Birmingham: Suárez Navarro vs. Kerber
Carla Suárez Navarro takes on Angelique Kerber in the quarterfinals of the Aegon Classic.
Carla Suárez Navarro takes on Angelique Kerber in the quarterfinals of the Aegon Classic.
World No.5 Dominika Cibulkova was in clinical form against Laura Siegemund, dropping just two games en route to the second round of the Apia International Sydney.
Highlights from second round and quarterfinal action at the Aegon Classic Birmingham.
HOBART, Australia – Lucky loser Veronica Cepede Royg needed five match points but eventually prevailed over former World No.9 Andrea Petkovic to reach the quarterfinals of the Hobart International.
The Paraguayan recovered strongly from being blanked out of the second set, completing a 6-3, 0-6, 6-4 comeback to book her place into her first WTA quarterfinal since June.
“Petkovic is a great player, she’s tall and so she has a great serve,” Cepede Royg told press afterward. “It was a tough match, but I’ve had tough matches before and I think I know how to play against the top players.
“I had to do my game, be aggressive and move. And I think I did.”
The No.129-ranked Cepede Royg opened the match with a break, playing confident and aggressive tennis against the former Top 10 German.
But Petkovic found her groove in the second set, cutting down on the unforced errors and dictating play with her backhand. And as the German’s lead grew, the Paraguayan’s confidence seemed to diminish, responding passively and second-guessing herself.
“It’s not easy to see the score at 6-0,” Cepede Royg said. “But my coach came and said to just relax, enjoy this moment, do your game and fight for every point.”
“You have to change your mentality. I was thinking too much in the match, so I focused more in my game.”
With that renewed mindset, the World No.129 turned it around in the decider and broke back to stop Petkovic’s run at 1-1 and keep the German under pressure.
They stayed on serve until a marathon final game, which saw Petkovic save four match points to keep herself alive but couldn’t serve it out. The Paraguayan eventually prevailed on the fifth time of asking, finally breaking the Petkovic serve to take the match and a spot in the quarterfinals.
“Oh man, I was thinking, ‘Oh my god, I’ve had five match points!'” Cepede Royg laughed. “I tried to be more aggressive and not think too much, just put the ball in the court and go for it. It was so difficult but I did it.”
The victory, her first WTA main draw win in almost six months, puts her through to the second quarterfinal of her career since last year’s Mallorca Open. She’ll play the winner between Australia’s Lizette Cabrera and Croatian qualifier Jana Fett for a spot in the semifinals.
Barbora Strycova takes on CoCo Vandeweghe in the semifinals of the Aegon Classic Birmingham.
SYDNEY, Australia – Johanna Konta ended home hopes at the Apia International Sydney with a straight set win over Daria Gavrilova.
Following the first-round exits for Samantha Stosur and Arina Rodionova, Gavrilova was the last Australian remaining in the singles draw. However, to the disappointment of a partisan crowd, Konta withstood a late rally to run out a 6-1, 6-3 winner and secure a quarterfinal meeting against Daria Kasatkina.
The No.6 seed made a flying start, breaking in the opening game and dropping only four points during a dominant first set display. Another early break in the second continued this momentum, and while Gavrilova fought gallantly until the end she was unable to prevent Konta closing out victory at the sixth attempt.
.@JoKonta91 advances to @SydneyTennis Quarterfinals!
Beats Gavrilova 6-1, 6-3! pic.twitter.com/zv5xD5EOnF
— WTA (@WTA) January 10, 2017
In the previous match on court, Kasatkina upset World No.1 Angelique Kerber to leave Konta as the only seed remaining in the top half. “I knew going into the match it was going to be an incredibly tough one, she’s one of the best fighters on tour,” Konta said to BT Sport.
“It’s such a strong tournament, such depth, I know going into every single match that it’s going to be a tough one and I’m just going to have to, first and foremost, take care of things my end.”
Twelve months ago, Sydney-born Konta was about to announce herself to the tennis world with a semifinal run at the Australian Open. Now she is perched at No.10 in the world and, having also reached the semifinals in Shenzhen, is enjoying another profitable start to the tennis calendar.
“I’m just happy I have accumulated already a few matches under my belt in the first few weeks of the season. I feel quite pleased about that,” she added.
“I'm right here in Sydney, enjoying my time, trying to enjoy my involvement in the tournament as much as possible” @JoKonta91 #SydneyTennis pic.twitter.com/FIWzCURaBZ
— Apia Intl Sydney (@SydneyTennis) January 10, 2017
Madison Keys takes on Barbora Strycova in the final of the Aegon Classic.
An interview with Agnieszka Radwanska before her opening round match at the Aegon International.
Elena Vesnina takes on Heather Watson in the first round of the Aegon International.
EASTBOURNE, Great Britain – Former No.1 Caroline Wozniacki is starting to find her footing after a long layoff that forced her to miss the entire clay court season – including the French Open. Speaking with WTA Insider Courtney Nguyen at the Aegon International after her first round win over Alizé Cornet, Wozniacki first felt things were starting to fall into place following a pre-tournament practice with good friend and World No.3, Agnieszka Radwanska.
“I feel like I’m getting closer to where I want to be,” the Dane said in a Dropshot Edition of the WTA Insider Podcast. “I had a really good two hour practice with Aga yesterday; that made me feel good and like I know what I need to do. Birmingham wasn’t the best place to get rhythm because we kept going on and off the court.
“It was nice to get here knowing the weather is usually better here than anywhere else in the UK.”
Wozniacki reflects on her long absence from the tour, one that led her to a highly scheduled period of rest, relaxation, and a return to the piano, a former childhood pursuit.
“I used to play when I was younger, and I used to play some concerts as well. I just thought, ‘I have some time off, and it’s good for the brain as well.’
“I was good. Was. You know, when you start out playing again and think, ‘I used to do this so easily.’ Right now, I’m not very good, but then you keep improving every time because you start remembering things. I’m still getting there; I have a piano at home, and every time I’m home I’ll get lessons. I bought a keyboard for when I’m on the road, but I decided I had too much luggage, but maybe next trip!”
Listen to the full interview with the two-time US Open finalist below:
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