Eastbourne: Tuesday Highlights
Highlights from first and second round action at the Aegon International.
Highlights from first and second round action at the Aegon International.
Monica Puig takes on Kristina Mladenovic in the quarterfinals of the Aegon International.
Dominika Cibulkova takes on Monica Puig in the semifinals of the Aegon International.
We all love colorful prints and vibrant colors in tennis outfits, but isn’t it nice to get back to basics from time to time? Let’s hand it over to Marija Zivlak of Women’s Tennis Blog and see the pure whites that tennis apparel companies prepared for Wimbledon 2016.
Serena Williams will try to defend her title in the NikeCourt Premier Dress, whose mock neck is a new aesthetic in the world number one’s tennis fashion. The skirt design is the continuation of Williams’ looks from the previous 2016 Grand Slams, while two tiers of pleats in the back add a special flash of style.
Eugenie Bouchard and other NikeCourt team athletes will wear the NikeCourt Premier Slam Dress, which means that skirt-top combinations are taking a back seat. Stunning power pleats that stretch all the way from the chest of this simple swing silhouette make this a truly unique piece that has daringly departed quite a bit from a classic tennis dress. When it comes to the much-talked-about length of the dress, Bouchard says that it’s perfect.
adidas’ Climachill collection is equipped with a trio of advanced technologies that provide an instant chilling sensation and lower the body temperature, an ideal choice for high temperatures.
Industry-first 3D aluminium-cooling spheres on the back and neck, the warmest parts of the body, have an immediate cooling effect on contact, mesh-like micro fibres take moisture away from the skin, and SubZero flat yarns containing titanium maximize surface contact with the skin, thus transferring the heat away from the body.
Stella McCartney’s adidas line stands out with the abundance of laser-cut holes that serve both as fashionable elements and as functional features that improve breathability. The collection’s supreme performance is supported by Climacool and Climalite heat regulation.
Caroline Wozniacki has the adidas Fall Stella Barricade Primeknit Dress ready for her Wimbledon campaign. Besides the stylish abundance of holes in the skirt, the dress is specific for its scoop neck and back and engineered mesh fabric in targeted breathability zones. Last year’s runner-up Garbiñe Muguruza is expected to wear one of the top-skirt ensembles from the London collection. One possible combination includes the adidas Stella McCartney Core Tank, which features a large mesh section at upper back, and the adidas Fall Stella McCartney Skirt, that includes exposed elastic waistband.
Venus Williams’ EleVen Game Day Dress is a classy cap-sleeve item with very subtle details: a boomerang-shaped contrast binding at waistband and light silver company logo at center chest.
Agnieszka Radwanska’s clean white Lotto look consists of the Nixia Dress made from lightweight fabrics that even the most demanding players feel comfortable in. The clean and elegant style combines technical and breathable materials with a large mesh back panel for added heat control and touch of femininity. The Stratosphere W shoes are designed to take your footwork to new heights, owing to their advanced cushioning and responsiveness, as well as maximum transpiration.
New Balance’s WTA players, led by Heather Watson, will wear the white version of the popular Spring Tournament Dress, which captivates with its sleek strappy racerback and subtle functional details such as the “N” houndstooth burnout mesh back panel. The 996v2 tennis shoes are made for players that want a stable shoe which rises up to the challenge during sharp lateral movements.
For the second Grand Slam in a row Fila’s Jelena Jankovic will exhibit Marion Bartoli’s tennis designs. The all-white Trophee collection contains six pieces of clothing created by the 2013 Wimbledon champion: a dress, a tank, two skort styles, a blazer, and pants. Details such as mesh inserts and a feminine flounce adorn the collection.
Other representatives of Fila will wear the Lawn collection which boasts a selection of tops, dresses and two different lengths of skorts. These Wimbledon whites are focused on waist-accentuating cut lines stylized with details such as curved seam lines, princess seams, and pintuck accents. The promo image shows Yaroslava Shvedova in the Fila Lawn Full Coverage Tank, which brings all the attention to the waist by a strategic use of pintuck detail at sides and peplum-inspired curved hem.
Lacoste’s designs are never too far from tradition and their Wimbledon collection is along those lines as well, although in these promotional photos of Elena Vesnina, Dominika Cibulkova and Christina McHale we can see that quite a bit of color is included in the clothes prepared for the grass-court Grand Slam, as each item has a pop of blue and fluo yellow colorblocking.
As we can see, even within Wimbledon’s strict clothing rules, there are limitless possibilities for unique and breathtaking designs.
A rain-affected Tuesday means Wimbledon has some catching up to do, but second-round action nonetheless begins in earnest on Wednesday at the All England Club. We preview the key matchups and look inside the numbers here on wtatennis.com, courtesy of contributor Chris Oddo.
Wednesday
Second Round
[5] Simona Halep (ROU #5) vs. Francesca Schiavone (ITA #111)
Head-to-head: Schiavone leads, 1-0
Key Stat: Schiavone snapped a three-year Wimbledon losing streak with her first round win on Monday.
Simona Halep has only won back-to-back matches at SW19 on one occasion, but that occasion was quite special because it led to an appearance in the semifinals in 2014. Can the Romanian, who has suffered from patchy form and a nagging Achilles injury in recent months, rekindle the magic on grass this year? Standing in her way will be one of the tour’s most revered veterans in Francesca Schiavone. The 36-year-old snapped a three-year Wimbledon drought on Monday with a straight set win over Anastasija Sevastova, but the challenge will be elevated on Wednesday when the Italian tries to win against a Top 10 player on grass for the first time. Halep had to skip Birmingham with injury, but she told reporters on Monday that despite her lack of match play on grass this summer, her extra practice time on the surface is starting to pay off. “I had many days practicing here,” she said. “I feel the grass. I feel the court. I feel the atmosphere here… I’m looking forward for the next round, and maybe I will play better after two days.”
Pick: Halep in two
[9] Madison Keys (USA #9) vs. Kirsten Flipkens (BEL #51)
Head-to-head: Tied, 1-1
Key Stat: Keys enters on six-match winning streak.
Madison Keys, American storm. The 21-year-old may possess a calm and easy going demeanor, but it’s clear to anyone that watches her play that she enjoys playing rock-n-roll tennis when she’s on court. She did that to great effect in winning the Birmingham title a few weeks back and she looked stunning in hammering her way past Germany’s Laura Siegemund on Day 1. But Keys knows her next test against the crafty Belgian Kirsten Flipkens will force her to problem solve a bit more. Will she prove up to the task? She says she’s ready. “It will be tough,” she told reporters on Monday, when asked about the challenge of facing the former Wimbledon semifinalist. “I played her in Miami. It was a tough match. She’s obviously done well on grass before and can be really crafty, is really good with dropshots and slices and mixing it up. That’s going to be a tough match. I think I’ll have to go in with a similar game plan as I did today.”
Pick: Keys in two
Sabine Lisicki (GER #81) vs. [14] Sam Stosur (AUS #16)
Head-to-head: Stosur leads, 5-2
Key Stat: Lisicki improved to 26-7 lifetime at Wimbledon with her win over Shelby Rogers on Monday.
Samantha Stosur holds the significant edge in the pair’s head-to-head, but Sabine Lisicki’s Wimbledon magic could play a role in the eighth meeting between these two hard-serving veterans. Stosur, making her 14th Wimbledon appearance, is well aware of the Lisicki aura at SW19. “I mean, it’s no doubt this is a tournament she feels very comfortable at no matter kind of what she’s been doing in the lead-up,” Stosur said. “I’m sure when she walks through the gates here she probably feels like she’s No. 1 in the world. You have to be aware of that and know she has a very big serve.” Lisicki has won just two of seven tilts against the Aussie, but she’s once again brimming with confidence and a certain je ne sais quoi at Wimbledon. “I really liked this place from the beginning,” she said. “I think in this place you feel the history. It’s just a magical place. When I come here, I just feel really special to have the opportunity to play here.”
Pick: Lisicki in three
Around the Grounds: Garbiñe Muguruza will look to continue her eight-match winning streak at major tournaments when she takes on world No.124 Jana Cepelova of Slovakia. Muguruza owns a 6-1 record against players ranked outside of the Top 100 at majors. Venus Williams will square off with Greek qualifier Maria Sakkari. World No.115 Sakkari won her first Wimbledon match on Monday; Williams owns 77 wins at the All England Club, second only to her sister Serena among active players. Karolina Pliskova will continue her quest to make the second week of a major for the first time when she meets Misaki Doi on Day 2. In 16 major appearances, Pliskova has only reached the third round three times.
By the Numbers:
8 – Number of Wimbledon finals that Venus Williams has played, winning five.
89 – Percentage of first-serve points that Stosur won in her Day 1 victory over Magda Linette.
18 – Number of American women that entered the main draw – most of any country.
122 – The speed of Sabine Lisicki’s fastest serve on Day 1, which was the fastest recorded by all players in action on Monday.
LONDON, Great Britain – No.3 seed Agnieszka Radwanska had to dig deep in her second round match against Ana Konjuh, saving three match points to narrowly dodge an upset bid from the 18-year-old Croat.
With No.2 seed Garbiñe Muguruza bowing out in a shock second-round upset, British No.1 Johanna Konta falling against the resurgent Eugenie Bouchard and Belinda Bencic retiring earlier in the day, it seemed like the 2012 finalist would be the next big name on the chopping block. But Radwanska dug deep to save three match points and deny Konjuh the biggest win of her career, 6-2, 4-6, 9-7.
Despite Radwanska going down in her opening service game, it looked like it would be a routine win for the Pole, who broke three times and made just one unforced error in the first set to get ahead comfortably.
But Konjuh, who last year became the youngest WTA title winner in almost a decade when she lifted her maiden trophy at the Aegon Open Nottingham, rallied back valiantly and put Radwanska down a break for a 3-2 lead. She cut her unforced error count by almost half – 19 in the first set to just 10 – and improved her court movement, coming up to the net more and cutting off Radwanska’s angles.
Konjuh held on to that narrow lead and fought off seven break points to take the second set and level the score against the World No.3. Under pressure, Radwanska struggled to put pace on the ball as uncharacteristic errors began to fly from her racquet.
Konjuh held her first match point at 5-3 on Radwanska’s serve, but the 18-year-old’s nerves reared their ugly head as she buried it into the net. She had two more in the next game but a heart-stopping net cord ball fell on her side, denying her the match once again as Radwanska broke back.
At 7-7 with Radwanska serving ahead 40-15, Konjuh picked up a nasty injury after rolling her right ankle while chasing down a drop shot. She was back on court after a lengthy medical time out, but her movement was visibly hampered and she struggled to find power on her serve as well as run down Radwanska’s shots. Radwanska completed her great escape and took the match 6-2, 4-6, 9-7.
Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic awaits Radwanska in the third round. Siniakova came back from a set down to topple the No.30 seed Caroline Garcia 4-6, 6-4, 6-1.
More to come…
A valiant effort from 18-year-old Konjuh, who limps off after rolling her ankle and pushing Radwanska to the limit https://t.co/bQvBulrLVA
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) June 30, 2016
LONDON, Great Britain – No.3 seed Agnieszka Radwanska dug deep from her bag of tricks to see off Katerina Siniakova in a straight sets tour de force, needing just 63 minutes to advance to the fourth round 6-3, 6-1.
Radwanska put on a clinic on the No.3 Court against Siniakova, who at 20 years old was the youngest woman left in the draw. Against the big hitting Czech, Radwanska employed her famous ability of drawing out her opponent’s errors with her signature mix variety and anticipation, running Siniakova ragged all along the court.
The first set unfolded as a tightly-contested affair with Radwanska bringing up and converting the only break point for a lead at 4-2. She struck early on in the second set, frustrating Siniakova with a drop shot after pushing her out far behind the baseline.
Radwanska grabbed the second break of the second set at 4-1 when she fetched a wide-angled return with a vicious forehand loaded with sidespin, then calmly put away the next shot at the net. Siniakova was forced to hit one more ball as her would-be winners were returned time and time again.
Siniakova clawed to her first break point of the match at 5-1, but it was calmly brushed aside as the Pole looked locked in, breaking Siniakova once more and crushing a swinging crosscourt forehand pass to move on to the second week of Wimbledon for the eighth time in her career.
Cibulkova awaits Radwanska in the fourth round after the Slovak put away former finalist Eugenie Bouchard in straight sets earlier in the day.
Agnieszka Radwanska produces some wonderful tennis to see off Katerina Siniakova 6-3, 6-1. The Pole is into the 4R. pic.twitter.com/QTDjatxfeE
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 2, 2016
No.5 seed Simona Halep overcame defeat in a tense first set tie-break to end No.9 seed Madison Keys’ eight match winning streak on grass to reach the last eight at Wimbledon.
LONDON, England – Serena Williams moved one step closer to a historic 22nd major with a straight set win over Elena Vesnina in Thursday’s Wimbledon semifinals.
Displaying no trace of the nerves that have occasionally accompanied her quest to match Steffi Graf’s Open Era record of 22 Grand Slam titles, Williams ruthlessly closed out a 6-2, 6-0 victory in just 48 minutes.
A rapid start saw the top seed race into a 3-0 lead with only nine minutes on the Centre Court clock. Venina, playing at this stage of a Grand Slam for the first time, did eventually get on the board, but it was merely delaying the inevitable, Williams firing an ace down the T to close out the set in emphatic fashion.
Williams tightened her grip on the contest at the start of the second, wrong-footing her dumbfounded opponent to earn two more break points. Only one was required, Vesnina wilting following another taxing baseline exchange.
And as the finishing line approached there was no let up for Williams, who found an answer to every question posed by the Russian, completing a victory with another flawless service game.
Serena Williams is posting some absolutely absurd stats today. On fire. #Wimbledon https://t.co/12pMcCtzcf pic.twitter.com/Fm4HEyWYec
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) 7 July 2016
“I’m very happy, you know, I was really focused today because we’ve had a lot of tough matches before. And especially on this surface I knew she could really bring it to me so I was ready,” Williams told the BBC afterwards. “It’s never easy out there, every point you have to fight for.
In the final she will face either sister Venus Williams or her conqueror at this year’s Australian Open, Angelique Kerber.
“It’s weird I can’t believe I’m in the final again. You know I’m 0 for 2 [in Grand Slam finals] this year so I’m determined to get at least one. It would be great [to play Venus] because then we’d be guaranteed to have a Williams on the trophy – that’s the ultimate goal for both of us and obviously I want her to do well, and if not Kerber would be another good match. I played her in Australia. Either way I look forward to it.”
More to follow.
LONDON, Great Britain – Just hours after winning her seventh Wimbledon crown and a historic 22nd major title, Serena Williams was back on Centre Court to join Venus Williams in the final of Ladies Doubles. The sisters extended their doubles dominance and improved their record to 14-0 in Grand Slam finals by taking the title, powering past Timea Babos and Yaroslava Shvedova 6-3, 6-4.
“It was really special to be out there again, to win Wimbledon in doubles. We love it, we love playing doubles, we love being together,” Serena said after the match.
“I had just enough time to change and get the ankles re-taped. It was fine. I didn’t want to warm down.”
It had been four years since the Williams sisters featured in a major doubles final – their victory at the 2012 Wimbledon Ladies Doubles Championships was the last time they reached this stage. With today’s victory they hold 14 Grand Slam titles together, putting them at second place on the list of most doubles titles in the Open Era. Only Martina Navratilova and Pam Shriver have more, at 20 titles.
“Watching Serena playing earlier was amazing and I was so into that,” Venus said of her younger sister’s historic win earlier in the day.
“We had to hit the reset button to get ready for the doubles. She brought the energy from game one.”
The sisters came out firing straight away against the No.5 seeds Babos and Shvedova. After trading breaks early on, the Williamses grabbed the decisive break at 4-3 after a vicious Venus crosscourt backhand split the court and left Babos and Shvedova stranded.
Despite firing off a double fault while serving for the match, Venus quickly redeemed herself on the next point as Serena picked off a backhand volley to seal the title.
The Williamses joined up again for doubles for the first time this year at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia with an eye on the Summer Games in Rio later in the season. After a pair of false starts – a first-round loss in Rome and an early exit at the French Open – they look to be peaking just in time for the Olympics, where they’re seeking their fourth doubles gold medal.
#SAPStatOfTheDay: This is the fourth time @SerenaWilliams has won BOTH #Wimbledon singles and doubles titles! pic.twitter.com/GZLHjzLMIa
— WTA (@WTA) July 9, 2016