Halep Unlocks Keys Comeback
No.5 seed Simona Halep overcame defeat in a tense first set tie-break to end No.9 seed Madison Keys’ eight match winning streak on grass to reach the last eight at Wimbledon.
No.5 seed Simona Halep overcame defeat in a tense first set tie-break to end No.9 seed Madison Keys’ eight match winning streak on grass to reach the last eight at Wimbledon.
Catherine Bellis moved smoothly into the Hawaii Open final on Friday with a straight-set win over Jacqueline Cako on Saturday.
LONDON, England – Tuesday afternoon at the All England Club saw the WTA’s finest take center stage. The on-court entertainment did not disappoint, and neither did the press conferences afterwards.
Serena Williams downplays her peerless serve…
“My serve is usually really good. I don’t know how it came about, though. Like, I’m not as tall as all the other players. So it’s strange that I have such a strong, hard serve.
“But I have to say what I think really is my game is my mental toughness because just not only to be able to play, to win, but to be able to come back when I’m down. Both on the court and after tough losses, just to continue to come back and continue to fight, it’s something that takes a lot of tenacity.”
Elena Vesnina on hatching a plan to topple the World No.1…
“First of all, you need to be consistent with Serena. You don’t need to give her a lot of free points. You have to be very, very strong mentally, and, as I said, put pressure on her on the baseline, to show her you can actually beat her.
“I was watching her final against Angelique in Australian Open on the court. It was great atmosphere over there. I saw how Angelique, she was sticking into her game from the first till the last. She was not giving up. Yeah, maybe Serena didn’t play her best tennis, and that was the key, and Angelique used her chances on that moment. Maybe that’s going to be the key for me as well.”
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova reflects on her first quarterfinal at Wimbledon…
“I’ve always been saying that I’ve never liked grass and I’ve always been quite negative in terms of grass and playing at Wimbledon. But I think right now I’ll change my mind!”
Venus Williams on her journey back to a Grand Slam semifinal…
“The road was six years. They go by fast, thankfully. But I’ve been blessed. Been really blessed to have an opportunity to be here, had an opportunity in the past to do this. And I don’t have any regrets about anything that has taken place in between. It’s been a journey, but it’s something I’ve had to do and it’s made me stronger.
“The good part is I’ve always felt like I had the game. So this is always a plus when you know you have the game. So you just have to keep working until things fall into place. It’s never a given, everyone plays well. I mean today, she played so well and there were so many times where we were just dead even it felt like. It’s never a given. She could have easily won that match as well. So just grateful.”
Angelique Kerber on her recreating her Melbourne magic…
“When I arrived in Paris, I was feeling much more pressure. I did it actually by myself, to put a lot of pressure on me. Also, I was not handling all the off court things so well. It was too much of everything, I think.
“When I arrived here, I was telling myself, just like in Australia, Just be relaxed, playing round by round, not making things actually too much complicated, not putting pressure on myself.
So that was actually what I changed, what I learn also from Paris. Just being also focusing on the tennis thing, on my practice, being more relaxed.”
Timea Babos and Yaroslava Shvedova dashed Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza’s hopes of defending their Wimbledon doubles title with a dominant quarterfinal win on Thursday.
Who’s your favorite player? Who had the best post on social media in 2016? Click here to vote!
Spelling challenges, emoji challenges, cracker challenges, selfie challenges and, of course, the WTA Frame Challenge – which video was the best of the year? Click here to vote!
Join WTA Stars and Legends Chris Evert, Lindsay Davenport, Jennifer Capriati, Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario, Bethanie Mattek-Sands, Lucie Safarova, and Shelby Rogers, along with WTA coaches Marc Lucero and Rob Steckley, as they set sail on a once-in-a-lifetime, interactive tennis vacation experience that is for tennis enthusiasts of all ages.
The WTA Legends Cruise offers guests the opportunity to spend four nights aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise ship with WTA Stars, Legends and fellow tennis fans. The Cruise will depart from Miami, Florida, on November 13, 2017, and will sail to Nassau, CocoCay, and Key West, before returning to Miami on November 17.
For more information visit www.WTALegendsCruise.com.
Garbiñe Muguruza
2016 Quick Hits
Week 1 Ranking: No.3
Year-End Ranking: No.7
Season Highlights: Title at Roland Garros, semifinals in Rome and Cincinnati
Best Major Result: Champion (French Open)
2017 Outlook
World No.7 Garbiñe Muguruza’s 2016 season was a study in contrasts.
Following up and down results at the start of the year, the 23-year-old peaked at the right time to stun the world and claim her maiden major at the French Open.
But she didn’t advance past the third round at any other Grand Slam, and didn’t reach a WTA final all year long, with her best results coming in the form of semifinals appearances at Rome and Cincinnati.
The mercurial Spaniard was the first to acknowledge the mental toll of her season’s extreme highs and lows.
“Winning Roland Garros has been the best and worst part of the year,” Muguruza admitted to Marca in October ahead of the WTA Finals. “It might sound strange but it was like a double-edged sword.
“I won Roland Garros, but at other tournaments it was hard for me to play at the same level… I felt more responsibility, more pressure, more eyes on me, more of a feeling that you have to win because it’s what is expected of you.”
Looking ahead to 2017, Muguruza will look to step off the rollercoaster and regain the one aspect missing from her world-beater game: consistency.
“[My objective after winning Roland Garros] is to never believe that at 25 years old you will have achieved everything that you want, because in the end no player reaches their highest level at 22.
“I’ll take my time with everything. And if it doesn’t come next year, well, so it goes. That’s how I try to reassure myself.”
Tenis. Tennis. Tenis. Tennis….¡Trabajando duro! Working hard! https://t.co/JO4k6DixaC pic.twitter.com/HDtiM1la2G
— Garbiñe Muguruza (@GarbiMuguruza) December 9, 2016
ST. PETERSBURG, FL, USA – Ana Ivanovic announced today that she is ending her memorable 14-year career and retiring from professional tennis. The winner of 15 WTA singles titles, a Grand Slam champion and the first Serbian player to hold the top ranking in the world, Ivanovic concludes a career that saw her become one of the best and most respected players in the history of the WTA.
“I’ve decided to retire from professional tennis. It has been a difficult decision, but there is so much to celebrate,” Ivanovic told fans in a message via her Facebook page. “I began dreaming of tennis when I was five and saw Monica Seles play on TV. My parents backed me all the way, and by the time I was ranked No.1 in the world and won Roland Garros in 2008, I’ve seen the heights I’ve never dreamt of achieving.”
“I won 15 WTA titles, played so many memorable matches – I would say not bad for a tiny slip of a girl from Serbia!”
She added: “Seeing those heights in any professional sport requires top physical form, and it’s well-known that I’ve been hampered by injury. I can only play if I can perform up to my own high standards, and I can no longer do that. So it’s time to move on.”
The 29-year-old exits the game having been one of only 21 players to have ever held the WTA World No.1 ranking, ascending to the top spot on June 9, 2008. Ivanovic held the No.1 ranking for a total of 12 weeks, from June 9 – August 10, 2008 for 9 weeks before capturing the top spot again for three more weeks until September 7, 2008.
Ivanovic recorded her career best season in 2008 when she claimed the Roland Garros title, catapulting her to the WTA World No.1 ranking. She also won titles at Indian Wells and Linz and was runner-up at the Australian Open that same season.
Ivanovic turned professional in 2003 and won her first WTA title in 2005 at Canberra. In addition to her 15 career WTA singles titles, she held eight runner-up trophies including 2007 Roland Garros and 2008 Australian Open. In 2014, Ivanovic won a WTA-leading 58 matches highlighted by a single-season best four singles titles, with her 15th and final WTA title coming at Tokyo (Pan Pacific). The Serbian holds 480 career match wins and qualified for the WTA Finals on three occasions – in 2007, 2008 and 2014.
Off the court, Ivanovic has served as UNICEF National Ambassador to Serbia since 2007, specializing in child safety in schools. She has been recognized with numerous awards surrounding her accomplished career, including the 2008 Jerry Diamond WTA Aces Award recognizing off court participation, the WTA’s Most Improved Player in 2005 and 2007, nominated for U.S. Secretary of State’s 2007 International Women of Courage Award, and named one of the “30 Legends of Women’s Tennis: Past, Present and Future” by TIME Magazine in June 2011.
“Ana is a true champion and a great ambassador for the sport of women’s tennis,” said Steve Simon, WTA CEO and Chairman. “She has contributed greatly to the entire sport, both in her home country of Serbia and across the globe. She will certainly be missed on our tour as she is not only one of a very select few that achieved the WTA No.1 ranking but is also one of the most respected players on Tour.”
Ivanovic played her last professional match at the 2016 US Open, falling in the first round and subsequently hampered with a recurring wrist injury which prevented her from competing the rest of the season.
WTA Insider | The Insider team rings in the new year by taking one last look back at the Top 25, counting down the most outstanding performances of 2016.