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Hibino Battles Through In Istanbul

Hibino Battles Through In Istanbul

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

ISTANBUL, Turkey – No.6 seed Nao Hibino overcame a slow start to defeat wildcard Dayana Yastremska and book her place in the second round of the TEB BNP Paribas Istanbul Cup.

Watch live action from Stuttgart & Istanbul this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!

Having played just a handful of clay court tournaments during her time on the ITF Circuit, Hibino’s unfamiliarity with the surface was betrayed by a number of tumbles. And by the start of the second set she looked to be slipping out of the tournament as World No.509 Yastremska threatened to move a double break ahead.

However, the Japanese player hung on, drawing herself level before breaking decisively in the final game of the set when Yastremska erred on the forehand wing. With confidence now coursing through her veins, Hibino reeled off 12 of the next 14 points to take a stranglehold of the match. It was a grip she would not relinquish, wrapping up a 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 with a crosscourt backhand winner.

“I didn´t know how she played. I struggled in the first set, but I found a way to win as the match went on,” Hibino said. “This is the first proper clay court season of my career. I practiced very hard in Japan. It was tough but I got used to the clay and hope to feel better on it in my next match.”

In the only other main draw match, No.5 seed Danka Kovinic recorded a straightforward 6-3, 6-3 victory over Kurumi Nara. Meanwhile, in the final round of qualifying there were wins for Maria Sakkari, Kristina Kucova and Sorana Cirstea.

Nao Hibino

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Stephens Headlines USANA Celebration

Stephens Headlines USANA Celebration

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Up to 1000 USANA Executives and Associates were on hand for April 16th’s USANA US Nationals Celebration at the Green Valley Ranch Resort in Henderson, Nevada.

The event was hosted by former NFL player and USANA Associate Jeremy “J” Leman, and among Saturday’s special guests was Sloane Stephens, who had just won her third tournament of 2016 in Charleston, and former doubles No.1 Liezel Huber. Other athletes participating included Susan Francia, a two-time Olympic gold medalist in rowing; Alex Deibold, an Olympic bronze medalist in snowboarding; and Sarah Hendrickson, who is the first female to ever compete in an Olympic ski jumping event.

Stephens, who hit the most aces of her fellow USANA Ambassadors in Charleston, answered questions about her diet and supplement regiment on stage, and signed autographs alongside her fellow athletes, later tweeting about the day’s activities on social media.

Check out some of the best photos from the event:

Sloane Stephens, Liezel Huber

Sloane Stephens, Liezel Huber

Sloane Stephens

All photos courtesy of USANA.

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Notes & Netcords: April 18, 2016

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

WINNERS

Irina Falconi captured her first WTA title in historic fashion, becoming the first American woman to win the Claro Open Colsanitas as she recovered from a break down in the final set to defeat Sílvia Soler-Espinosa, 6-2, 2-6, 6-4.

Starting the week at No.92, Falconi is tentatively set to return to the Top 70, close to her career-high ranking of No.64. The Ecuadorian-American also dedicated her win to her birthplace, which had just suffered an earthquake on Sunday.

Read the full story here.

Meanwhile, Fed Cup World Group semifinals came to their thrilling conclusion on Sunday, as the Czech Republic and France each swept the decisive doubles rubber to advance to the 2016 Fed Cup final in November.

Read the full story here.

GAME, SET, MATCH: WTA Insider

Game: Irina Falconi dedicates her win to Ecuador.

The Ecuadorian-born American captured her first title in grinding, clay court fashion, beating Sílvia Soler-Espinosa from a break down in the final set to win the Claro Open Colsanitas 6-2, 2-6, 6-4. It was a particularly impressive run for the 25-year-old given she had previously never made it past the third round of any tour-level clay court event. In addition to beating Soler-Espinosa in the final, she also took out an in-form Lara Arruabarrena in the semifinals 6-3, 4-6, 6-2.

A Georgia Tech standout who made her big splash at the 2011 US Open when she defeated No.14 seed Dominika Cibulkova in the second round, Falconi dedicated her win to the victims and survivors of the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck Ecuador on Saturday.

“My father is there right now, actually,” Falconi said. “He wanted to come here and watch me play, but obviously with the earthquake travel became complicated. First of all, thank god all my family is fine. But I know it’s a very difficult situation for so many people over there.

“The last 24 hours we’ve just been praying constantly for all the families and the children – I knew there’s a lot of people who’ve been killed already. We’re sending over a lot of prayers.”

Set: Doubles on display at Fed Cup.

Given the Fed Cup format, which sees the doubles played as the final rubber it’s easy to focus solely on the singles rubbers as being the decisive matches. But both France and the defending champion Czech Republic booked their spots in November’s final via the decisive doubles.

The Czechs overcame a heroic performance by 23-year-old Viktorija Golubic, who stepped in for an injured Belinda Bencic to earn two singles wins over Karolina Pliskova and Barbora Strycova, by stunning Martina Hingis and Golubic. Pliskova and Lucie Hradecka teamed up for a surprising 6-2, 6-2 rout of the Swiss team give the Czechs a 3-2 win and put them into their fifth final in six years.

For Amelie Mauresmo’s French squad, it was Charleston champions Kristina Mladenovic and Caroline Garcia who secured the win in the final rubber. They too had to overcome a strong singular performance. In this case it was No.94 Kiki Bertens stunning them both in singles. But Mladenovic and Garcia showed their doubles form, beating Bertens and Rachel Hogenkamp 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 to take France into their first Fed Cup final in 11 years.

Match: Simona Halep, Belinda Bencic, and Caroline Wozniacki fighting injuries.

All three were set to be key cogs in their respective Fed Cup machines but as the European clay season kicks off they’re all battling injury. Halep was finally fit and healthy over the US hardcourt spring but she rolled her ankle in her first singles match for Romania on Saturday against Andrea Petkovic. She was able to come out the next day for a three-set battle with Angelique Kerber but is now racing the clock to find her fitness for what should be a strong part of the season for the 2014 French Open finalist.

Bencic and Wozniacki’s injury woes are far more serious. Bencic is out for at least four weeks due to a back injury, while Wozniacki turned her ankle during practice. Last year the Dane made the final in Stuttgart and the quarterfinals in Madrid. With over 500 points to defend over the next few weeks, Wozniacki could see herself unseeded at the French Open if she can’t get back on the court soon.

RANKING MOVERS:
Notable singles ranking movers for the week of April 18, 2016.

Irina Falconi (USA), +25 (No.92 to 67): Falconi earned the biggest ranking jump of the week when she became the first American to win the title at the Claro Open Colsanitas in Bogota.

Lara Arruabarrena (ESP), +10 (No.86 to 76): Arruabarrena had a dominating run in Bogota – the Spaniard only lost five games in three matches leading up to the semifinals – an as a result she jumps up to No.76, inching closer and closer to her career-high ranking of No.70.

Wang Qiang (CHN), +9 (No.88 to 79): One of three Chinese players ranked inside the Top 100, Qiang Wang rises to a career-high ranking of No.79 after winning back-to-back ITF-level titles.

Timea Bacsinszky (SUI), +1 (No.17 to 16): Bacsinszky rises one spot to No.16, trading places with Elina Svitolina who suffered a surprise first-round loss at the Claro Open Colsanitas.

UPCOMING TOURNAMENTS

Porsche Tennis Grand Prix
Stuttgart, Germany
Premier | $693,900 | Clay, Indoor
Monday, April 18 – Sunday, April 24, 2016

TEB BNP Paribas Istanbul Cup
Istanbul, Turkey
International | $226,750 | Clay, Outdoor
Monday, April 18 – Sunday, April 24, 2016

GP SAR La Princesse Lalla Meryem
Rabat, Morocco
International | $226,750 | Clay, Outdoor
Monday, April 25 – Saturday, April 30, 2016

J&T Banka Prague Open
Prague, Czech Republic
International | $226,750 | Clay, Outdoor
Monday, April 25 – Saturday, April 30, 2016

TOP 20 PLAYER SCHEDULES
1. Serena Williams
2. Agnieszka Radwanska – Stuttgart
3. Angelique Kerber – Stuttgart
4. Garbiñe Muguruza – Stuttgart
5. Victoria Azarenka
6. Simona Halep – Stuttgart
7. Petra Kvitova – Stuttgart
8. Roberta Vinci – Stuttgart, Prague
9. Maria Sharapova
10. Belinda Bencic – Stuttgart
11. Carla Suárez Navarro – Stuttgart
12. Flavia Pennetta
13. Svetlana Kuznetsova – Stuttgart, Prague
14. Venus Williams
15. Lucie Safarova – Stuttgart, Prague
16. Timea Bacsinszky – Rabat
17. Elina Svitolina –
18. Karolina Pliskova – Stuttgart, Prague
19. Ana Ivanovic – Stuttgart
20. Sara Errani – Stuttgart

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!
Best wishes to those celebrating birthdays this week:

Misa Eguchi (JPN) – April 18, 1992
Maria Sharapova (RUS) – April 19, 1987
Daniela Hantuchova (SVK) – April 23, 1983

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Insider Draw Analysis: Stuttgart

Insider Draw Analysis: Stuttgart

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

1. Who is healthy?

Top seed Angieszka Radwanska reclaimed the World No.2 ranking last week when reigning Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber failed to defend her title at the Volvo Car Open. Arguably the most consistent player of the last six months, Radwanska has reached the semifinals or better of all but one of her five WTA appearances in 2016 – that being a hard-fought Miami Open loss to eventual semifinalist Timea Bacsinszky in the round of 16.

However, all of those matches might be catching up with the Pole, who withdrew from her home tournament in Katowice and the Fed Cup World Group II Play-off due to a right shoulder injury. Heading onto what has traditionally been her least successful surface, Radwanska has few points to defend through the French Open, winning just two matches during last season’s clay court swing.

Click here to check out the Stuttgart draw.

Still, Stuttgart’s notoriously stacked draw means she will have to hit the ground running after a first round bye, facing one of two Fed Cup heroines in Andrea Petkovic and Kristina Mladenovic. No.8 seed Lucie Safarova, Karolina Pliskova, and 2008 French Open champion Ana Ivanovic are all possible quarterfinal opponents.

Simona Halep

With far more to defend ahead of the second Grand Slam of 2016 is former French Open finalist Simona Halep. One of the most natural clay court players in the field, the Romanian reached the semifinals of Stuttgart and Rome, but admitted to picking up a left ankle injury in her three-set win over Andrea Petkovic in Fed Cup. Unsure if she would play her second match against Germany on Sunday, Halep won only four games against Kerber, who had never beaten Halep in three previous encounters.

Seeded fourth in Stuttgart, the former World No.2 will have a few extra days ot recover, but is in a section full of dangerous floaters like Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, 2011 champion Julia Goerges, Alizé Cornet and Ekaterina Makarova. No.6 seed Roberta Vinci rounds out the top half of the draw.

2. Can Kerber and Suárez Navarro rebound on red clay?

Kerber won the second of four Premier titles in Stuttgart last year, outlasting an in-form Caroline Wozniacki in three grueling sets. The German shook off a minor post-Melbourne slump to reach the semifinals in Miami and Charleston, where a viral illness forced her to retire against Sloane Stephens. More at home on faster surfaces, Kerber can still get things down in Stuttgart’s slow conditions; seeded second, she’ll play either a qualifier or countrywoman Annika Beck, whom she beat en route to her Australian Open title.

Her possible quarterfinal opponent could be another Aussie redux in semifinalist Johanna Konta, but all eyes will be on No.7 seed Carla Suárez Navarro. The story of the season’s first six weeks, Suárez Navarro rocketed up the rankings with a solid Middle Eastern Swing and a title in Doha, but an ankle injury halted her momentum and her inability to defend her Miami Open points caused her to fall from No.6 to No.11.

A finalist last year in Rome, the Spaniard had few problems in Fed Cup, dropping just two games against Roberta Vinci. She may trail Kerber in the overall head-to-head, but their only clay court meeting came two years ago in Stuttgart. The winner? Suárez Navarro, in straight sets.

Garbine Muguruza

3. Will Garbiñe Muguruza bring her Fed Cup form to Stuttgart?

Despite a slow start to 2016, Muguruza appeared to be putting the pieces together in Miami, playing one of the best matches of the year against former No.1 Victoria Azarenka. Traveling to Lleida for a relegation Fed Cup tie against the once unstoppable Italians, the Spaniard made a seamless transition to the terre battue with a pair of straight set victories over 2010 French Open champion Francesca Schiavone and Vinci, whom she defeated, 6-2, 6-2.

Known for her breakout run to the 2015 Wimbledon final, Muguruza is perfectly capable on clay, having twice made the quarterfinals of Roland Garros – defeating World No.1 Serena Williams in the second round back in 2014. The No.3 seed in Stuttgart, she will open against Sabine Lisicki or Timea Babos, a fast-rising Hungarian who nearly upset Kerber under the lights in Miami.

No.5 seed Petra Kvitova is her projected quarterfinal opponent, but Monica Niculescu or Caroline Garcia could just as easily take their own impressive form from Fed Cup to take out the two-time Wimbledon winner.

Julia Goerges

4. Which hometown favorite is poised for a breakout run?

Though Germany boasts six women in the Top 60, only four may be eligible for the Olympic Summer Games; with less than two months before the teams are selected, the results through the clay court swing will be crucial to determining which women make the cut to qualify for Rio.

How tight is the race for the German Olympic team? As of April 18th, No.4 and No.5 Sabine Lisicki and Anna-Lena Friedsam are separated by just two places in the WTA rankings, at No.50 and No.52, respectively. Not too far behind at No.59, Julia Goerges is in the midst of a stellar season, having already reached a final in Auckland and another in doubles at the BNP Paribas Open.

All six women are in action this week in Stuttgart, led by Kerber and Petkovic, who are the only two ranked inside the Top 30. Goerges defeated then-No.1 Wozniacki to win the title here in 2011, while Lisicki will be hard-pressed to turn around a disappointing start to her season. Will any make strides towards those coveted Olympic spots?

Martina Hingis, Sania Mirza

5. How will Santina fare as they search for a second wind?

Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza began this season much as they ended the last, roaring through back-to-back titles in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, and St. Petersburg before their 41-match winning streak came to an end in Doha. Since narrowly losing to Daria Kasatkina and Elena Vesnina in a match tie-break, Santina have been unable to string together wins, losing in the round of 16 in both Indian Wells and Miami – titles they won to cement their partnership in 2015.

Opting against the trip to Charleston, Hingis and Mirza look to regain their mojo as they aim to achieve their ultimate goal of a fourth straight major tournament, a “Santina Slam.”

Playing on their least favorite surface, the co-No.1s should be able to play their way into form in the 16-team draw with only four seeds. Their biggest opposition looks to be No.2 seeds Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic. The French Connection swept the Charleston title in Santina’s absence – defeating reigning French Open champions Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Lucie Safarova in the final – and battled through a decisive doubles rubber to send France into the Fed Cup final on Sunday.

Under the radar is the unseeded Kveta Peschke. The former No.1 and 2011 Wimbledon champion is playing her first tournament since last year in Dubai; pairing with Anna-Lena Groenefeld, Peschke will open against No.4 seeds Raquel Atawo and Alicja Rosolska.

All photos courtesy of Getty Images.

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Czechs, French Into Fed Cup Final

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

The Fed Cup World Group semifinals came to their thrilling conclusion on Sunday, as the Czech Republic and France each swept the decisive doubles rubber to advance to the 2016 Fed Cup final in November.

Both ties were tied at the end of Day 1, and the Swiss team still appeared poised for a massive upset over the Czechs – who had won four titles in the last five years – but Karolina Pliskova earned a crucial victory in revese singles over Timea Bacsinszky, recovering from her surprising loss to World No.129 Viktorija Golubic, 6-4, 6-2.

Golubic was far from finished, however; playing in front of her home crowd in Lucerne, the 23-year-old pulled off another stunning comeback on Sunday – this time against Barbora Strycova, 3-6, 7-6(6), 6-1. With the tie coming down to the decisive doubles, the momentum looked to be back on the Swiss side – especially with co-No.1 Martina Hingis taking the doubles court with Golubic. But Pliskova had a talented partner of her own in Lucie Hradecka, and the pair managed to put away the Swiss once and for all, 6-2, 6-2.

“Obviously yesterday was a tough match and tough day for me because I didn’t expect to lose this one,” Pliskova said after the 3-2 victory over Swizerland. “Even physically I was a little bit down. I just had a good dinner, went to sleep and woke up on a new day with new energy and just tried to do my best.”

“I am happy with how we played,” Hradecka added. “Maybe I expected a closer match but I know if we play fast and we don’t give them a lot of time, it would be an advantage for us. It was great and I really enjoyed it.”

Over in Trélazé, the Dutch team didn’t want their miracle run to end at the hands of the French, pushing the vaunted team to the brink after tying the contest on Saturday. Kiki Bertens went 2-0 in singles when she earned a 7-5, 6-4 win over Kristina Mladenovic, but Caroline Garcia recovered from her Day 1 loss to defeat Richel Hogenkamp, 6-3, 6-4 – forcing the decisive doubles rubber.

Garcia and Mladenovic had just won their first title of 2016 together at the Volvo Car Open, but Bertens and Hogenkamp put up one last resistence as they edged to within six points of victory after taking the second set. The French ultimately proved too strong in the end, taking the rubber and the 3-2 tie, 4-6, 6-3, 6-3.

Led by coach and former Fed Cup stalwart Amélie Mauresmo, France is now into its first Fed Cup final since 2005, the last of three consecutive years where they reached the championship stage (winning in 2003). The Czechs will be looking to win their fifth title in six years, and with Petra Kvitova and Lucie Safarova possible additions to the team come November, would appear to be the favorites for another Fed Cup trophy.

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Falconi Captures Bogota Crown

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

BOGOTA, Colombia – No.5 seed Irina Falconi captured her first WTA title in historic fashion, becoming the first American woman to win the Claro Open Colsanitas as she recovered from a break down in the final set to defeat Sílvia Soler-Espinosa, 6-2, 2-6, 6-4.

Playing in her first career WTA final, Falconi had already earned the biggest win over the week when she took out No.4 seed Lara Arruabarrena in the semifinals, and looked on course for a seamless victory when she took the first set. But Soler-Espinosa, who had only won one WTA main draw match before Bogota, wouldn’t go down without a fight, leveling the match with a 6-2 set of her own and engineering an early break in the decider.

Six points from defeat down 3-4, 0-30, Falconi earned the break back and broke serve to win the title on her third championship point.

Starting the week at No.92, Falconi is tentatively set to return to the Top 70, close to her career-high ranking of No.64.

More to come…

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Where To Watch: Stuttgart

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

KEY INFORMATION:
Tournament Level: Premier
Prize Money: $795,707
Draw Size: 28 main draw (4 byes)/32 qualifying
Qualifying Dates: Saturday, April 16 – Monday, April 18
First Day of Main Draw: Monday, April 18
Singles Final: Sunday, April 24, 1.30pm CEST
Doubles Final: Sunday, April 24 (after singles final)

MUST FOLLOW SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS:
@WTA
@WTA_Insider – WTA Insider, Senior Writer Courtney Nguyen
@PorscheTennis – official tournament handle
Get involved in conversations with the official hashtags, #PTGP and #WTA.

TOURNAMENT NOTES:
· Defending champion Angelique Kerber returns to action after retiring from the Charleston semifinals with a viral illness.
· The only other former winner in the draw is Julia Goerges, who triumphed in 2011. Former finalist Ana Ivanovic (2014) has also made the trip to southern Germany.
· Agnieszka Radwanska is top seed and playing her first match since pulling out of her home event, the Katowice Open, with a reoccurrence of a long-standing shoulder injury.
· For the complete draw click here.

WILDCARDS:
Julia Goerges (GER), Anna-Lena Friedsam (GER)

WITHDRAWALS:
Belinda Bencic, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Madison Keys

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Falconi, Soler-Espinosa Battle In Bogota

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

BOGOTA, Colombia – Irina Falconi and Sílvia Soler-Espinosa will meet for the first time as they face off on Sunday in the final of the Claro Open Colsanitas, after advancing past tough semifinal matchups in three-set battles.

The Ecuadorian-born American Falconi overcame a mid-match wobble to move past the on-fire Lara Arruabarrena, who had only dropped five games in the three matches leading up the semifinals. But the Spaniard couldn’t find any answers for Falconi’s dictating play or her short-angled inside out forehands in the day’s first semifinal match.

Arruabarrena quickly found herself down a set and 2-4, but she was able to bring herself back from the brink of defeat as Falconi’s groundstrokes misfired. The American held steady in the third set though, breaking early to get a lead ahead at 3-1, and hanging on to win the match 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 after almost two hours.

Falconi, who is into her first WTA final at the Claro Open Colsanitas, is set to face Soler-Espinosa for the title, who overcame a tough challenge from Brazil’s No.2, Paula Cristina Goncalves.

The 25-year-old from Sao Paolo has found great success on the South American red clay: she made her WTA main draw debut in Rio de Janeiro, where she made the quarterfinals and her semifinal appearance here in Bogota is her career best. By contrast, Soler-Espinosa came to Bogota having only won one match all year. She found her game on the red clay, and in the last round she ended Amra Sadikovic’s fairytale comeback – the Swiss retired in 2014 and reached the quarterfinals in her WTA return this week.

Goncalves found her usually reliable serves under fire early on. She lead the pack having hit 22 aces in three matches, but against Soler-Espinosa she was broken in the fifth game of the match, giving the Spaniard just enough of an edge to take the opening set. They stayed in touching distance during the second set, with Goncalves recovering from 2-4 down to force a tiebreak and send the match into a deciding set. But the tide turned as the Brazilian lost her serve in the longest game of the match to go down 2-4 again in the final set. Soler-Espinosa didn’t let her escape a second time, though, and booked her spot in the final 6-4, 6-7(4), 6-2.

More to come…

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Fed Cup Semifinals All Squared

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Day one of Fed Cup World Group semifinals action ended with a stalemate, leaving Switzerland, Czech Republic, France and Netherlands all drawing even at 1-1.

Barbora Strycova kicked off the action with a win for the Czech Republic in their semifinal against Switzerland. Strycova faced off against Timea Bacsinszky – an opponent who she’s defeated in straight sets in all three of their previous encounters. She didn’t deviate from the script in today’s Fed Cup encounter, either, putting Bacsinszky away in a near shut out 6-0, 6-2 to put the Czech visitors ahead.

With the Swiss No.1 Belinda Bencic having withdrawn from the tie due to a lower back injury, it was up to Fed Cup debutante Victorija Golubic to produce the tennis of her life against the Czech Karolina Pliskova. The world No.129 dealt Pliskova the upset of the day, coming back from a set and a break down to secure a point for the home side, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4.

Proceedings played out similarly in France’s semifinal against the Netherlands. In front of a home crowd at the Arena Loire, France’s No.2 Caroline Garcia came up short against an on-fire Kiki Bertens, who has won all of her singles ties for the Netherlands in 2016. She powered past the Frenchwoman 6-4, 6-2 in just over an hour.

“There was a lot of tension in this match and a lot of expectation from outside,” Garcia said after the match. “She played a great match and served very well.”

France’s No.1 Kristina Mladenovic took to the court to right the ship for the home side against Richel Hogenkamp, defeating her comfortably 6-2, 6-4 to save a point for France, leaving the tie a draw at 1-1.

“I think this is the first time I’ve stepped out onto the court after a 0-1,” Mladenovic said. “Every tie is different and this time we are in front of a home crowd in a semifinal.

“It’s never easy to come on the court when you see your teammate in tears in the locker room, but I’m happy with the way I managed to win this match.”

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