Montréal: Kucova Interview
An interview with Kristina Kucova after her win in the quarterfinals of the Rogers Cup.
An interview with Kristina Kucova after her win in the quarterfinals of the Rogers Cup.
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.
During her title run at the Shenzhen Open, Agnieszka Radwanska took some time out to talk about the city, the fans and whether she’ll come back next year. So, will she?
The 2016 Rogers Cup field has been whittled down to the final four. Ahead of the semifinals wtatennis.com contributor Chris Oddo runs the rule over the remaining contenders.
Highlights from first round action at the Apia International Sydney.
An interview with Madison Keys after her win in the semifinals of the Rogers Cup.
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.
SYDNEY, Australia – Sara Errani looked on course for a three-setter during her second round encounter with Jelena Jankovic; the Italian managed to up her game at the right moment at the Apia International Sydney, saving a whopping seven set points to take out the former No.1, 7-6(3), 7-6(8), in two hours and 30 minutes.
The 2012 French Open finalist, Errani had eked out the opening set against an opponent she had beaten in three of their last four meetings. But Jankovic won their last match at the Huajin Securities WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai and appeared poised to extend the match to a decider when the Serb raced out to a 5-1 lead.
“Yeah, it was 5-1, but I had many games with 40-Love, 40-15, and advantage, and so it didn’t really feel like 5-1,” Errani said.
“I was just thinking that I was near my best level, and to just try to keep going, play all the points, and finally was 5-All, and 5-5, 6-All, and really tough the tiebreaker.”
Undaunted, Errani saved her best tennis for when her back was against the wall, breaking the 2008 US Open runner-up twice in a row to level the set and overcome the loss of multiple match points to eventually earn the win in straight sets. Speaking to press after the match, Errani admitted that she was expecting a battle from the outset.
“It was very tough, physically. With her all of our matches is like this. We play always long matches, long points.”
Errani next plays the winner of the second round match between a pair of former Top 5 players, Sam Stosur and Daniela Hantuchova.
WTA Insider | In the first WTA Insider Live Blog of 2017, 22-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams defeats Pauline Parmentier in the first round of the ASB Classic.