Serena Slides Into French Open Final
Defending champion Serena Williams overcame a tight opening set to end Kiki Bertens’ fairytale run to get within one match of tying Steffi Graf’s 22 Grand Slam titles in Paris.
Defending champion Serena Williams overcame a tight opening set to end Kiki Bertens’ fairytale run to get within one match of tying Steffi Graf’s 22 Grand Slam titles in Paris.
Dominika Cibulkova, the reigning WTA Tour Finals champion, is gearing up for Doha and Dubai as she looks for her first tournament win of 2017.
The Slovak’s unprecedented success last year, in which she won tournaments in Katowice, Eastbourne and Linz before taking the title at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global, saw her rise to No.5 in the World Rankings. Now, she goes to the Qatar Total Open as the third seed in a star-studded field.
“This is my highest ranking,” the 27-year-old told Gulf Today. “You can feel the expectation and the pressure. This is something I’m trying to deal with.”
Cibulkova is among the favourites to win in Doha and is confident she knows how to handle the heat. “I have my rituals,” she said. “What I do during the match, I just want to focus on tennis, on the tactics. You put away the wrong thoughts you have on the court, like, I should win, or, I don’t want to lose.”
Doha has not traditionally been a happy hunting ground for the 2014 Australian Open finalist. Her best result came in her first visit in 2008, when she reached the quarterfinals before being beaten in three sets by Agnieszka Radwanska.
However the first Slovak to reach a Grand Slam final has broken into the top 10 of the WTA Rankings for the first time and is confident the weight of expectation for her to improve her record will not prove a burden. “You just put it away,” she said, “and you focus on the right things.”
Just how dominant is Serena Williams on grass courts? And who is her biggest challenger at Wimbledon? Find out as SAP takes you Behind The Numbers this grass court season.
With Wimbledon just three weeks away, expectations are high for British No.1 Johanna Konta. In the last 12 months, she has undergone a career transformation which has seen her go from a grateful wildcard to a true WTA contender, and with it comes the pressure.
Sky Sports caught up with Konta in Nottingham ahead of her landmark opening round win at the Aegon Open Nottingham, where she’s once again made British tennis history.
“I started playing when I was eight,” Konta told Sky Sports. “When I was nine, I decided I wanted to be No.1 in the world.”
With her victory yesterday over Victoria Duval, 25-year-old Konta is one step closer to fulfilling her childhood dream. Her WTA ranking has now risen to World No.18, making her the first British woman in 33 years to break the Top 20 since Jo Durie in October 1983. It’s an even more remarkable feat considering that Konta started out the year ranked at No.48.
Her name is now etched in the history books, but for Konta, not much has changed.
“Well, a lot of external things have changed,” Konta conceded. “But at home, and how I feel about my tennis, it’s very much the same.
“I consider myself very lucky to be able to do what I love. I very much don’t take anything for granted.”
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Serena Williams, Karolina Pliskova and Victoria Azarenka were among those leading the WTA in various statistical categories in 2016.
Christina McHale and Madison Brengle are flying the flag for the USA in Doha, both through to the main draw of the Qatar Total Open.
DOHA, Qatar – The WTA’s biggest stars took a break from their hectic Doha preparations to glam up and step out for the Qatar Total Open’s official player gala earlier this week.
Angelique Kerber, Dominika Cibulkova, Agnieszka Radwanska and more WTA stars were among the stars of the big night – see all of the best photos and video right here on wtatennis.com!
Photos courtesy of Qatar Tennis Federation
A look at the different surfaces the WTA tournaments have to offer, starting the the Plexicushion during the Australian summer hardcourts.
Caroline Wozniacki takes on Kiki Bertens in the first round of the Qatar Total Open.
An interview with Daria Kasatkina after her victory in the second round of the Qatar Total Open.