Tennis News

The return of Caroline Wozniacki’s winning smile may be the tournament’s lasting image but the 2016 Toray Pan Pacific Open will also be remembered as Naomi Osaka’s coming out party.

While her talent has never been in doubt, the Japanese teenager has struggled to exhibit it as often as she would like. That all changed during her homeland’s flagship event, as Osaka dismantled Dominika Cibulkova and overpowered Elina Svitolina en route to her maiden WTA final.

Wozniacki – whose own feel-good story promoted her to No.22 – ensured there was no fairytale finish, but she was unable to stop Asian tennis’ star in waiting from becoming the youngest player inside the Top 50.

Many astute observers – including management group IMG – have been keeping a watchful eye on Osaka’s progress for some time. This year alone she has run both Simona Halep and Madison Keys close at majors, and the new World No.47 now looks to have the temperament to make the most of her spectacular shotmaking.

Osaka, though, was not the biggest mover in Monday’s new rankings…

Anastasija Sevastova (+5, No.35 to No.30): Although Sevastova was unable to repeat her US Open upset of Garbiñe Muguruza, by reaching the second round in Tokyo she secured a Top 30 debut. 

Lesia Tsurenko (+27, No.80 to No.53): On the other side of the Sea of Japan, Tsurenko continued the form that took her to the second week of the US Open by dethroning Jelena Jankovic in the final of the Guangzhou International Women’s Open. It was the Ukrainian’s second WTA title and puts her just 52 points away from reclaiming a Top 50 spot.

Lara Arruabarrena (+29, No.90 to No.61): Last week’s other title winner, Arruabarrena, did it the hard way coming back from the brink against Louisa Chirico, then winning a rollercoaster final with Monica Niculescu. This ended a four year wait for a second WTA title and also brought a new career-high ranking.

Francesca Schiavone first came to the Tashkent Open several weeks shy of her 20th birthday. The teenager was ranked outside the Top 100, but stunned top seed Anna Smashnova in the first round en route to her first WTA final.

“It’s been nearly 16 years since I was last here,” she said in an interview with Sunder Iyer. “I have great memories of Tashkent. The city has changed a lot from what I saw then; it’s great to be back.”

Schiavone went on to win her first Grand Slam title just over a decade after her initial breakthrough in the Uzbek capital, eventually peaking at No.4 at the start of 2011.

The return to Tashkent is a bittersweet, full circle moment for the 36-year-old, who is once again outside the Top 100 despite a title run at the Rio Open earlier this year. Still, Schiavone showed she still had some magic left with a straight-set upset over No.7 seed Sorana Cirstea.

“This match was a tough one. Sorana is coming back, so I had had to play good tactics and win every point. I played well and feel confident.”

Confidence has been hard to come by for the former French Open champion, who began the year playing qualifying at the Australian Open. Adjusting to the shift in results has admittedly been a process.

“When you are Top 10, it is different level, different money, different services, different satisfaction. As your ranking drops and you are outside Top 100 everything changes in life; the entire system changes and you are no longer as special you were.

“But I love the sport and still enjoy playing.”

It was unbridled passion and pure love for the game that brought Schiavone to the top of the sport, and it appears that same love is what keeps her on tour to this day.

“I play because I enjoy it. I’m happy to play tennis – even now. It’s tough, and there are some decisions one has to take about their careers sometimes. I decided to continue playing. I would like to thank God for keeping me healthy and allowing me to still play at this level.”

Debuting on the WTA tour back in 1996, Schiavone has had a front seat to the radical changes the game has made, noting a far more physical sport than rewards experience over youth.

“One has to play a minimum of 20 shots in a rally. The matches are longer; one has to play for around three hours. Tennis is going faster and faster.

“A lot of young players used to be around, but today the overall age of players playing the tour is higher. Many players in their 30s are winning matches and events. If one is fit, they all have an opportunity. Players were younger in the sport back then, and were under lot of pressure. There was no time to relax because of the busy schedules and commitments; many of them burnt out.

“But now, I see them taking time to practice, be physically fit, and ensure longevity in the sport, playing for longer time spans.”

Schiavone has found it’s never too late to make such changes, the likes of which were apparent when she declined a wlldcard to the Olympic tennis event in Rio de Janeiro.

“Obviously, things change. When you are young, you can fly from the US to China and back to US and back to China without much thought. Flights were easy then, but now, at 36, you make different decisions and ensure you get rest, practice, and be fresh for competition. One learns to work at an easy pace and enjoy the game, which is what I’m doing now.”

With no plans of stopping anytime soon, there remains a plan for what’s to come when the veteran decides to call it a career, one that will channel her love of the game into the next generation of Italian tennis.

“I hope one day I can serve my country and its players. I want to work with them and help them in the sport.

“It would be great to give back what I learned, because it truly was a gift.”

All photos courtesy of Getty Images.

WUHAN, China – Dominika Cibulkova completed her arduous journey to the Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open final with a thrilling victory over Svetlana Kuznetsova

Watch live action from Wuhan on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!

After over two and half hours of thrilling tennis, Cibulkova added the finishing touch to a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory by thumping a backhand onto the baseline. In the final she will face the winner of Friday’s evening session, Petra Kvitova.

“It feels great. I’m really tired right now, but the feeling to be in the final is unbelievable, and that’s why I love it,” Cibulkova said. “It’s just a great win for me today.”

Cibulkova’s path to the final has been far from straightforward. Rain earlier in the week forced the Slovak to play both her last 16 and quarterfinal matches on Thursday, making the level of play against Kuznetsova all the more remarkable.

“I would say that nothing has been easy here. I’ve had really tough matches from the first round so you don’t expect anything easy from this tournament. I’m really looking forward to another final and I want to keep going, keep playing like this,” Cibulkova added.

Didn't expect Cibulkova to have enough left in the tank for a performance like that. Love her attitude+it's another final @wuhanopentennis

— Anne Keothavong (@annekeothavong) 30 September 2016

Outthought and outfought in the first set, Cibulkova went back to the drawing board at the start of the second. Her change of tack reaped immediate dividends, bookending a trademark drive volley with a couple of perfectly executed drop shots to break in the opening game.

“I have my notes with me [on court] for a couple of years now and it’s helping me, so it’s nothing new for me but it’s something that keeps me focused and helps me remember things to do – it’s just a reminder for me. But it helped me today.”

While this advantage did not last for long, the tide was turning, Cibulkova taking four of the last five games to force a decider.

With the contest in the balance, Cibulkova somehow managed to summon her best tennis. Serving at 4-4, 15-30, she finished a series of energy sapping points with spectacular winners to edge ahead. This sequence seemed to drain the belief from Kuznetsova, who soon found herself staring at three match points. One was enough, Cibulkova pouncing on an inviting serve to reach her fifth final of the season.

The result not only guarantees a return to the Top 10 but also boosts her hopes of reaching the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global for the first time. She will now occupy one of the eight qualification spots on Monday, regardless of the result in the final. 

BEIJING, China – World No.3 Garbiñe Muguruza kicked off her Beijing title defense with a hard-fought win over Irina Camelia Begu, emerging victorious from the early test to move into the second round of the China Open.

Watch live action from Beijing on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!

Though a spate of unforced errors from the forehand wing left Muguruza vulnerable and allowed Begu to grab the first set, the Spaniard recovered and notched a 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 victory after an hour and fifty minutes.

“I think it’s very, very satisfying when you go to a tournament where you know you played well, you feel welcome,” Muguruza said after the match. “But honestly, this was last year. Nobody really is thinking about who won last year. It’s all about who is going to win this year, who is winning.

“I’m just going for my match, just concentrating the next one.”

Muguruza also kept her bid for Singapore on track as she eyes a return to the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.

“Definitely Singapore was a great motivation to try to find my spot,” Muguruza admitted. “Well, Beijing is one of the biggest tournaments we have, so for sure I have a great opportunity to do it well and qualify.”

Also into the second round, Belinda Bencic advanced past Annicka Beck in straight sets. In a match that featured 10 breaks of serve, it was Bencic who edged through 6-3, 6-2 after an hour and 17 minutes.

Wildcard Sabine Lisicki had a more straightforward path, powering past Mirjana Lucic-Baroni 6-2, 6-2. Yulia Putintseva and Yanina Wickmayer are also through, with Putintseva weathering a stern challenge from 19-year-old wunderkind Jelena Ostapenko to advance 6-1, 3-6, 7-5. Meanwhile, Wickmayer added to Monica Puig’s post-Olympic woes, beating the Puerto Rican 6-2, 6-0 and handing her the worst defeat since the Olympic tennis event in Rio.

Welcome to WTA Finals month. Here are the updated scenarios after 24 hours to digest the Beijing draw for singles and doubles…

ROAD TO SINGAPORE UPDATE – Saturday, October 1st