Tennis News

BRISBANE, Australia – For the second time in as many days, Garbiñe Muguruza came back from the brink to keep her hopes alive at the Brisbane International.

Muguruza entertained a record crowd at the Queensland Tennis Centre on Tuesday night, coming from match point down for to defeat the courageous Daria Kasatkina, 7-5, 3-6, 7-6(7), in one minute shy of three hours.

“What a match! It was terrible, I was suffering until last moment, but I think we were both playing amazing,” Muguruza said in her on-court interview. “The tie break is just a few points where it will be decided. I don’t know how I won but I’m glad I did it.

Another huge moment!@DKasatkina breaks back after this phenomenal challenge! pic.twitter.com/wWC8Oa8tNG

— WTA (@WTA) January 3, 2017

In a match that ebbed and flowed until the last, Kasatkina came roaring back from 4-1 down in the deciding set only to stumble when she was then presented with the opportunity to serve for it. Muguruza, somehow maintained her composure in the subsequent tie-break, wiping out a match point at 6-7 with a pin-point forehand before eventually making her weary limbs across the finishing line.

The previous evening, the Spaniard had been involved in an equally dramatic contest against home favorite Samantha Stosur. By her own admission, it is an atmosphere she revels in.

“I love to play in this type of court when the crowd is so into the match. I like to make them enjoy and suffer like me!”

This match?? @BrisbaneTennis

— Elena Vesnina (@EVesnina001) January 3, 2017

In the quarterfinals, Muguruza will face either Svetlana Kuznetsova or Destanee Aiava.

Another seed put through the ringer was Elina Svitolina, who eventually saw off Shelby Rogers, 7-5, 2-6, 7-5.

MADRID, Spain – Can Simona Halep cap off a banner week for Romanian tennis? Or will Dominika Cibulkova continue her role as spoiler?

WTA Insider Senior Writer Courtney Nguyen previews Saturday’s final at the Mutua Madrid Open with some help from Adrian Toca, founder of the influential Romanian tennis site Treizecizero.ro. Nguyen and Toca review a fantastic week for Romania in Madrid, which saw Halep, Irina-Camelia Begu, Sorana Cirstea, and Patricia Maria Tig make the quarterfinals. Toca explains the impact of Halep’s rise on tennis in Romania and looks ahead to a final that is very difficult to call.

Toca: In Romania it’s already a big story, to have four players in the quarters of this kind of tournament. We already knew about Simona, what she can do, what kind of tennis she can play. But having a lot of other girls that probably the tennis world wasn’t aware of them before, such as Patricia or having Sorana back, this made everything much sweeter for us.

Nguyen: Cibulkova, I’ve called her the most dangerous unseeded player in the draw. Thankfully for everyone, with her run here in Madrid, she will be seeded most likely from now on at the major tournaments for the rest of the year. As it is, it’s a very tough matchup for Simona. Dominika leads the head-to-head 3-1 and has the type of game that can bother Simona. I find it to be quite a bit of a toss-up match.

Toca: So for her being in this final, for a lot of people, it’s out of nowhere. Not surprisingly if you ask me because she was due to start winning at some point. So it’s a big deal for her. She seems in a good spot right now, in a good place. She said early in the week that she likes being again under the radar, not being considered anymore the favorite. For the first time in a while she managed the situation really good, being the top seed left in the draw. She kept on winning. Madrid is a tournament she adores. So having the opportunity to win such a big title will make her give everything on court tomorrow.

KEY INFORMATION:
Tournament Level: Premier 5
Prize Money: $2,735,939
Draw Size: 56 main draw (8 byes)/32 qualifying
Qualifying Dates: Saturday, May 7 – Sunday, May 8
First Day of Main Draw: Monday, May 9
Singles Final: Sunday, May 15, 1:30 PM
Doubles Final: Sunday, May 15 (after singles final)

MUST FOLLOW SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS:
@WTA
@WTA_Insider – WTA Insider, Senior Writer Courtney Nguyen
@InteBNLdItalia – official tournament handle
Get involved in conversations with the official hashtags, #ibi16 and #WTA.

TOURNAMENT NOTES:
· Three-time champion Serena Williams makes her 2016 clay court debut, and is playing just her fourth tournament of the season (Australian Open, Indian Wells, Miami).
· Mutua Madrid Open winner Simona Halep is seeded to play Williams in the quarterfinals after winning her second career Premier Mandatory title.
· No.4 seed Victoria Azarenka could face Williams in the semifinals, and is playing her first event since pulling out of Madrid last week with a lower back injury.
· For the complete draw click here.

WILDCARDS:
Francesca Schiavone (ITA), Karin Knapp (ITA), Claudia Giovine (ITA)

WITHDRAWALS:
Belinda Bencic, Sloane Stephens, Caroline Wozniacki, Camila Giorgi

ROME, Italy – Defending Olympic gold medal team Serena Williams and Venus Williams took a wildcard into the Internazionali BNL d’Italia and rekindled their doubles partnership for the first time since 2014.

Watch highlights, interviews and more video from Rome right here on wtatennis.com!

Even though their first doubles venture in almost two years ended in a straight sets loss to the all-Slovenian team of Andreja Klepac and Katarina Srebotnik 6-1, 7-5, the Williams sisters showed flashes of the prowess that saw them win 21 titles together, including back-to-back Olympic gold medals.

Venus, who had played her opening singles match a few hours before, admitted that fatigue could have played a factor in her doubles loss.

“I haven’t done that in a long time,” Venus said in her post match press conference. “But I knew what was going to happen going into it. Even if you get tired, you have to try to ignore it. I felt okay.

“I guess I don’t have to worry about it anymore this week. Hopefully I’ll have that problem for two weeks in the French Open.That would be an awesome problem to have.”

The packed crowed on Court 1 was witness to lots of flubbed errors and mistiming from Venus and Serena – who are both also competing in singles here in Rome – as they looked to shake off the rust and narrowly avoid a shut out in the first set. They showed their grit in the second, mounting a comeback from 4-2 down, but the Slovenians closed them out to book a second-round clash against the No.2 seeds Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Lucie Safarova.

Despite the disappointing result, the Williams sisters have their eye on the future, including competing in Roland Garros and trying for a fourth gold medal at the Sumer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

“We haven’t played doubles in a while,” Serena said in her press conference yesterday. “Obviously we would love to play in the Olympics.

“I love playing with Venus. She’s the best partner, and hopefully she feels the same about me. We make a great team.”

As the Olympic race takes shape, lots of same-country doubles teams looking to get as much doubles action in as possible. Serena and Venus are the defending gold medal team, and will likely use their combined singles rankings to gain direct entry into the 32-team draw, as explained by WTA Insider.

MADRID, Spain – Simona Halep capped off a tremendous week for Romanian tennis by winning her first title of the season at the Mutua Madrid Open, beating Dominika Cibulkova, 6-2, 6-4 in Saturday’s final. The win was Halep’s first title since the BNP Paribas Open last year and it moves her back in the Top 5. She also rose 23 places to No.6 in the Road to Singapore.

In short, Simona Halep is back in the conversation. With the French Open around the corner, the 2014 finalist is relieved to finally be playing some of her best tennis.

WTA Insider sat down with Halep after her Madrid win.

Q: I sat down with you before the tournament and you were very hesitant to talk about your chances this week.
A: Yeah it’s amazing that I could win this tournament. I feel that I had everything in my hands, every match. I felt that I played my best tennis in every match and kind of deserving the title because I won it. I didn’t receive presents during the matches. Day by day I believed more that I had a chance to win it.

At the beginning of the tournament it’s normal to feel that you hesitate a little bit because it’s just the start and you don’t know actually what’s going to happen in the first round because the first round is always the toughest in the tournament. And after my months before coming here, it was tough to believe I could win it.

Caption this… pic.twitter.com/MeJo5zW5QP

— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) April 29, 2016

Q: You said throughout the week that you were under the radar, people didn’t care about you anymore, your ranking was slipping. Then you put together a run with all the scorelines very much on your side.
A: That’s why I say I feel like I won the tournament. I played amazing tennis every day and day-by-day I played better tennis. In the final I played very well, she played as well good tennis. It wasn’t easy, but it looked like it was easy.

Q: You made it look easy.
A: I made it easy. Now I don’t feel tired so that means I was relaxed. I was just with my mind to play tennis, not about the result or something else. Just enjoying and just showing what I have practiced.

Q: Before the tournament you said your only goal this week was to get matches, that it was not about the trophy. Did that mentality change at some point this week?
A: No. It was permanent in my mind, in my heart, in my hands, in my body. I felt that I just want to go on court to win the match. Nothing else. Today actually was different because I played for the trophy. I had emotions before but I knew how to manage them. I had the experience playing here the finals. That final in 2014 made today easier.

Q: What do you mean? How did that final against Maria Sharapova prepare you for today?
A: I felt that I can lose it, because I lost it once. Nothing happened after.

Q: The sun came up? The world kept going?
A: Yeah. Now I said I have to be different from that day. That day I couldn’t be relaxed because I was with a lot of pressure that I have to win it. Now I said that the match is open and I have just to go and play my best, which I did. I think I did it pretty well and I did it pretty relaxed.

Q: The word “relaxed” comes up often with you. You play your best tennis when you’re relaxed. Have you discovered the key to keeping yourself relaxed?
A: No, it’s not about the key. It’s about how I see things. I was not thinking about the result at all. Even if I played the final today I didn’t care if I win or lose. I just wanted to go on court and win the match, specifically the match, not the fact that it was a final.

Q: Not the title.
A: Just the match.

Where's Waldo? A rowdy thank you with @MutuaMadridOpen volunteers. pic.twitter.com/UcgJM5mJ1i

— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) May 7, 2016

Q: You and coach Darren Cahill arrived in Madrid fairly early. That’s not always a luxury before big tournaments. Lots of times tournaments are back-to-back and you’re arriving late. I’m thinking of Indian Wells to Miami, or going from Fed Cup to Stuttgart. How did that impact your week?
A: We arrived on Tuesday. I had many days training with Darren. I wanted that. I asked him actually when he made the schedule in January that I wanted this week to prepare with him here in Madrid. So I knew what I want to do.

It’s much better to come a few days earlier. You feel the courts, you feel the atmosphere of the tournament, and you feel like you are into it already when the tournament starts. It made the things easier. It made me feel like I was already here from a long time ago. So that’s why I felt very well straight away in the first match.

Q: You’ve now won Indian Wells and Madrid, your two biggest titles. Both tournaments are known for having difficult conditions, where the ball can fly. Do you see a connection there or are those just two tournaments you happened to win.
A: I don’t know.

Q: Do you like those conditions?
A: I do. I like it.

Q: A lot of people have problems controlling the ball.
A: No, doesn’t bother me. I like these conditions. I felt well. Everything went well.

Q: How aware are you of how big of a story this week was back home in Romania, with you winning the title and three other women – Irina-Camelia Begu, Sorana Cirstea, and Patricia Maria Tig – making the quarterfinals?
A: I don’t know, I didn’t read anything since a long time ago and I’m not going to start to read again. I heard a tough story about my joke about “the Easter present” about the second set [bagel against Begu]. They make everything negative so I’m not going to read.

But in my opinion it’s a big thing that many Romanians are playing in the last matches here in this tournament – also men’s doubles – so it’s a good point point for our country and maybe it will help our juniors.

Q: How do you plan to celebrate?
A: I don’t know. I have no idea.

Halep hands out beers to the press corp. Joked yesterday she'd buy everyone a round in honor of 4 Romanians in QF. pic.twitter.com/MQobAzoxkp

— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) May 6, 2016

Q: Are you going to take back one of those beers you gave us?
A: I don’t like beer. Maybe I will drink something else but I don’t know what [laughs]. First I need to calm down a little bit because I’m really excited and then maybe we’ll go into the city somewhere to celebrate.

Q: Much deserved. Congratulations. See you in Rome.
A: See you in Rome!

Listen to more of Halep’s thoughts in the latest episode of the WTA Insider Podcast: