.”
Cornet’s appearance at Crandon Park came as a surprise to most, having announced only last month that she was set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines. And Radwanska certainly gave the Frenchwoman’s fitness a thorough examination, pulling her to all corners of the court.
By the start of the second set, Cornet cut a beleaguered figure. When she ballooned a forehand long to drop serve early on, it was a case of damage limitation. Radwanska was in no mood for charity, racing through the final four games to register her 18th win of the season.
“The first match [of the tournament] is always tricky and it doesn’t matter who you’re playing, that’s why I’m very happy to have such a good first match. Here today the conditions were really hot and humid. We all have to prepare for that and it’s not going to be easy in the next few days,” Radwanska added.
In the third round the Pole will face Madison Brengle, after she upset No.28 seed Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, 7-5, 6-4. “I think we’ve never played before so that’s always a challenge. I saw a bit of her matches this year and last year – a couple of good results for her.”
Also advancing in their section were Ana Ivanovic, who eased past Teliana Pereira, 6-3, 6-0, and Timea Bacsinszky, a 6-3, 6-1 winner over Margarita Gasparyan.