US Open Thursday: Semis Set
And then there were four! Serena Williams will lead a strong quartet of semifinalists into action on Day 11 in New York. Chris Oddo previews the action for wtatennis.com.
And then there were four! Serena Williams will lead a strong quartet of semifinalists into action on Day 11 in New York. Chris Oddo previews the action for wtatennis.com.
NEW YORK, NY, USA – The WTA’s new World No.1 Angelique Kerber christened her rise to the top of the rankings with a commanding straight sets win over Caroline Wozniacki to reach her first US Open final, her third major final of the year.
With Serena Williams stunned in the last round, Kerber stepped onto Arthur Ashe Stadium as the provisional WTA World No.1 – she’ll assume the top spot when the new rankings are released on Monday. But if Kerber was feeling any nerves, she didn’t show it in her 6-4, 6-3 defeat of two-time US Open finalist Wozniacki.
“It was not so easy to go then on court, because I knew it actually before that if Serena lost, of course, that I will be the No. 1,” Kerber explained in post-match press. “So it was not so easy mentally, but I was trying to not put too much pressure on myself.”
The German opened the match on a tear, breaking Wozniacki’s serve twice and going up 4-0 before Wozniacki had even won four points. Kerber stayed composed even when Wozniacki’ raised her aggression, finally finding her rhythm in the match to wrestle the break back.
After a back and forth first set, @AngeliqueKerber outlasts #Wozniacki to take an early lead. #usopen @MBUSA https://t.co/7k0JGvyXwy
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 9, 2016
Both players excel at outlasting their opponents in long rallies, but against Kerber Wozniacki was committing just too many unforced errors to keep up. She struck 26 unforced errors to Kerber’s 16 against 21 winners to Kerber’s 19. Kerber opened the second set with another double break lead, and powered through to her third Grand Slam final of the year after an hour and a half.
“I was always dreaming [about being No.1] when I was really young,” Kerber grinned after the match. “I remember the match also in Cincinnati where I have the chance to reach it with the win there.”
“But after that I was just telling myself, ‘Okay, I mean, I will get one more chance.’ Yeah, it feels just great.”
For Wozniacki, despite falling short of reaching a third US Open final the Dane qualifies it as a great fortnight, and a step in the right direction in putting an injury-plagued season behind her.
“Well, obviously right now I’m a little disappointed not to win today, but at the end of the day it’s been a good tournament, something I can be proud of,” Wozniacki reflected in her post-match press conference.
“I came into this tournament ranked 74 in the world and probably people ruled me out, but it’s nice to prove people wrong once again. It’s nice to have a good run. I did my best out there today. I fought all I could, and just came up a bit short.”
New No.1 @AngeliqueKerber defeats #Wozniacki in straight-sets, 6-4, 6-3 to get to her first #usopen final. @MBUSA https://t.co/PqEKcFgzqX
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 9, 2016
Standing between Kerber and the US Open crown is Karolina Pliskova, the player who foiled her previous attempt at reaching the World No.1 ranking. Pliskova is riding an 11-match winning streak, which includes today’s takedown of Williams.
“For sure she has a lot of confidence,” Kerber said. “Now especially against the win against Serena. She will go out there and try and win her first Grand Slam, but at the end I will try the same.”
I know it will be mentally for me also very tough because she knows that she won against me like few weeks ago. But at the end I know how I was playing in Cincinnati. I know what to change. I will talk with my coach about the game and I will try to take the challenge again against her.”
Welcome to World No.1 @AngeliqueKerber! ☝️ pic.twitter.com/dIlhflgh5g
— WTA (@WTA) September 9, 2016
February was defined by five breakthrough players who brought some impressive performances to the second month of 2016. Which one soared the highest?
Have a look at the nominees for February’s Breakthrough Performance of the Month and cast your vote before Thursday at 11:59pm ET! The winner will be announced Friday, March 4.
February 2016 WTA Breakthrough Performance of the Month Finalists:
Jelena Ostapenko: The 18-year-old Latvian came good in a big way at the Qatar Total Open, reaching her first Premier-level WTA final with back-to-back wins over Svetlana Kuznetsova and Petra Kvitova with the help of a big serve, booming forehand, and a competitive intensity that belies her youth and experience on such big stages. Playing Carla Suárez Navarro in the championship match, Ostapenko continued to impress despite a three-set defeat to the veteran Spaniard, winning the opening set 6-1. Her Doha run brings her up to a new career-high ranking of No.41, and makes her the third 18-year-old to crack the Top 50 of a generation that already includes Belinda Bencic and Daria Kasatkina – the largest cohort of 18-year-olds since April 2009 (Caroline Wozniacki, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Sorana Cirstea).
Zheng Saisai: A former Youth Olympic Silver medalist, Zheng became the fourth Chinese player in history to defeat a member of the World’s Top 2 when she ousted Angelique Kerber, who was playing in her first WTA match since winning the Australian Open, in straight sets. The 22-year-old backed up the biggest win of her career with another straight-sets victory over former No.5 Eugenie Bouchard. Falling to Ostapenko in the quarterfinals, Zheng edges closer to cracking the Top 60 and cementing a solid start to 2016.
Daria Kasatkina: Another one of the rising WTA teens, Kasatkina continued to bring her best tennis at home by reaching a second WTA Premier semifinal at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy – following a run to the final four of the Kremlin Cup last fall. Taking out Kirsten Flipkens and Dominika Cibulkova in three grueling sets, the young Russian met former junior rival Belinda Bencic for the first time on the WTA level. Despite losing to the Top 10 debutante, Kasatkina broke into the Top 50, earning a career-high ranking of No.45. Playing solid tennis at the Qatar Total Open, she nearly upset red-hot Roberta Vinci, ultimately bowing out in a final set tie-break.
Caroline Garcia: The young Frenchwoman has long enjoyed impressive results in doubles – qualifying for the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global alongside Katarina Srebotnik last year – but finally broke through on a big stage at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. Recovering from a set down to defeat the No.3 seeded Suárez Navarro, Garcia also took out former French Open semifinalist Andrea Petkovic en route to the semis, where she lost to Barbora Strycova in three tough sets. Garcia also reached the doubles final alongside countrywoman and fellow youngster, Kristina Mladenovic.
2016 Winners:
January: Zhang Shuai
How it works:
Finalists are selected by wtatennis.com
Winner is then determined by a fan vote on wtatennis.com
DALIAN, China – World No.145 Grace Min fought back from a set down to defeat top seed Wang Qiang in Friday’s quarterfinals at the Dalian Women’s Open.
Watch live streaming from Dalian all week right here.
The latest upset in a week full of surprises saw Min battle some early nerves before coming through, 5-7, 6-2, 6-3, in two hours and 22 minutes.
Min has spent much of the season piling up the win on the ITF Circuit, and looked a little out of her depth early on, dropping serve to love in the first game. This deficit did not last for long and while she was unable to rescue the set, she dominated the next two to secure a semifinal meeting against Misa Eguchi.
Unlike Min, Eguchi kept her time on court to a minimum, swatting aside last year’s runner-up, Julia Glushko, 6-2, 6-0.
In the bottom half of the draw, Kristyna Pliskova overpowered Aleksandra Krunic, 6-2, 6-4, in under an hour, while Han Xinyun recovered from a disastrous start to defeat Wang Yafan, 0-6, 7-5, 6-4.
WTA Insider | In the latest WTA Insider Live Blog, keep up with all the action as Angelique Kerber takes on Karolina Pliskova for the US Open title.
Carla Suárez Navarro played some of the best tennis of her career at the Qatar Total Open to win her second career title and find herself one spot away from her season goal of reaching the Top 5.
The Spanish veteran dropped two games in the semifinals against reigning WTA Finals champion Agnieszka Radwanska, and recovered from a set down to dispatch 18-year-old Jelena Ostapenko, 1-6, 6-4, 6-4.
“I think in the final set I played really aggressive,” she told WTA Insider in the latest Champion’s Corner. “With my backhand I played more aggressive than with my forehand. I felt more confident today at the end of the match with my backhand. That helped me win the match.”
Suárez Navarro started the week ranked No.11, but the title brought her ranking all the way up to a career-high of No.6.
“I feel really, really close. I know all the top players, I know if you want to be in the Top 5 you have to have good tournaments like this or like Melbourne to take points. Also, at the tournaments where there are all the top players, I know I’m close.
“But I know the year is very long. I want to take the experience of last year where I start really good but I lost confidence a little bit and I couldn’t end the year inside the Top 10. But I know the key and I know the things I have to do to be there. But I’m really excited about No.6 and I’m really close to No.5.”
Starting the year well, Suárez Navarro reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Open for the first time since 2009 when she upset then-World No.6 Venus Williams in the second round.
“I started really good in Melbourne. I had good matches there. I lost to Aga. I want to take the experience of last year to play better in the Grand Slams. The Grand Slams are really important tournaments and when you are in the Top 20, you want to win good tournaments, big tournaments. You have to be there.
“I think the key is working and practicing really hard.”
With plenty of hard work and momentum from the Middle East Swing, Suárez Navarro appears poised for a breakout spring as February’s WTA Player Of The Month!
Final Results for February’s WTA Player Of The Month
1. Carla Suárez Navarro (44%)
2. Roberta Vinci (40%)
3. Sara Errani (16%)
2016 WTA Player of the Month Winners
January: Angelique Kerber
How it works:
Finalists are selected by wtatennis.com
Winner is then determined by a fan vote on wtatennis.com
It is hard to recall a tennis season in recent memory that has thrown up quite so many surprises as the opening few months to 2016.
Showcasing the unprecedented strength and depth of the women’s game, 14 tournaments have witnessed 13 different players lifting silverware. The result has been a Road To Singapore leaderboard featuring a pleasing mix of youth and experience.
Angelique Kerber still leads the way in the fledgling leaderboard thanks to her magnificent January, when she reached the final in Brisbane before an unforgettable triumph at the Australian Open.
Hot on her heels is Carla Suárez Navarro, whose title in Doha, backed up by semi and quarterfinal runs in Brisbane and Melbourne, sees her occupy the No.2 spot.
Reigning WTA Finals champion Agnieszka Radwanska has been as consistent as ever, reaching the semifinals or better on all three outings thus far – a title in Shenzhen followed by deep runs at the Australian Open and Doha. Since the US Open last year, no player has won more matches than Radwanska, who has accumulated a 32-7 record.
Most Match Wins Since 2015 US Open
Agnieszka Radwanska 32-7
Angelique Kerber 27-10
Venus Williams 24-5
Roberta Vinci 22-11
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 21-11
Current WTA world No.1 Serena Williams holds the No.4 spot on the leaderboard with her finals appearance at the Australian Open. Jostling for position below the early pacesetters are Victoria Azarenka, Roberta Vinci, Johanna Konta and Belinda Bencic, while Sara Errani and Jelena Ostapenko are among those just outside the qualification places.
In doubles, Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza cemented their place atop the leaderboard with titles at Brisbane, Sydney, Australian Open and St. Petersburg before their remarkable winning streak was finally snapped in Doha. Profiting from their slip-up were the Chan sisters, Chan Hao-Ching and Chan Yung-Jan, who left Doha with the title and the No.2 position on the leaderboard.
Click here to see the singles and doubles leaderboards heading into the BNP Paribas Open.
QUÉBEC CITY, Canada – No.8 seed Samantha Crawford survived a spirited challenge from Belgium’s Ysaline Bonaventure, edging through to advance 7-6(5), 6-7(4), 6-4 in the opening round of the Coupe Banque Nationale.
“I don’t know how many match points I had in that second set, but I know I had a few,” Crawford said after the match. “After losing the second set, I just wanted to not think about that. I was just trying to stay calm and stay in the present.”
After narrowly escaping with a tight first set – Crawford and Bonaventure traded breaks and wrestled with the momentum in the tiebreak – the American found herself holding match points after a couple of loose serves from Bonaventure. The Belgian fought her off twice to hold serve and send the match to another tiebreaker, where this time Bonaventure came out on top to even the scoreline. Some strong serving in the third set gave Crawford the edge, and the American took her third match point to advance to the second round.
Earlier this year, Crawford turned heads when she made it through qualifying at the Brisbane International to reach the semifinals, upsetting Belinda Bencic and Andrea Petkovic along the way. But it was in Québec City that the American announced her presence to the WTA, reaching the quarterfinals of the event last year after making it out of the qualifying rounds.
Also in action in Québec City, Catherine Bellis shined in her first match at the Coupe Banque Nationale, notching a 6-3, 6-2 victory over Amandine Hesse.
“We never played each other before, so I think it took a while for both of us to get used to each other’s game, and I just stayed more consistent.”
Aside from a tough opponent, Bellis also had to contend with the surface: being an indoor tournament staged on carpet, Québec is home to some of the fastest hardcourts anywhere on the tour.
“I had never played on this surface before,” Bellis said. “I think maybe a long time ago, but I liked it. I think it’s different, but I liked it a lot.”
More to come…
Watch Johanna Konta hit the practice courts at the BNP Paribas Open.
Johanna Konta takes on Heather Watson in the second round of the BNP Paribas Open.