Tennis News

BIRMINGHAM, Great Britain – Already assured of becoming the first American to debut in the Top 10 since Serena Williams in April 1999 by reaching the Aegon Classic final, Madison Keys went one better in Birmingham, defeating tour veteran Barbora Strycova, 6-3, 6-4, to win her second WTA title.

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Keys had been made to work through a rainy week in Birmingham, winning a pair of thrilling three-setters against Jelena Ostapenko and Carla Suárez Navarro just to clinch her Top 10 debut. Strycova, by contrast, had dropped just one set en route to her second final of what has been a career-best season for the Czech, who is also set to play the doubles final alongside countrywoman Karolina Pliskova against Vania King and Alla Kudryavtseva.

But it was the 21 year old American who drew first blood on Sunday’s final, racing out to a 3-0 lead and never looking back in a decisive opening set.

“I think I got off to a good start in the first set breaking early,” she said in her post-match press conference. “I think I held onto the that lead pretty well. Then in the second set, she definitely raised her level.”

Strycova indeed kept it close in the second, engineering a break point in the eighth game that would have allowed her to serve for a decider, but Keys kept her cool and won the last three games on the bounce to win her first WTA title since 2014 – also on grass in Eastbourne.

“There was definitely a couple of games, especially when I was serving, that I really had to dig deep and figure it out. Luckily I was able to.”

A quarterfinalist at last year’s Wimbledon Championships, Keys played near-perfect grass court tennis during the 79 minute affair, hitting 27 winners to 16 unforced errors and winning 13 of 18 forays to the net.

“I’m feeling pretty good. I think getting this many matches in a row was a huge opportunity that I think that can definitely help me at Wimbledon.

“I obviously really love the surface, so the more I get to play on it, the happier I am.”

DUBAI, UAE – No.7 seed Elina Svitolina is into the biggest final of her career after upsetting top seed Angelique Kerber in straight sets at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Friday; standing between her and her sixth career title is none other than 2011 champion and former World No.1 Caroline Wozniacki.

Check out everything you need to know about this high-stakes affair right here on wtatennis.com!

1. Svitolina can crack the Top 10 if she wins on Saturday.
Svitolina has been on the cusp of making her Top 10 debut for quite some time, and the Ukrainian youngster can close the deal should she beat Wozniacki in the final.

2. The Ukrainian is riding an 11-match winning streak.
Svitolina recovered from a third round upset at the Australian Open in impressive fashion, picking up her fifth career title at the Taiwan Open, leading her country to a Fed Cup victory over Australia, and reaching the final in Dubai.

3. Wozniacki is definitely at home in Dubai.
A Dubai Duty Free ambassador, Wozniacki overtook former World No.1 Jelena Jankovic’s record total of match wins in Dubai on Friday, winning a 22nd match in seven appearances. She last reached the final in 2011, when she beat Svetlana Kuznetsova for the title.

4. The Dane is surging in 2017.
Wozniacki began this season much like she ended last; since reaching the semifinals of the US Open, she’s been on fire, reaching back-to-back finals in Doha and Dubai; the last time she did that was in 2014, when she reached two straight finals in Flushing and Tokyo at the Toray Pan Pacific Open.

5. The No.2 spot on the Road to Singapore leaderboard is on the line.
Not only can Svitolina earn a career-high ranking, but a win on Saturday will also send her shooting up the RTS leaderboard, all the way to No.2. The runner-up will also be in the Top 8, ranked No.5. Svitolina would make be making her debut at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global, while Wozniacki qualified four times, most recently in 2014.

6. Svitolina saves her best for the game’s best.
The No.7 seed not only defeated Kerber for the second time this season, but also owns a three-match winning streak on the former No.1, dating back to the China Open in Beijing. She also knocked then-No.1 Serena Williams out of the Olympic tennis event; in her last three encounters with World No.1s, Svitolina’s won two.

7. Wozniacki aims for Miami Open revenge.
Wozniacki and Svitolina played just once before, in the third round of the Miami Open; Svitolina recovered from a set down to defeat the Dane, 5-7, 6-4, 7-6(1) in a late-night match.

8. Svitolina is one win from her biggest title yet.
Svitolina has already racked up five titles in her young career, but all on the International level. She finished runner-up at the Connecticut Open and the Huajin Securities WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai to Agnieszka Radwanska and Petra Kvitova, respectively, and reached the final four last fall in Beijing.

9. Wozniacki returns to the big time.
Barring the US Open final, Wozniacki hadn’t reached a Premier Mandatory or Premier 5 final since 2013 at the BNP Paribas Open. This would be her biggest title since beating Naomi Osaka in the Tokyo final last fall.

10. The final takes place after a rousing doubles championship match.
Before Wozniacki and Svitolina hit the courts, new Road to Singapore leaderboard No.1s Andrea Hlavackova and Peng Shuai face Olympic Gold medalists Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina. The Russians are into their second final of the season while Hlavackova are in their third, including the Australian Open.

Not only did Madison Keys become the first American to debut in the WTA’s Top 10 since April 1999, but the Aegon Classic champion also dramatically improved her chances for a debut appearance at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.

Moving up six spots from No.13, Keys moved into the Top 8 at No.7, just ahead of 2014 finalist Simona Halep. The Top 6 remained unchanged after a week of play in Birmingham and the inaugural Mallorca Open, with Serena Williams, Angelique Kerber, Victoria Azarenka, Garbiñe Muguruza, defending champion Agnieszka Radwanska, and Carla Suárez Navarro all retained their places on the Road to Singapore leaderboard.

Birmingham finalist Barbora Strycova also edged closer to the Top 8, moving up three spots to No.13. Caroline Garcia captured her first-ever title on grass and roared into the Top 16 from No.23.

The final Wimbledon preparations continue this week in Eastbourne, with Radwanska, Belinda Bencic, Timea Bacsinszky, and Petra Kvitova all in action.

RTS Ranking Movers

Madison Keys: No. 13 to No.7 (+6)
Caroline Garcia: No.23 to No.16 (+7)
Barbora Strycova: No.16 to No.13 (+3)
Jelena Ostapenko No.28 to No.26 (+2)

Click here to see the full Road To Singapore leaderboard standings following Birmingham.

DUBAI, UAE – No.7 seed Elina Svitolina took home her second title of 2017 – and the biggest one of her career – at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships after defeating 2011 champion Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets.

Playing in her first Premier 5 final, Svitolina showed no sign of nerves as she outhit the former World No.1 to claim the victory 6-4, 6-2 after an hour and 10 minutes.

“It’s very special for me [to win such a big tournament],” Svitolina said in her on-court interview. “I’ve played very amazing tennis this week and I’m happy it happened in Dubai.

“It’s the first trophy for me at such a big tournament, so it’s very special for me.”

“I dreamed for all my life to be in the Top 10” -@ElinaSvitolina pic.twitter.com/T4CooJ6Nw3

— WTA (@WTA) February 25, 2017

With the title, Svitolina will rise from WTA No.13 to No.10, making her the 120^th player to make her Top 10 debut since the WTA Rankings were introduced on November 3, 1975.

“I’ve dreamed for all my life to be in Top 10. It’s a very amazing feeling to enter Top 10, and do it by winning the tournament! I’m very excited for the season and very excited I could win this tournament.”

The 22-year-old Ukrainian entered the matchup against Wozniacki with a 1-0 lead in the pair’s head-to-head record, with their only meeting coming last year in Miami where Svitolina came within two points of defeat before winning 5-7, 6-4, 7-6(1).

This time in Dubai, it was a more comprehensive affair, with Svitolina injecting pace into her groundstrokes to break down Wozniacki’s rock-solid defense.

.@ElinaSvitolina captures @DDFTennis Title!

Defeats Wozniacki 6-4, 6-2! pic.twitter.com/TA3LibF8zn

— WTA (@WTA) February 25, 2017

A pair of inch-perfect passing shots left Wozniacki wrong-footed and gave Svitolina the lone break in the first set at 3-2. But the Dane refused to fade away, batting away a pair of Svitolina set points at 5-4 with some bold tennis – including a second-serve ace – to force the Ukrainian to serve it out.

Wozniacki let three break points slip by that would have leveled the score, and instead Svitolina held serve from 0-40 down to take the opening set.

Svitolina continued her momentum into the final set; after trading breaks to start, Svitolina played more aggressive to chip away at Wozniacki’s defense as the Dane’s unforced error count continued to build. Svitolina rattled off the last five games in a row to close out the match and biggest title of her career.

“It’s been a good two weeks, @DDFTennis is a special tournament for me.” -@CaroWozniacki pic.twitter.com/xVVyG0fmXK

— WTA (@WTA) February 25, 2017

Despite the disappointing loss, Wozniacki is taking away positive signs from her Middle East fortnight, which saw her reach back-to-back finals.

“It’s been a good two weeks for me – two finals, lots of matches,” Wozniacki said in her on-court interview. “Making another final here [in Dubai] is definitely great, and I’m already excited to be back.”

Another piece of good news for Wozniacki? The Dane is inching closer to her return to the WTA Top 10: with her run to the final she’ll move to No.14, and is defending just 145 points until the US Open.