Tennis News

BASTAD, Sweden – Johanna Larsson’s defense of her Ericsson Open title gathered further momentum following a brisk win over qualifier Sara Sorribes Tormo on Thursday afternoon.

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The withdrawal of top seed Angelique Kerber earlier on removed one of the more significant obstacles between Larsson and a second title on home soil. However, in front of an appreciative home crowd she was never likely to take her eye off the ball, running out a 6-0, 6-3 winner in an hour and 20 minutes.

“I don’t feel more pressure, the same thing happened last year, but I don’t really think about it,” Larsson said when asked about Kerber’s unexpected exit. “I try to just focus on my own thing and it’s a very tough match coming up in the quarters so I’m just looking forward to that one.”

Sorribes Tormo has made only fleeting appearances at WTA events this year and her inexperience was laid bare early on, Larsson romping through the first set. In the second set, Sorribes Tormo gave a better account of herself, success in a terrific 23-shot exchange helping break the No.8 seed in the opening game.

Unfortunately for the Spaniard, holding onto her own service games continued to be problematic. A couple of double faults handed the break right back, before Larsson put daylight between the two when she slung a serve out wide to register an increasingly rare hold the sixth game.

This cushion proved enough to get Larsson to the finishing line, and ace down the T taking her into a fifth quarterfinal in six years at Bastad Tennis Stadium.

There she is likely to face stiffer resistance, taking on No.4 seed Annika Beck, an impressive 6-2, 6-0 winner over Anastasija Sevastova. In the last second-round match, Julia Goerges fought back to defeat Bethanie Mattek-Sands, 2-6, 6-4, 6-2.

Back to back aces, nice finish by Johanna Larsson against @sara_sorribes pic.twitter.com/FC5Xw1hBdY

— Swedish Open Tennis (@swedish_open) 21 July 2016

STANFORD, CA, USA – Former World No.1 Venus Williams treated the Bank of the West Classic to a topsy-turvy three-setter against Magda Linette, but the top seed found her way against the Pole when it counted, emerging victorious, 6-3, 6-7(6), 6-2, to reach the quarterfinals.

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Playing at the very tournament where she made her WTA debut back in 1994 – and playing as the No.1 seed at a WTA Premier level event for the first time since 2004 (Toray Pan Pacific Open) – Venus assumed the role of the favorite to emphatic effect to start the match, racing through the opening set without dropping serve and edging ahead an ostensibly decisive break to start the second.

Two games from elimination, Linette was coming off just her first WTA main draw win since reaching the quarterfinals of the Katowice Open, but nonetheless turned the tides against the illustrious American, breaking back to force a tie-break.

Venus had lost just one tie-break all year, and though she fell behind 6-2 two in Wednesday night’s sudden death, the five-time Wimbledon winner appeared poised to close out the match fairly quickly as she saved four set points in a row. But Linette held firm to level the match after a second set that lasted just over an hour.

The Pole had one last comeback in her late in the final set; after losing the first four games on the bounce, she nabbed one of the breaks back to put pressure on the Venus serve in the seventh game, one that had proven crucial in the second set. But with sister Serena in the stands, Venus made no mistake the second time around, and eased into the quarterfinals in two hours and 17 minutes.

Up next for the top seed is either qualifier Sachia Vickery or wildcard Catherine Bellis, who caused the upset of the tournament by taking out No.6 seed Jelena Ostapenko in the first round.

More to come…

STANFORD, CA, USA – Australian Open semifinalist Johanna Konta was emphatic in her first hardcourt match of the summer swing, dismissing wildcard Julia Boserup, 6-3, 6-1, to reach the quarterfinals at the Bank of the West Classic.

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Coming off a second round finish at Wimbledon, Konta was eager to regain the momentum that saw her surge into the Top 20. Playing Stanford for the first time, Konta faced a tricky opponent in Boserup, who is having her own summer of firsts following her run into the third round at the All England Club.

“I definitely felt I played a really good level in parts,” she said during her on-court interview, adding, “She definitely made me work for it, especially towards the end of the first set. It was quite tough for me to close it out. She’s a great competitor and a great player, so I’m happy to be coming back in a couple of days to play again.”

Konta’s rise up the rankings began just around this time last year, when she won 16 straight matches on the Challenger and WTA level, leading her into the round of 16 of the US Open and foreshadowing her breakthrough run in Melbourne. Comfortable on the quicker surfaces, the Brit was able to wrap up the victory in just over an hour, booking an encounter with China’s Zheng Saisai for a spot in the semifinals. 

“I’m really looking forward to this part of the season; I’m a rookie, haven’t played here or next week, so there’s a lot of firsts for me coming up. I like playing on hard, equally on grass, but it’s definitely a nice change for the season. I take a lot of confidence with every match I get to play, moving forward into the next one.”

Zheng opened play with a 6-4, 6-1 win over No.7 seed Alizé Cornet. Cornet survived a marathon match with American Jennifer Brady in her first round, and though she edged ahead by a break to start the first set, Zheng proved too strong in the end, dispatching her French opposition in 87 minutes.

“My gameplan changed a lot today, not keeping too many rallies with her because she moves very well and very solid,” she said after the match. “I think I played well today.”

Doubles champion a year ago, Zheng felt the love from the Stanford crowd as she reached her first quarterfinal in singles, throwing a towel up to a fan following her victory.

“Last year, I was here 10 days and I really love it here. Every match, I feel like I meet new fans, so I really enjoy playing here and hope I can keep going!”

STANFORD, CA, USA – 17-year-old Catherine Bellis thrilled the Northern California crowd in her first round against No.6 seed Jelena Ostapenko; the American ousted the Latvian youngster, 6-4, 6-4 at the Bank of the West Classic.

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“In the end, I was just a little bit more consistent than she was,” she said in her on-court interview. “I just tried to make as many balls as I could – especially in that last game. It was a little tight; I had a couple of heart attacks, but it’s all good!”

Bellis burst onto the scene back in 2014, when at 15 years of age, she stunned Dominika Cibulkova in the first round of the US Open to become the youngest woman to win a main draw match there in nearly a decade. Two years on, the potential still burned bright from the young American, who twice recovered from early deficits to survive the surging Ostapenko, who struggled on serve with nine double faults in the 72 minute match.

Injured in doubles on Monday, Bellis admitted to Andrew Krasny she considered pulling out of the tournament before the match took place.

“I didn’t even know if I was going to play tonight because yesterday I got hit with an overhead in the eye. I was crying so hard and wasn’t even able to see. So to even come out today meant so much to me.”

Improving to 3-2 against Top 50 opposition, Bellis will play the winner of the second night match in Stanford between qualifiers Sachia Vickery and Elitsa Kostova.

Her win over Ostapenko was the first Stadium Court match to last only two sets as Julia Boserup, Magda Linette, and Alison Riske each needed a decider to capture their first round wins. Another American wildcard who reached the third round of Wimbledon in her Grand Slam debut, Boserup dispatched rising star Naomi Osaka, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4, while Linette recovered from a one-set deficit to defeat Kristyna Pliskova, 2-6, 6-2, 7-5. Riske pulled off the most dramatic win of all against Varvara Lepchenko, clinching victory in a third set tie-break, 2-6, 6-3, 7-6(4).

More to come…