Indian Wells: Azarenka Interview
An interview with Victoria Azarenka after her win in the final of the BNP Paribas Open.
An interview with Victoria Azarenka after her win in the final of the BNP Paribas Open.
TASHKENT, Uzbekistan – Nao Hibino stayed on course to defend her Tashkent Open title after Lesia Tsurenko retired from their quarterfinal on Thursday.
Watch live action this week from Tashkent and Wuhan on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
Tsurenko arrived in Tashkent fresh from a run to the title in Guangzhou, and against Hibino this hectic schedule finally took its toll when a back injury brought her seven-match winning streak to a sudden end.
The anticlimactic conclusion to the contest was all the more disappointing given the competitive nature of the set they did play; after trading breaks, Hibino fended off two set points to take it 7-6(6). “I’m relieved after winning the first set. It was very close and I managed to hold on and fight in spite of being down,” Hibino said.
Standing between Hibino and another final in the Uzbekistani capital is World No.114 Denisa Allertova, a surprise 7-5, 6-4 winner over No.2 seed Kirsten Flipkens. Allertova produced the steadier tennis to edge the opening set, before claiming the decisive break in the final game of the match courtesy of a brilliant running passing shot.
In the top half of the draw, Kateryna Kozlova reached her second semifinal of the year after taking little over an hour to defeat Stefanie Voegele, 6-3, 6-3.
“I’ve played here before and made it to the quarterfinals last year, it’s great to play here,” Kozlova said. “I started to play aggressively from the word go and put my opponent under pressure early. I think I played brave and aggressive tennis, I’m happy with my level.”
Her reward is a meeting with big-serving Kristyna Pliskova, who fired down 12 aces during a 6-3, 6-4 win over Irina Khromacheva.
Watch all of the best shots of the BNP Paribas Open – right here!
WUHAN, China – Simona Halep has secured a spot at this year’s BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global. The Romanian joins Angelique Kerber and Serena Williams in the singles field.
Halep has secured her third consecutive qualification at the WTA Finals by reaching the semifinals with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Madison Keys at the Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open on Thursday. Both of her previous appearances were in the first two editions of the WTA Finals held in Singapore – highlighted by her win over then World No.1 Serena Williams in the round-robin stage in 2014 en route to the finals followed by last year’s showing, where she defeated the 2015 US Open champion Flavia Pennetta in the round-robin stage.
“Congratulations to Simona on qualifying for the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global for the third consecutive year,” said WTA CEO Steve Simon. “She is an outstanding player who has enjoyed a very successful year with three Tour wins and fans in Singapore and following along around the world will enjoy watching her competitive spirit against the other top WTA athletes.”
Halep is one of four players to win three WTA singles titles in 2016 (also Azarenka, Kerber and Stephens), clinching her second Premier Mandatory trophy at the Mutua Madrid Open and back-to-back titles at the BRD Bucharest Open and Rogers Cup in Montréal, bringing her win-loss record to 43-14 (thru Wuhan QF). In addition, the 25-year-old reached two semifinals at the Apia International Sydney and Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati and four quarterfinals at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Miami Open, Wimbledon and the US Open.
“It means a lot to qualify for the WTA Finals Singapore – it was one of my goals this year,” said Halep. “It will be my third time in a row competing at the WTA Finals and I hope I play great. I have great memories from 2014 and am confident I can do well. I will be very focused.”
Elena Vesnina and Daria Gavrilova took to the heart of historic Charleston for the Volvo Car Open’s annual Iconic Photoshoot.
The pair played a mini-tennis match in front of Randolph Hall at the College of Charleston.
Built between 1828 and 1829, Randolph Hall is a National Historic Landmark and one of the oldest college buildings still in use in the United States.
Elena Vesnina and Daria Gavrilova at College of Charleston.
Elena Vesnina and Daria Gavrilova at College of Charleston.
Elena Vesnina and Daria Gavrilova at College of Charleston.
Elena Vesnina and Daria Gavrilova at College of Charleston.
Elena Vesnina and Daria Gavrilova at College of Charleston.
Elena Vesnina and Daria Gavrilova at College of Charleston.
BEIJING, China – Friday’s China Open draw placed Agnieszka Radwanska on a last 16 collision course with former World No.1 Caroline Wozniacki.
Over the past fortnight, Radwanska and Wozniacki have crossed paths in Tokyo and Wuhan, and should both clear the opening couple of hurdles in the Chinese capital another showdown awaits. Wozniacki came back from the brink to win in Tokyo – where she went on to lift the title – before the Pole gained revenge this week in Wuhan to reduce her arrears in the career head-to-head to 5-9.
Radwanska, the No.3 seed, begins the calendar’s final Premier Mandatory event against Wang Qiang, with the winner of Elena Vesnina and Ekaterina Makarova lying in wait in the second round. Wozniacki, the 2010 champion, is unseeded and was paired alongside CoCo Vandeweghe first up. Victory over the big-serving American could see her meet No.13 seed Roberta Vinci.
New Word No.1 Angelique Kerber begins her challenge against a qualifier, while No.2 seed and defending champion Garbiñe Muguruza faces Irina-Camelia Begu.
Muguruza has endured a disappointing second half of the season and is in need of a good run in Beijing to confirm her return to the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global. Her hopes of doing so were done no favors by the draw, which placed Petra Kvitova, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Madison Keys in her quarter.
The prospect of meeting Kvitova in the third round will be particularly daunting, given her spectacular form in Wuhan, while Kuznetsova and Keys are both looking to secure a place in Singapore. Whoever is left standing after running this gauntlet is likely to face No.4 seed Simona Halep for a place in the final.
In the top half, Kerber finds herself in a section that also includes Barbora Strycova, Elina Svitolina and No.6 seed Venus Williams.
Draw @ChinaOpen is out. 1R highlights: Wozniacki-Vandeweghe, Pliskova-Safarova, Stosur-Zhang, Mladenovic-Jankovic. pic.twitter.com/Rsz6DFuCbl
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) 30 September 2016
An interview with Petra Kvitova after her win in the final of the Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open.
MONTERREY, Mexico – Angelique Kerber cut the ribbon as the Abierto GNP Seguros officially unveiled its brand-new stadium court: Estadio GNP Seguros.
The World No.1 was one of the guests of honour as the crowds were treated to a real show in Monterrey – culminating in a stunning fireworks display.
Kerber opened her campaign on court by beating Francesca Schiavone in three sets, 4-6, 6-0, 6-4.
– All photos courtesy of Abierto GNP Seguros
An interview with Madison Keys before her first round match at the China Open.
An interview with Garbiñe Muguruza before her first round match at the China Open.