Acapulco: Kirsten Flipkens' Shot Of The Day
Kirsten Flipkens had Thursday’s shot of the day at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel.
Kirsten Flipkens had Thursday’s shot of the day at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel.
ACAPULCO, Mexico – No.4 seed Monica Puig is into the quarterfinals at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel for the second time after a victory over Daniela Hantuchova, 6-4, 6-4.
“Today I felt a lot better on court than I did yesterday,” Puig said after the match. “I’ve definitely seen an improvement in my game during the past few days.
“And that’s really my goal, to improve every match and not feel pressure, and just go out on court and play the best I can.”
Hantuchova is currently ranked No.244, a position which belies the quality the former World No.5 can produce, and she employed her all-court game against the Olympic champion.
? ? ?
Powerful backhand from @MonicaAce93! #AMT2017 pic.twitter.com/5HeWxwyEMu
— WTA (@WTA) March 1, 2017
Puig shook off a sluggish start in the opening set against Hantuchova, grabbing the lone break at 4-3. She had trouble closing out the set – a struggle she had yesterday against Francesca Schiavone as well. The Puerto Rican had two set points on Hantuchova’s serve, but was unable to convert. She fought off two breaks of her own before sending down a booming serve down the T to take the opening set.
“I’ve had a lot of matches these past few weeks, so having a bit of tension is normal,” Puig explained in her post-match press conference. “The body gets a bit tense after so many matches.”
The Puerto Rican’s big-hitting game clicked together in the final set, weathering five breaks of serve in the first six games to come away with the lead.
A trio of errors from Hantuchova gave Puig a look at three match points, but Hantuchova wasn’t ready to let go. She put together a massive effort to deny Puig five times with gutsy baseline play – and even earned a break point – but Puig took the match on the sixth time of asking for a spot in the Acapulco quarterfinals.
.@MonicaAce93 advances to @AbiertoTelcel Quarterfinals!
Tops Hantuchova 6-4, 6-4! #AMT2017 pic.twitter.com/GgL3uiJeQ9
— WTA (@WTA) March 1, 2017
Puig will take on Christina McHale for a spot in the semifinals after the American knocked out her countrywoman Taylor Townsend 6-1, 7-6(5) earlier in the day.
“Christina is a very good friend of mine, we train together a lot,” Puig said. “It’s going to be a tough match for sure. She’s been playing really well lately, and I expect a great match; I just hope to bring my best tennis.”
Also in action today, Kirsten Flipkens moved into the quarterfinals after her opponent Ajla Tomljanovic – author of yesterday’s stunner over No.6 seed Eugenie Bouchard – was forced to retire after the first set due to a right shoulder injury.
No.7 seed Lesia Tsurenko advanced in similar fashion; she was leading 6-1, 2-0 against Julia Goerges before the German was forced to retire due to heat illness.
ACAPULCO, Mexico – No.5 seed Christina McHale put on an emphatic display to defeat No.4 seed Monica Puig, 6-2, 6-2 to become the first semifinalist at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel.
“I knew it was going to be a tough match going in; she’s got a lot of power,” she said after the match. “I was just trying to defend well because she’s really tough when she’s in control of the points.
“I think I served well today, which helped a lot.”
McHale last played Puig in 2010, and the Puerto Rican star has grown by leaps and bounds since then, becoming the first from her country to claim a gold medal at the Olympic tennis event. But the American, herself fluent in Spanish, acquitted herself well on Thursday, converting all four of her break point opportunities and striking four aces to ease past Puig in just over an hour.
Beautiful backhand cross-court winner from @MonicaAce93! ? #AMT2017 pic.twitter.com/acfuPPQ1Ye
— WTA (@WTA) March 2, 2017
The No.5 seed is into her third semifinal in Acapulco – her best result coming in 2014, when she reached the final – and will play No.2 seed Kristina Mladenovic in the next round.
.@ChristinaMcHale races through the opening set vs Puig 6-2! #AMT2017 pic.twitter.com/MTPWENiZlL
— WTA (@WTA) March 2, 2017
Before she gets there, however, she is due back on court later today for a round of doubles; McHale is the No.4 seed with partner Chuang Chia-Jung and takes on Veronica Cepede Royg and Mariana Duque-Mariño to make two semifinals in the same week.
“I was just focusing on the match, and I’m really happy to be in another semifinal. This is one of my favorite tournaments. I’m excited to be back on court for doubles later.”
.@ChristinaMcHale is first through to the @AbiertoTelcel Semifinals!
Knocks out Puig 6-2, 6-2! #AMT2017 pic.twitter.com/iLFJfXBfeq
— WTA (@WTA) March 2, 2017
ACAPULCO, Mexico – Mexico’s Giuliana Olmos joined forces with WTA Charities at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel to give Acapulco kids the experience of a lifetime at the 24th edition of AMT Kids Day by Nickelodeon.
Joined by ATP players Ernesto Escobedo, Hans Hach Verdugo and Cesar Ramirez and tennis coach Marc Lucero, the children had the chance to hit with their some of their national heroes at the mini-tennis clinics, as well as spend time with their favorite TV characters.
This year’s Kids Day hosted hundreds of children from the Teleton Center of Childhood Rehabilitation as well as Guerrero’s DIF, an organization that works with family developments in the area.
Olmos, Escobedo, Hach Verdugo and Ramirez were recognized by the tournament as “Agents of Change” for making a difference by being a positive example for the youth.
Check out some of the best photos from AMT Kids Day, right here!
WTA Charities is the WTA’s global philanthropic organization dedicated to making a positive impact across the globe. Our mission is to be a social responsibility vehicle built on the WTA’s values to empower and provide for a better future. We’re dedicated to combining, strengthening and enhancing the community and charitable efforts of the WTA through its members (players, alumnae and tournaments), along with our partners.
Click here to see more WTA Charities activities!
INDIAN WELLS, CA, USA – With less than one week to go until the season’s first WTA Premier Mandatory tournament gets underway, the BNP Paribas Open announced today the recipients for main draw wildcards:
Bethanie Mattek-Sands: won the 2016 BNP Paribas Open doubles title with CoCo Vandeweghe
Nicole Gibbs: advanced to the third round of the 2017 Australian Open
Taylor Townsend: advanced to the third round of the 2014 French Open
Danielle Collins: a two-time NCAA singles winner at the University of Virginia
Irina Falconi: earned her first WTA title in 2016 at Bogota
Kayla Day: 2016 US Open junior champion and USTA Girls’ 18s National winner
Jennifer Brady: made a tremendous run to the 2017 Australian Open Round of 16
Donna Vekic: won the title at Kuala Lumpur at the age of 17
Qualifying wildcards will be announced in the near future. Qualifying rounds will take place Monday and Tuesday, March 6 and 7, with main draw play beginning on Wednesday March 8.
ROME, Italy – Serena Williams left little doubt about her clay court form after easing into the third round with a straightforward win over Anna-Lena Friedsam 6-4, 6-3 at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia.
Watch highlights, interviews and more video from Rome right here on wtatennis.com!
“I feel pretty good,” Williams said in her press conference before the match. “I wasn’t feeling really good for the past several weeks and even the past few days. But right now I’m better.
“I will see how I’m doing when I step on the court for the first time, but overall I think I’m feeling a lot better.”
She hadn’t played a tennis match in a month and a half – since her round of 16 appearance in Miami and subsequent withdrawal from the Mutua Madrid Open – but the three-time Rome champion was too much for Friedsam to handle.
The 22-year-old Friedsam – who reached a career-high ranking of No.50 this week – is making big strides in the WTA and finding the confidence to back up her big game. Earlier this year she reached the semifinals of Shenzhen and the final of the 125K event in San Antonio, and last year at the French Open she stretched Williams to three sets in their only previous encounter – the World No.1 had to battle back from a set down to advance on her way to the title.
Things were more straightforward in Rome, the first match of Williams’ 2016 clay campaign. She broke once to snag an early lead at 2-1 in the first set, then three times in the second set to put the match away after an hour and fifteen minutes. She struck 27 winners and 18 unforced errors to Friedsam’s 16 and 21.
“I was really happy with my level,” Williams said after the match. “I think I was really consistent. I think I was mentally consistent. I started out fast. Those are some of the things I wanted to work on [and] I was really happy about that.”
In the day’s other second-round match, last year’s finalist Carla Suárez Navarro survived a tricky second set to advance past Teliana Pereira 6-1, 7-5.
“I played a really good match, but the second set I tried to close the match but it was really tough,” Suárez Navarro said. “She came back really good and I was really, really nervous.
“You have to know how to finish that kind of match, so I’m happy because it was tough for me.”
ROME, Italy – After officially stepping away from the game at the 2015 BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global, Flavia Pennetta had an emotional retirement ceremony on Court Pietrangeli at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia this Tuesday.
The ceremony celebrated the Pennetta’s long and successful career, which saw her become Italy’s first No.1 woman in 2009 and a US Open champion in the tournament’s first all-Italian final in 2015. With her family and friends in attendance – along with hundreds of adoring Italian fans – Pennetta was joined on court by WTA CEO Steve Simon, Francesca Schiavone and several of the players, umpires and journalists she’s worked with during her 15 years on tour.
Video messages poured in from around the tennis world for the Italian champion, including well wishes from Serena Williams, Billie Jean King, Chrissie Evert, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.
“It was so nice to have the people here with me,” an emotional Pennetta said. “The girls, Steve Simon, the WTA made an unbelievable video for me and I really appreciate everything.
“Like I said, this is my family. This was my family for such a long time. It’s not finished. We spend so much time together. It’s normal to feel this emotion.”
Watch the messages in the tribute video above and check out the best photos of the ceremony below.
Click here to watch the full retirement ceremony.
Francesca Schiavone, Flavia Pennetta” src=”http://www.wtatennis.com/javaImages/66/6a/0,,12781~14576230,00.jpg” width=600 height=399>
ROME, Italy – Madison Keys employed thoughtful aggression under the lights of Center Court, pulling off a 6-3, 6-4 upset of No.5 seed Petra Kvitova to advance to the third round of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia.
Watch highlights, interviews and more video from Madrid right here on wtatennis.com!
“I definitely didn’t want to start down 2-0 right off the bat,” Keys said of her initially slow start. “But I was able to recover from that, build some momentum and keep it going.”
Hitting eight aces in the 78 minute match, Keys maintained an even winner/unforced error differential against Kvitova, who had enjoyed a strong start to her clay court campaign with a run to the semifinals of the Porsche Grand Prix. The Czech star hit nine fewer winners compared with the American youngster (11 to 20) and six more errors (27 to 21), only managing to engineer one break point in the contest.
Keys, by contrast, broke serve three times and maintained an impeccable 85% first serve percentage.
First set ? @Madison_Keys!
Grabs the opening set vs Kvitova 6-3! #ibi16 https://t.co/7KmpjBjio9
— WTA (@WTA) May 11, 2016
“It’s definitely more love than hate now,” the 21-year-old said of her relationship with clay. “The first couple of years were very difficult for me; I never really played on red clay growing up. I think every year is a little more experience, and I’m feeling more comfortable.”
Up next for the unseeded American is Hungary’s Timea Babos, who outlasted No.12 seed Venus Williams, 6-7(5), 7-5, 6-4, in just under three hours.
“I’ve played her on grass, and I think I got my butt kicked,’ Keys laughed. “So hopefully, it’ll be a little bit better for me next time. I haven’t really seen her play in the last couple of years, so I’ll definitely rely on my coach to help me figure that out.”
Babos led by a double break to start the match; by the final set, the 23-year-old thrice recovered from a break of serve – hitting 32 winners to 43 unforced errors during the two hour, 55 minute affair – to unseat the 35-year-old, who hit 48 winners to 56 unforced errors.
“I’m really happy to win,” she said after the match. “Venus is one of the biggest players in history and it’s the first time I’ve ever played her, so I just tried to think of my tennis and not about who was on the other side of the net.
“I started well, but then was a little more shaky, but I was fighting until the last moment.”
.@TimeaBabos makes 6-7(5), 7-5, 6-4 comeback win over Venus!
Sets @InteBNLdItalia Round of 16 vs Keys! #ibi16 pic.twitter.com/xiQwzhvAiI
— WTA (@WTA) May 11, 2016
Karolina Pliskova takes on Monica Puig in the second round of the BNP Paribas Open.
Karolina Pliskova talks through her performance after her second round victory at the BNP Paribas Open.