Miami: Shot Of The Day (Saturday)
Svetlana Kuznetsova has Saturday’s shot of the day in the final of the Miami Open.
Svetlana Kuznetsova has Saturday’s shot of the day in the final of the Miami Open.
MELBOURNE, Australia – An ageless Venus Williams played remarkable tennis in the high heat of the Australian Open, knocking out a game Kateryna Kozlova, 7-6(5), 7-5.
“Girl, I don’t know,” Venus joked when asked how she got the job done during her on-court interview. “I know how to play tennis, and I like to think I’m good at this. She hasn’t had the years I’ve had, the grey hair I’m dyeing, the wrinkles I’m hiding.”
V never goes out of style.#ausopen pic.twitter.com/jUf4wJ9eeN
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 16, 2017
Seeded No.13, Venus was playing just her second match of 2017 after withdrawing from the ASB Classic due to right-arm pain, and was taking on a tricky opponent in Kozlova, who took her to three sets at the US Open last summer. In an ironic twist, the 22-year-old was born the same year Venus turned pro back in 1994.
“You’re trying to make me feel old!” joked Williams.
Kozlova served for the first set but the seven-time Grand Slam champion’s experience shone through when it mattered most, breaking the young Ukrainian to win the ensuing tie-break.
“Just from the warm-up it looked like she was just ready to go, hitting it solid,” she said in her post-match press conference. “I really have to give her a lot of credit for playing a match that was not a lot of errors and just relentless.
“I guess when I walk out there I have to expect that from my opponents and not an easy first round, but a great first round to get through, for sure.”
She twirls her way to 2R. Go #Venus #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/hzCSYDY3Jp
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 16, 2017
Venus appeared to struggle with the heat at times, relying on ice towels to keep cool during the changeovers.
“I’m a Floridian, so I’m pretty good with heat,” she admitted. “But obviously, if it’s going to be hot, I think with players, you can train in the heat the week before. This last week it was kind of cool, actually, a lot of the time. So it’s definitely a wildcard, like, total wildcard.”
Despite losing some momentum in the second set, the American rebounded to take the last three games of the match and advance into the second round after just over two hours.
Up next for the former World No.1 is either Stefanie Voegele or Kurumi Nara.
A wonderful start for #Venus #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/QVhFuaUdDg
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 16, 2017
An interview with Andrea Petkovic before her opening round match at the Volvo Car Open.
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova takes on Natalia Vikhlyantseva in the second round of the Australian Open.
CHARLESTON, SC, USA – No.15 seed Sabine Lisicki returned to the the Volvo Car Open – the site of her first career breakthrough – on Monday; the 2009 champion faced few problems against American Irina Falconi, winning, 6-4, 6-3, to reach the second round.
Watch highlights, interviews and more video from Charleston right here on wtatennis.com!
Facing off for the first time since 2011, Lisicki and Falconi took the court on the first day of main draw play at the newly-renamed Volvo Car Open; Lisicki had burst onto the WTA scene on this very court six years ago with three big wins over Venus Williams, Marion Bartoli, and Caroline Wozniacki for her first career title. Against Falconi, she hit seven double faults but nonetheless managed to win 70% of her first serve points and convert all four of her break point chances to reach the second round.
Up next for the former Wimbledon finalist is the winner of the first round between Kurumi Nara and Yulia Putintseva.
Joining Lisicki in the second round is No.11 seed Kristina Mladenovic, who snapped a four-match losing streak with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Tatjana Maria. Mladenovic booked what promises to be a big-hitting second round against Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, who defeated Peng Shuai, 6-2, 6-1. Peng was playing just her third WTA singles tournament since a back injury ended her 2015 season at the French Open.
Mladenovic’s doubles partner, Caroline Garcia, didn’t have the same luck in Charleston; splitting sets with Irina-Camelia Begu, Garcia traded 12 straight service holds before ultimately falling in a third set tie-break, 6-4, 2-6, 7-6(3).
Lara Arruabarrena will be top seed Angelique Kerber’s second round opponent; the Spaniard needed three sets to dispatch American wildcard and Rio Open runner-up Shelby Rogers, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4. Kateryna Bondarenko recovered from a set down to upset No.16 seed Misaki Doi, 4-6, 6-3, 6-1. No.12 seed Daria Gavrilova suffered a second set let down against Zarina Diyas, but the Aussie overcame the Kazakh, 6-1, 1-6, 6-3. Danka Kovinic set up a second round encounter with No.7 seed Sloane Stephens when she took out qualifier Cagla Buyukakacay, 6-1, 6-3. Qualifier Elena Vesnina continued her solid start to 2016 with a 7-5, 6-2 win over Cindy Burger; Vesnina will next play No.2 seed Belinda Bencic in the second round.
Kristyna Pliskova takes on Irina-Camelia Begu in the second round of the Australian Open.
KATOWICE, POLAND – Kristyna Pliskova and No.9 seed Kirsten Flipkens kicked off their Katowice Open campaigns and battled into the second round of the International event on Monday.
Watch live action from Katowice this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
Pliskova was the first of the pair to advance in Katowice, the last hardcourt tournament before the tour completes the shift to the clay and grass seasons. She faced a stern first-round test in the form of 23-year-old Brit Heather Watson, who’s been on the rise having already won a title in Monterrey earlier this year.
“It was a really tough first round for me today,” Pliskova said afterwards.
“The surface is very different – quite slow – so it took me some time to get used to it.”
The No.88 Czech put pressure on Watson right away, unleashing her powerful lefty serve and letting lose a couple of her record-holding aces. She went up 4-1, break serve twice and grabbing the first set off Watson. But before Pliskova could run away with it, Watson turned things around to take the second set.
Into a deciding set, Pliskova ran ahead to a 3-0 lead, breaking Watson’s serve twice – Watson saved four break points in the third game alone but gave up the fourth on a mishit backhand. Watson grabbed a break back, but Pliskova’s lead was too great to surmount and the Czech took the match 6-2, 3-6, 6-4.
“I played well and Heather also played well too,” Pliskova said. “So I was pleased to come through a tough third set.”
The No.9 seed Kirsten Flipkens had a much more straightforward road into the second round at Katowice, beating Donna Vekic in an emphatic straight sets, 6-1, 6-4. She only faced one break point all match, and wrapped up the encounter in less than an hour.
Stefanie Voegele, Andreea Mitu, and Elizaveta Kulichkova also advanced.
On Tuesday, 2014 champion Alize Cornet and two-time finalist Camila Giorgi are set to make their Katowice debut.
Life is a rollercoaster for Svetlana Kuznetsova, and while in Melbourne she stopped by Luna Park to take a ride on one in real life. (Fiona Hamilton, Tennis Australia)
Before the action, Sveta made sure to grab some popcorn and cotton candy, standard amusement park treats! (Fiona Hamilton, Tennis Australia)
Luna Park is a very historic amusement park – it opened in 1912! (Fiona Hamilton, Tennis Australia)
Sveta eased into the amusement park spirit with a ride on the Magical Carousel. (Getty Images)
Next up, Sveta took her whole team onto the Scenic Railway rollercoaster. (Fiona Hamilton, Tennis Australia)
Sveta looks like she’s having fun! Coach Carlos Martínez? Not so much… (Fiona Hamilton, Tennis Australia)
Opened in December 1912, the Scenic Railway is the oldest continually operating roller coaster in the world! (Getty Images)
“I was a little bit nervous before getting on, but it was not too big!” Sveta said after the ride. (Getty Images)
Scenic Railway is one of only three roller coasters in the world that require a brakeman to stand in the middle of the train – he looks pretty calm! (Getty Images)
“I don’t remember the last time I’ve been to a park like this! Visiting somewhere other than the tennis club, it’s already very good,” she added. (Fiona Hamilton, Tennis Australia)
MIAMI, FL, USA – Former No.1 Victoria Azarenka boasted a good luck charm en route her third Miami Open title, and his name was Manny.
A popular French bulldog, Manny took time away from being a full-time Twitter celebrity to hobnob with the tennis elite as the Sunshine Swing came to its dramatic conclusion.
Congrats to my new friend @vika7 for her win today! pic.twitter.com/zlKoWwD5k7
— Manny The Frenchie (@FrenchieManny) March 28, 2016
Not to be outdone, Timea Bacsinszky and Svetlana Kuznetsova showed off some impressive footwork as they won their way into an exciting semifinal encounter in Key Biscayne; be sure to check it all out in Episode 2 of Dubai Duty Free Full of Surprises!
Six-time champion Serena Williams came through her first significant test at this year’s Australian Open, defeating Lucie Safarova in two high-quality sets.