Tennis News

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

INDIAN WELLS, CA, USA – The field for the 2016 BNP Paribas Open has been announced; the list of big names, which already included World No.1 Serena Williams and defending champion World No.2 Simona Halep, now features former No.1 Venus Williams. The seven-time Grand Slam champion and four-time Olympic Gold medalist returns to Indian Wells for the first time in 15 years.

Other names in the field include World No.3 Garbiñe Muguruza, 2014 finalist Agnieszka Radwanska, 2006 and 2013 champion Maria Sharapova, two-time Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova, Angelique Kerber, and Lucie Safarova. 

Buy tickets to the tournament right here.

The BNP Paribas Open is a combined two-week Premier Mandatory event running from March 9-20 held at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in sunny Indian Wells, California. 

Venus joins sister Serena, who returned to Indian Wells last year and reached the semifinals before a knee injury ended her shot at the title she won in 1999 and 2001, the last time either sister played at the Premier Mandatory event.

“We are thrilled that Venus Williams, one of the greatest women’s players in the history of the game, is returning to play in the BNP Paribas Open,” said Indian Wells CEO Raymond Moore. “Our fans embraced Serena last year, and we expect nothing less for Venus when she returns to compete at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden.”

“The fans will be thrilled to see Venus compete again in Indian Wells at the BNP Paribas Open,” adds WTA CEO and former Indian Wells Tournament Director and COO, Steve Simon. “I’m delighted to see Venus take her place in this year’s stellar line up of WTA and ATP players. This event keeps going from strength to strength and remains a clear fan and player favorite. I’m confident Venus will enjoy playing there again as much as we will enjoy seeing her on court.”

Halep defeated 2010 champion and former No.1 Jelena Jankovic in three gritty sets to win last year’s final, and fell two matches short of the elusive Indian Wells-Miami double when she lost to Serena in the semifinals of the Miami Open.

Muguruza made the round of 16 in her BNP Paribas Open debut back in 2013, qualifying and upsetting Ekaterina Makarova before losing to eventual semifinalist Angelique Kerber in two tight sets.

BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore by SC Global champion Radwanska rounds out the Top 4 and is currently contesting in her second Australian Open semifinal; the Pole had her best Indian Wells finish in 2014, when she took out Jankovic in the quarters and Halep in the semis, losing to future US Open champion Flavia Pennetta in the final.

Chasing the field will be two-time BNP Paribas Open champion Sharapova; the Russian first captured the Indian Wells title in 2006, later going on to win her second Grand Slam title at the US Open that same year. She struck gold again in California three years ago, defeating Caroline Wozniacki in the final.

This year, the BNP Paribas Open has launched a #TennisParadise Sweepstakes; win a VIP trip for two to this year’s tournament by posting an image with the hashtag #TennisParadise on Twitter or Instagram. The contest runs from January 25-February 5. 

CINCINNATI, OH, USA – Things are heating up on the hardcourts at the Western & Southern Open and wtatennis.com contributor Chris Oddo is on hand to preview Day 2’s must-see action.

Tuesday, First and Second Round

Center Court
[4] Garbiñe Muguruza (ESP #3) vs. CoCo Vandeweghe (USA #33)
Head-to-head: Vandeweghe leads, 2-0

Key Stat: Vandeweghe is sporting a 4-0 record against the Top 10 in 2016.
Neither player has ever been past the second round in Cincinnati, but that is about to change on Tuesday for either CoCo Vandeweghe or Garbiñe Muguruza as they prepare to square off for the first time in two years. Though Muguruza has had the more storied career, it is Vandeweghe who has taken their previous two meetings, which both occurred in 2014. It’s been an excellent year for the 24-year-old American. She has risen to a career-high ranking (No.29 on June 20) and at Wimbledon was seeded at a major for the first time. But Vandeweghe’s achievements pale in comparison to those of the Spaniard. Muguruza rolled to the Roland Garros title in June, defeating Serena Williams in the final. Though the 22-year-old has struggled a bit since her shining moment in Paris – going 3-3 in her last six – Muguruza says she feels refreshed and ready to tackle the Cincinnati challenge. “I was happy to live the experience in Rio, and I’m happy to be back,” she told reporters on Monday. “Coming here, I’m motivated to have a great tournament because I haven’t played a lot of matches. I’m looking forward to it.”

Pick: Muguruza in three

Grandstand
[17] Elina Svitolina (UKR #19) vs. [Q] Daria Gavrilova (AUS #47)
Head-to-head: Tied, 1-1

Key Stat: Gavrilova has won six straight sets since the beginning of qualifying in Cincinnati.
Making her second appearance at the Western & Southern Open, 22-year-old Daria Gavrilova zoomed into the second round with a 7-5, 6-3 shutdown of France’s Caroline Garcia on Monday. The Australian qualifier won 32 of 38 first-serve points and didn’t face a break point in winning her 18th match of 2016, and she hopes that having three matches under her belt in Cincinnati will help her when she faces Elina Svitolina on Tuesday. The Ukrainian reached the semifinals last year in Cincinnati, and she’s fresh off a quarterfinal appearance at the Olympics that saw her achieve her first victory over World No.1 Serena Williams. With both players in form, expect a hard-fought battle between feisty players, both of whom are eager to push deep into a quality draw.

Pick: Gavrilova in three

Stadium 3
Andrea Petkovic (GER #42) vs. Lucie Safarova (CZE #28)
Head-to-head: Petkovic leads, 4-3

Key Stat: Safarova is bidding for her 400th WTA win on Tuesday.
Two tried-and-true veterans will battle for the eighth time on Tuesday, with each hoping to gain some much-needed traction on the hardcourts – and their 400th career win! Safarova, who owns a career record of 399-282, hopes to crack the milestone on Tuesday and make it three consecutive hardcourt wins over Petkovic. Meanwhile, the 28-year-old German could pass the mark by reaching the quarterfinals. Petkovic and Safarova are each hovering around the .500 mark for the season and could badly use a deep run here in Cincinnati to bolster their confidence ahead of the season’s final Grand Slam in New York. With the US Open less than two weeks away the time is ripe for making statements. Who will make theirs on Tuesday?

Pick: Safarova in two

Around the grounds…
Nineteen-year-old Daria Kasatkina will make her Cincinnati debut when she takes on lucky loser Tsvetana Pironkova on Court No.10. Kasatkina, who reached the Olympic quarterfinals last week in Rio, is playing with a career-high ranking of 24. Canada’s Eugenie Bouchard qualified for the main draw and will open with a tricky encounter against Barbora Strycova of the Czech Republic. Bouchard won the pair’s first three meetings but Strycova has taken the last two, including a 6-1, 6-0 trouncing in Rome this spring. Strycova is coming off a Bronze medal performance in women’s doubles at the Rio Games.

NEW YORK, NY, USA – With the year’s final Grand Slam event just a few weeks away, the USTA announced today the recipients of main draw and qualifying wildcards for the US Open, which begins on August 29.

Among the recipients for main draw wildcards are two-time NCAA singles champion Danielle Collins, 2016 USTA Girls’ 18s National Champion Kayla Day, young American Lauren Davis, USTA Pro Circuit US Open Wild Card challenge winner Sofia Kenin, former Top 50 player Vania King, and Rio’s mixed doubles Olympic gold medalist Bethanie Mattek-Sands, as well as France’s Virginie Razzano.

As part of a reciprocal agreement with the USTA, Tennis Australia will award one additional main draw wild card to a player who will be announced at a later date.

In addition to the eight US Open women’s singles main draw wild cards, the USTA also announced the eight women who have been awarded wild card entries into the US Open Qualifying Tournament, which will be held August 23-26 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.

One additional US Open qualifying wild card will be awarded to the winner of the 2015 US Open National Playoffs – Women’s Championship, taking place August 19-22 in New Haven, Connecticut.

Here’s the full list of wildcards announced so far:

Main Draw
Kayla Day (USA)
Lauren Davis (USA)
Sofia Kenin (USA)
Vania King (USA)
Bethanie Mattek-Sands (USA)
Virginie Razzano (FRA)

Qualifying
Amanda Anisimova (USA)
Francesca Di Lorenzo (USA)
Nicole Frenkel (USA)
Ellie Halbauer (USA)
Jamie Loeb (USA)
Raveena Kingsley (USA)
Melanie Oudin (USA)
Laura Robson (GBR)

SHENZHEN, China – Top seed and defending champion Agnieszka Radwanska came back from the brink to defeat an inspired Duan Ying-Ying in the first round of the Shenzhen Open.

Having romped through the opening set, Radwanska looked on course for a straightforward outing against the World No.103. However, it proved to be anything but, the Pole eventually scraping through, 6-2, 6-7(4), 7-5, after saving three match points.

“It was not my best tennis, but I’m very happy that I got the win, and on the important points I was doing a good job, which was the most important thing today,” Radwanska said.

“The match points were of course big moments, but also the tie-break in the second set. I came from 4-1 down that set but in the tie-break I didn’t play good enough and it slipped away. I was still on court for another hour after that.”

Duan, who required a wildcard into the main draw, grabbed her opportunity with both hands, recovering from the loss of the opening four games to gradually overwhelm the World No.3. In the final set it looked like she would claim a famous victory, breaking in the ninth game to serve for the match.

To the disappointment of the upset-hungry crowd, she could not find the finishing blow, three times coming within a point of victory only to be denied each time.

.@ARadwanska is fighting with all her might and has now saved three match points! pic.twitter.com/kej2g35CZ7

— WTA (@WTA) January 2, 2017

Radwanska made the most of her escape, taking the next two games to book a meeting with Sorana Cirstea.

“It’s always tough to play someone for the first time – I didn’t know what to expect. But she’s a very powerful player and solid from the back,” Radwanska said. “She also served very well and had nothing to lose. It was a very close match, even at the beginning.”

Elsewhere there were contrasting fortunes for her fellow seeds, Timea Babos and Anastasija Sevastova, both of whom slipped to surprise defeats. Babos failed to make the most of a flying start, losing 1-6, 7-5, 6-2, to Nina Stojanovic, while Sevastova fell to Kristyna Pliskova, 1-6, 6-3, 7-6(6), despite holding a couple of match points in the tie-break.