Tennis News

BOGOTÁ, Colombia – After a rainy day in Bogota, defending champion and No.2 seed Teliana Pereira fell to Argentine qualifier Catalina Pella 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(3) in the first round of the Claro Open Colsanitas.

Pereira, who became the first Brazilian to win a WTA title in 27 years when she won her first singles title here in 2015, seemed primed to make another deep run when she quickly took the first set off her 23-year-old opponent. But a three-hour rain delay halted the match just as Pella won the second set, breaking up Pereira’s rhythm and allowing Pella the time to find her nerve.

“I was so, so, nervous,” Pella said after the match. “It was really tough also because she has a lot of experience – I don’t.”

After coming back from the delay at 2-1, 40-40 in the final set, Pella’s inexperience showed as she hit a double fault to give Pereira a break opportunity, which the Brazilian took handily. Pella later squandered another lead – this time at 5-3.

“I felt totally paralyzed,” Pella said. “My mind was telling me that I should do the same, stay the same, but my legs and my body were empty. I was just too nervous.”

Despite her lack of experience on the big stage, No.274-ranked Pella kept her cool when it mattered most, dominating Pereira in the tiebreak and ousting the defending champion in two hours and twenty minutes.

The rest of the seeds in action advanced to the next round: No.5 Irina Falconi, No.6 Tatjana Maria and No.8 Anna Tatishvilli eased past their first round opponents in straight sets.

However, the extended rain delay left several matches rescheduled, including the struggle between No.1 seed Elina Svitolina and Alexandra Panova. After dropping the first set to the Russian 7-5, Svitolina came roaring back in the second. She looked set to stage her comeback, rolling to a 5-1 lead, when the rain halted play.

On this episode of the WTA Insider Podcast, we recap last week’s action at the Volvo Car Open and Katowice Open, which saw Sloane Stephens grow her title collection with her third title of the season and Dominika Cibulkova end her title drought. Then we debut the Coach’s Corner, a recurring feature that puts the spotlight on the hard working men and women sweating away in the players’ box.

David Taylor may have started as “just” a hitting partner for Martina Hingis, but he’s now one of the premier coaches in professional tennis. He has coached Australia’s two best prospects in the modern era into the Top 10, taking Alicia Molik and Sam Stosur into the upper echelons of the game and he was there, heart in his throat, when Stosur fired that inside-out forehand return on match point to win the 2011 US Open. He’s seen the highs and he’s lived the lows, and he was happy to talk about it all.

On being Hingis’ traveling hitting partner: “You could see the way Martina practiced was just translated into what she had to do. It was very specific. That was a time when the Williamses were coming onto the scene and she was definitely the Queen of that time and the other ones were coming. It was an interesting time. A lot of things were constructed on how to deal with the power of Davenport, Serena and Venus, and Capriati.”

On how the game has changed: “The skill has gone down but the striking of the ball has gone way up. So the ability to hit the ball amazingly fast and with power has increased. That’s what tennis is about. But a lot of the skill, because it’s so fast, has gone out of the game now. It’s interesting. It’s not better or worse. It’s just what it is.”

On conflicts of interest: “It’s a funny set up in tennis because the player is paying the coach, while in other professional sports they’re paid for by an outside body. Like basketball, the players don’t pay their coach. They all work for the organization, coach included. In tennis it’s very personal. I don’t think it’s that great a set up. I don’t see the alternative though.”

On the need for weapons: “I believe to be a great player you have to be able to win points on your own terms. And that’s reflective of any great player that we’ve had in recent times. That’s where we’re at. That doesn’t mean there isn’t a market for all types of players. Being aggressive doesn’t have to be cracking the ball hard. It can be playing from a very aggressive court position. Halep’s an aggressive player. She doesn’t hit a tremendous amount of winners, but she’s an aggressive player. It’s not just hitting the ball hard. It’s where you play from, your mentality, what you can do under pressure.”

Subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or on any podcast app of your choice and reviews are always helpful, so if you like what you’ve heard so far, leave us one. You can also get new episode alerts by following us on Twitter @WTA_Insider.

ZUG, Switzerland – Octagon and InfrontRingier Sports & Entertainment Switzerland are bringing the WTA tour to Biel/Bienne, with a new indoor tournament to be staged in April each year starting in 2017.

The International event will take place at a new indoor arena – to be completed in February 2017 – following the conclusion of the Sunshine Swing in Indian Wells and Miami. Its draw will feature 32 players for the singles competition and a draw of 16 for doubles.

“Swiss tennis is enjoying an exceptional era and we’re delighted the beautiful town of Biel will be part of the WTA calendar in 2017,” says WTA CEO Steve Simon. “We invite our fans to be part of the excitement and enjoy outstanding world-class tennis in Biel.”

Octagon, the global sports and entertainment marketing and talent management powerhouse, has extensive women’s tennis experience in Switzerland. In addition to having staged a premier WTA tournament for 25 years in Zurich, and other WTA competitions in Lucerne and Geneva, Octagon also represents Martina Hingis and Belinda Bencic.

“We are very pleased that such a broad group of exceptional interests have aligned to create this new tournament,” announced Philip D. M. de Picciotto, the Founder and President of Octagon.‎ “The marketing and media excellence of InfrontRingier, the esteemed status of Swiss Tennis, the world class talent of the Swiss players and the WTA’s global leadership position in professional sport for women have enabled a mere idea to become a reality.”

“I am really looking forward to having a WTA tournament back in Switzerland,” says Hingis, the reigning doubles co-No.1. “I have fond memories of my first WTA tournament in Zurich and I am excited that Octagon has been able to work with Swiss Tennis and InfrontRingier to bring an International event to Biel. Switzerland has a great tennis history and having such an event in my home country will help to build on that. Being able to play in front of your home fans is a special experience and I plan to be involved as much as possible to help make the tournament a success for the Swiss tennis fans.”

Bencic added: “It is a unique experience and great honor for me to be part of the WTA Tour’s return to Switzerland. Having a tournament in my home country gives me the opportunity to give something back to the tennis fans in Switzerland. I know from my own experience that being able to watch the world’s best players in person can be inspiring. I really look forward to playing in front of the Swiss audience and will hopefully be able to contribute to the growth of the sport there.”

Lukas Troxler, Deputy Managing Director of InfrontRingier and designated Tournament Director, commented: “We are more than proud to partner with Octagon to bring the WTA Tour to the country, especially at this time, as Swiss women’s tennis is experiencing tremendous international success and a huge upward trend. Tennis fans in Switzerland are eager and enthusiastic to support their players and it is exciting for the country to once again become a world stage for tennis. We would like to extend our thanks also to Swiss Tennis for its support and look forward to continuing our successful collaboration.”