Tennis News

INDIAN WELLS, CA, USA – Elena Vesnina has the potential to make it into the singles Top 10, says Svetlana Kuznetsova – the woman she beat in an epic final at the BNP Paribas Open on Sunday.

“Why not? Of course, I mean, she did semis in Wimbledon last year. She won here now. She has to be much more consistent to be in the top 10, but she can make it, for sure,” said the defeated Russian of her compatriot.

.@SvetlanaK27 is moving up a gear! #BNPPO17 pic.twitter.com/QO5bthevKE

— WTA (@WTA) March 19, 2017

Kuznetsova admitted that she had struggled with the daytime conditions, and felt rather frustrated that she had not played as well as she could.

“I didn’t feel comfortable at all today on the court,” said the 31-year-old. “I was trying to do the best I could, you know, but this is the type of day when you don’t play your best tennis and you’ve got to still give your best effort.

“I tried my best and she won because she was more aggressive than I did. I was too passive. That’s it. Too much behind and didn’t serve well, I think it was key points.”

Kuznetsova now moves on to Miami – and is confident that she can recover quickly from the loss to her countrywoman.

“I feel great,” she assured reporters in her post-match press conference. “I didn’t overwork. I think what really is difficult to handle, like, lots of stress. It’s, like, kind of waste you physically a little bit. But the rest matches didn’t get me so much tired. I feel great physically.

“I’m looking forward to have couple days off and hopefully get a good start in Miami.”

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia – No.2 seed Roberta Vinci won the battle of youth vs. experience at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy, defeating 18-year-old Belinda Bencic – who is poised to crack the Top 10 next week – 6-4, 6-3 for her 10th career title, and her first on the WTA Premier level.

Vinci had overcome a thrilling quarterfinal encounter against the big-serving Timea Babos and turned around a lop-sided head-to-head against former No.1 Ana Ivanovic just to reach the final, but the 32-year-old showed few signs of fatigue on Sunday, hitting 32 winners to just 12 errors.

By winning her semifinal against former junior rival Daria Kasatkina, Bencic was assured of a Top 10 debut heading into the championship match, and though she struck 17 winners of her own, she only converted two of six break point opportunities, and was undone by Vinci’s 25 forays to the net – 17 of which ended in favor of the Italian.

“Roberta played amazing today and throughout this tournament,” Bencic said, addressing the champion. “I gave everything I could but today you were much better!”

“It wasn’t easy,” Vinci said during her on-court interview. “It was a tough match; Belinda is a great player, so it’s tough to play against her. She only missed a few balls, so I had to stay focused every single point.

“But I served so good today, so I think that was the key to my victory.”

Having earned a career performance at last year’s US Open – where she ended World No.1 Serena Williams’ quest for the Calendar Year Grand Slam to reach her first major singles final – Vinci had previously announced her intention to make 2016 her last season, but with another title under her belt, the veteran was singing a slightly different tune when asked if she planned to play a few more years.

“No, two, three years, no. One more, but maybe. Why not?”

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil – Danka Kovinic has enjoyed a meteoric rise up the rankings in the last 12 months, but was made to work in the first round of the Rio Open; the No.3 seed beat American Sachia Vickery, 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 in just over two hours.

“It was so tough to play,” a tired Kovinic admitted after the match. “It’s very humid and hot here, and I came from Serbia, where it’s very cold. For me, it was very hard to play; I felt like I didn’t have energy, but somehow I found a way to finish the match.

“I really don’t feel good right now.”

At a career-high ranking of No.50, the 21-year-old Montenegrin next plays the winner of veterans Romina Oprandi and Sílvia Soler Espinosa for a spot in the quarterfinals and the chance to pocket valuable ranking points that can help her return to Rio later this summer for the 2016 Summer Olympics.

“I’ll try to do the best to earn as much points as I can; I really need them for the Olympic games. That’s my goal for this year.”

Earlier in the day, No.5 seed Polona Hercog took out qualifier Jennifer Brady, 6-4, 6-2, and resurgent American Shelby Rogers upset No.8 seed Andreea Mitu, 6-2, 6-2. Mitu’s countrywoman Ana Bogdan defeated local wildcard Gabriela Ce, 6-2, 6-3, while Paraguay’s Veronica Cepede Royg recovered from a set down to defeat Anna Tatishvili, 6-7(4), 6-1, 6-3.

An intriguing first round match concerns a pair of wildcards in Brazil’s Beatriz Haddad Maia and former World No.21 Sorana Cirstea, who is playing her first WTA event since last fall in Tokyo; despite a rain delay in the second set, Cirstea emerged victorious, 6-2, 6-1.

MIAMI, FL, USA – It was a personal milestone for Luxembourg’s Mandy Minella on Tuesday, as the 31-year-old won her first-ever main draw match at a Premier Mandatory event, defeating Kristyna Pliskova, 7-6(4), 5-7, 7-5 in the first round at the Miami Open.

“I knew it was going to be a tough match,” she told WTA Insider after the match. “I’ve played her once or twice before, and I knew she serves really well. She goes for her shots, and I struggled to return her first serve. It was a tough match and big battle. I’m really happy I won it in the end.”

Playing in her first-ever main draw in Miami in her fourth career appearance, Minella showed few signs of nerves in the early going. The World No.74 broke Pliskova at her first opportunity in the second game, taking a 3-0 lead at the first change of ends, later extending her lead to 5-2 with a pair of holds without allowing Pliskova a break point chance.

Outrageous way to save match point from @KrisPliskova! ? #MiamiOPen pic.twitter.com/I5Lk2RtPzX

— WTA (@WTA) March 21, 2017

However, the Czech staged a late comeback, breaking Minella as she served for the set and delivering an emphatic love hold to knot the set at 5-5. She held to love once more to force a first-set tiebreak, but Minella proved more effective on return as the tiebreak wore on. Neutralizing the left-hander’s delivery and winning four points on Pliskova’s serve in the tiebreak, Minella secured the 59-minute opener as one final Pliskova backhand went long.

“I’ve been really good physically lately. I’m in good shape and can last for long matches. That’s a good point in my favor. I struggled a little bit today because it was quite hot and there was a lot of running. The balls are quite heavy, so that means there’ll be a lot of rallies. It was definitely tough out there today.”

After managing to win just two points on Minella’s serve to begin the second set, Pliskova secured the break in a sixth game which saw her dig in at deuce to move ahead 4-2. However, Minella hit right back in the next, passing Pliskova twice at the net en route to an emphatic break that got the set back on serve. Neither player had a look at a break point again until the final game of the set, in which Pliskova took advantage of a trio of Minella double faults to square the match at one set all.

.@MandyMinella battles past Kristyna Pliskova 7-6(4), 5-7, 7-5!

Sets @MiamiOpen Second round vs @SvetlanaK27! pic.twitter.com/AQpf69rGBM

— WTA (@WTA) March 21, 2017

Playing a deciding set for the first time in three meetings, the duo traded breaks twice in the final set before Minella secured her third game off the Pliskova serve to put her in position to serve for the match. As the contest hit the two-hour, 30-minute mark, Minella brought up three match points on serve, only to see the Czech storm back and win the next five to level the match at 5-5, courtesy of some brilliant shot-making.

However, Minella kept her cool in the midday sun, breaking for a fourth time in the set and sealing the match on her fourth match point, closing out the two-hour, 38-minute victory as Pliskova’s final backhand return found the net.

“It’s good to start the season in this positive way; it gives you confidence for upcoming tournaments. I think I’m still on a roll, enjoying my tennis. I’m enjoying my matches and the traveling. I think that’s the reason I’ve been playing good, and because I love my sport.”

Minella, who improves to 3-0 lifetime against the left-handed Pliskova, advances to the second round where she’ll face No. 7 seed and BNP Paribas Open runner-up, Svetlana Kuznetsova.

“I think it’ll be really hard because she’s in great shape. She was in the Indian Wells final last week, and so I think she’s going to be ready. I’ll try my best to play as good as I can; I will fight, and will just try to do my best.”

The veteran has enjoyed a strong start to her season, reaching the semifinals of the Taiwan Open, but credits a career turn around by winning her first WTA 125K title in Bol, Croatia.

“Bol was where everything changed for me. I’d had some really miserable results up to that point, and I was about to stop my career at Wimbledon. I think I just relaxed and enjoyed being there. The city was fantastic; they had a nice hotel with a spa, and the sea was quiet. I really enjoyed it there, and it helped me play good enough to win my first title over there. It’ll always be in my memories for a long time.”

DUBAI, UAE – Jelena Jankovic was two games from elimination in the first round of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. Playing against against No.5 seed Belinda Bencic – who made her Top 10 debut on Monday – the former No.1 survived an onslaught from the 18-year-old to come out on top, 4-6, 7-5, 6-4.

“I just fought every point,” Jankovic said during her on-court interview. “I tried to hang in there; Belinda was playing so well and I was almost on the edge of losing in the second set but I fought hard and I’m lucky to win.”

Coming to Dubai a mere days after reaching the final of the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy, Bencic led by a set and a break, and had her chances in the final set as well, saving 14 of 17 break points faced – including three in a row in the eighth game of the third – but Jankovic proved too strong in the end.

“I made a few tactical changes, and my fighting spirit all added up together and it made me win at the end. Belinda is coming from the finals in St. Petersburg; she’s playing very well, she’s in form, and I’m happy to win tonight.”

In a match that had little between the two, the Serb hit 37 winners to 33 from the Swiss, and eight fewer errors than her much younger opponent – 44 to 52.

“When you look at it, I’m like 12 years older than her, almost her whole age!” Jankovic joked. “That was my advantage tonight.”

Up next for the 2008 US Open finalist is good friend Andrea Petkovic; the German had a seamless first round victory over Camila Giorgi 24 hours ago, dropping just three games.

“It’s all with the ‘-ic’ if you look at it,” Jankovic said with a laugh. “Jankovic, Bencic, and Petkovic all on this side of the draw!

“It’s kind of cool, but Andrea is my friend and I know her very well. We just practiced with each other a couple of days ago. We know each other’s games and there’s no secrets.

“It will be another tough match and hopefully I can play well and we’ll see how it goes.”

“When you look at it, I'm like 12 years older than her. I'm almost her whole age!” -@Jelena_Jankovic on Bencic #WTA https://t.co/lMeue1myOq

— WTA (@WTA) February 16, 2016