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Angelique Kerber Clinches WTA Year-End No.1 Ranking

Angelique Kerber Clinches WTA Year-End No.1 Ranking

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

SINGAPORE – Angelique Kerber will cap off the best season of her career with yet another accolade after clinching the 2016 WTA Year-End World No.1 Singles Ranking, presented by Dubai Duty Free.

For only the 12th time since the computer rankings were introduced in November 1975, the WTA will have a new name finishing the year at the top. Kerber joins Steffi Graf as the only other German to finish the year at No.1; Graf held the year-end No.1 ranking a WTA-record eight times, most recently in 1996.

“It is a great honor and achievement to finish the year as the No.1 player in the world,” Kerber said. “This is one of the things I’ve always been dreaming of – to become No.1. I have worked extremely hard to become the best player I can be and this is a reflection of that effort and the wonderful year I have had.”

WTA Year-End World No.1

This accomplishment is the latest in what has been a breakout year for Kerber, who began the season by defeating Serena Williams to win her maiden Grand Slam title at the Australian Open, and followed up by advancing to the Wimbledon final, capturing a silver medal in singles at the Rio Olympics, and winning the US Open. Kerber also leads the WTA for most main draw match wins this season, at 59-16.

The German’s rise to WTA World No.1 snapped Williams’ record-tying streak of 186 consecutive weeks at the top when Kerber took over the ranking on September 12, 2016 after winning the US Open.

“Being No.1, of course now everybody will try to beat me and have nothing to lose,” Kerber said after her victory in New York. “I will try to take this challenge, because it will be a little bit new situation for me. But at the end, I was always practicing and working hard to be No.1. Now I can also take the next step and try to stay as long as I can there.”

The Year-End No.1 trophy will be presented to Kerber by a representative of Dubai Duty Free at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global, where the German will be the No.1 seed in her fourth appearance at the year-end finale.

Here’s the full list of players to have held the WTA Year-End No.1 Ranking:
8 – Steffi Graf (1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996)
7 – Martina Navratilova (1978, 1979, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986)
5 – Chris Evert (1975, 1976, 1977, 1980, 1981)
5 – Serena Williams (2002, 2009, 2013, 2014, 2015)
4 – Lindsay Davenport (1998, 2001, 2004, 2005)
3 – Justine Henin (2003, 2006, 2007)
3 – Martina Hingis (1997, 1999, 2000)
2 – Monica Seles (1991, 1992)
2 – Caroline Wozniacki (2010, 2011)
1 – Angelique Kerber (2016)
1 – Victoria Azarenka (2012)
1 – Jelena Jankovic (2008)

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News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

CHARLESTON, SC, USA – The unseeded Jelena Ostapenko put together a dominating performance to oust 2011 champion Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets and move into the Volvo Car Open semifinals.

At 19 years old and ranked No.66, Charleston-debutante Ostapenko was the youngest and lowest-ranked player left in the draw. But she backed up her results to reach the second Premier-level semifinal of her career with the 6-2, 6-4 victory.

“It feels amazing to be in the semis here,” Ostapenko told press after the match. “First time I’m in Charleston, and today was a tough match because Caroline is such a great player.

“I just tried, and I think it was not bad.”

Ostapenko was dictating from the start against the former World No.1, fearlessly changing the direction of the ball and firing off winners from every angle. After an edgy few opening games as both players acclimated to the tricky, windy conditions, it was the Latvian who kicked into gear, breaking three times to reel off six games in a row and snatch up the opening set and start the second with a break to the good.

Wozniacki earned the break straight back with some rock-solid returning, but found herself down again a couple of games later as Ostapenko outpaced her to bring up a 3-2 lead. Wozniacki saved three match points as the teenager served for the match – she was even a point away from making it 5-5 – but Ostapenko wouldn’t be denied. She kept up the pressure and broke through Wozniacki’s defense, booking her spot into the Charleston semifinals after an hour and twenty-six minutes.

“I just knew before the match that I have to stay aggressive all the time and still be consistent,” Ostapenko explained. “And I tried not to step back, just to be like play in the court all the shots.And I think that’s helped me today.”

Despite winning just 51% of her first serve points, the Latvian backed it up by firing 40 winners against Wozniacki’s 14, outweighing her 26 unforced errors to Wozniacki’s six. And the Dane will surely rue her missed opportunities – she only converted one of the five break chances she created, while Ostapenko converted four of eight.

“I really tried my best out there,” Wozniacki reflected in post-match press. “I was trying to grind everything down. I tried to change the pace when I had the opportunity, but I mean if she played like this every day, then she would be No.1 in the world.

“She really played well. She went for her shots. Everything was going in. She was hitting the lines. Everything that could go her way today was going her way.

“All I could do today was try my best, try my hardest to fight and try and get somewhat of a grip on it, but you know, it is what it is sometimes.”

The loss also denies Wozniacki a return to the upper echelon of the WTA rankings – she needed to reach at least the Charleston semifinals to guarantee herself a spot inside the Top 10.

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News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

MONTERREY, Mexico – World No.1 Angelique Kerber battled past Carla Suárez Navarro in two sets to return to the Abierto GNP Seguros final for the second time, 7-6(6), 6-1.

Kerber will face three-time champion Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the final, a rematch of the pair’s 2013 final here in Monterrey which saw the Russian defeat Kerber to claim her third title.

“It’s a completely new year, so I will not think about my last final here,” Kerber joked in her post-match press conference. “It was three years ago, and anything is possible. I’m going out there tomorrow to try to play my best tennis and try to win the match.”

Playing in her first Monterrey day session match of the tournament, Kerber had to contend with the different conditions as well as the determined Suárez Navarro.

The Spaniard came into Monterrey with just one victory all season long after shoulder injury kept her off the courts for much of 2017, but she brought her best tennis against the World No.1 in the opening set.

She stayed calm despite Kerber opening up a double break lead, climbing back from 1-4 down to 4-4. They traded breaks once more and sent the match to a tiebreak, where Kerber finally emerged victorious after a string of marathon rallies.

It was more comprehensive for the World No.1 in the second set, though, as she raised her level to outhit Suárez Navarro and find winners from every angle. She started the set with another double break lead to go up 5-0.

Despite the Spaniard managing to get on board late, she couldn’t stem the tide as Kerber powered through to her second Monterrey final – and her first final of 2017.

“I think we both played on a really high level today,” she said. “It was a really tough match. It’s always tough to play against her, I know this because I’ve played her in a lot of tough battles in the past.

“I tried to stay focused, especially in the beginning of the second set, and I’m happy to be in the second final here.”

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Pliskova Primed For Singapore Debut Following US Summer Surge

Pliskova Primed For Singapore Debut Following US Summer Surge

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

SINGAPORE – Karolina Pliskova is set to make her tournament debut on Monday, when she faces Roland Garros champion Garbiñe Muguruza in her opening match at the at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global. Pliskova will be pulling double duty in Singapore, having qualified in both singles, where she’s been drawn into the White Group, and doubles with her partner Julia Goerges.

While playing both events in the past may have been physically taxing, Pliskova is less concerned this year. The doubles competition has moved from a round-robin event to a single elimination draw which begins on Thursday.

“I’m used to playing singles and doubles so I’m not really worried about this,” the No.4 seed told reporters at All-Access Hour on Saturday. “I just take it match by match. I am starting singles on Monday, and this year it’s a little bit different than last year, so there is a draw of the doubles, not a group. It can be different – can be potentially be only one match in doubles. It’s starting on Thursday, so I have those few first days only singles. So I think it’s definitely better.

“But I’m ready for anything. I’m ready to play two matches in a day.”

The US Open finalist secured her spot in Singapore at the China Open and comes into Singapore well-rested.

“I was tired a little bit in Asia because when I came back from [the] States I didn’t have much time to practice and rest and prepare for the tournaments as I did for the ones in States,” she said. “Now I just took a few days off. I skipped those tournaments in Linz and Moscow, so I prepared for this last few weeks of tennis. There is Fed Cup for me after, and now I feel ready. I’m able to do anything to play [my] best tennis. I know it’s [the] last two or three weeks of tennis in this season for me, so I will try to do my best.”

Pliskova’s late season surge on the US hardcourts set up her Singapore debut, having won the title at the Western & Southern Open and making her first major final at the US Open, beating both Venus and Serena Williams en route. Prior to New York the 24-year-old had never progressed past the third round of a Slam and it was her second-round loss to Misaki Doi that seemed to light a fire under her.

“At Wimbledon, I was really feeling well. I think I had a pretty good draw as well to make it even far and just didn’t make it,” Pliskova said when asked to recall her toughest loss of the season. “I didn’t play good tennis there. Yeah, lost in second round with the opponent I beat the week before. I think [that] was the worst week for me.

“I don’t feel any pressure [in Singapore]. I would say there is pressure during all the year on all the players, but this is the best tournament that you can play, so I don’t feel pressure. There are other girls which are in front of me, so I would say I’m not the favorite for winning this one. I will just do my best [tp] win every match and do anything what I can to go out of the group.

“I have a very tough group: Aga, defending champion, so it’s not going to be easy. I’m just going to enjoy. It’s not happening every year that you’re going to get here. [I’m] just going to enjoy the chance that I have to play here.”

Looking ahead to her showdown with Muguruza, Pliskova has reasons to be confident. She leads the head-to-head 3-1 and has won their last three matches, all on hard courts (Muguruza’s sole win came at the French Open in 2013).

“She’s a player [whose game I like]. She has a similar game as me. It’s possible to lose to her, and to win as well if you play good tennis. I’m really confident about the match and just on the positive from the last meeting what we had in Cincinnati. I was playing really good tennis there. For me it’s still the same. I have to serve well and play fast so she doesn’t have time to dictate the game. She has to be the one who’s running and not me.”

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Fed Cup Semifinals All Squared

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Day one of Fed Cup World Group semifinals action ended with a stalemate, leaving Switzerland, Czech Republic, France and Netherlands all drawing even at 1-1.

Barbora Strycova kicked off the action with a win for the Czech Republic in their semifinal against Switzerland. Strycova faced off against Timea Bacsinszky – an opponent who she’s defeated in straight sets in all three of their previous encounters. She didn’t deviate from the script in today’s Fed Cup encounter, either, putting Bacsinszky away in a near shut out 6-0, 6-2 to put the Czech visitors ahead.

With the Swiss No.1 Belinda Bencic having withdrawn from the tie due to a lower back injury, it was up to Fed Cup debutante Victorija Golubic to produce the tennis of her life against the Czech Karolina Pliskova. The world No.129 dealt Pliskova the upset of the day, coming back from a set and a break down to secure a point for the home side, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4.

Proceedings played out similarly in France’s semifinal against the Netherlands. In front of a home crowd at the Arena Loire, France’s No.2 Caroline Garcia came up short against an on-fire Kiki Bertens, who has won all of her singles ties for the Netherlands in 2016. She powered past the Frenchwoman 6-4, 6-2 in just over an hour.

“There was a lot of tension in this match and a lot of expectation from outside,” Garcia said after the match. “She played a great match and served very well.”

France’s No.1 Kristina Mladenovic took to the court to right the ship for the home side against Richel Hogenkamp, defeating her comfortably 6-2, 6-4 to save a point for France, leaving the tie a draw at 1-1.

“I think this is the first time I’ve stepped out onto the court after a 0-1,” Mladenovic said. “Every tie is different and this time we are in front of a home crowd in a semifinal.

“It’s never easy to come on the court when you see your teammate in tears in the locker room, but I’m happy with the way I managed to win this match.”

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News | WTA Tennis English

News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

CHARLESTON, SC, USA — It was a whirlwind week for Daria Kasatkina in Charleston, as the teenager claimed her first career WTA title at the Volvo Car Open on Sunday – but the weekend of firsts wasn’t over for the Russian until she participated in the annual champion’s photo shoot.

Telling WTA Insider that clay has given her “all the best emotions [she] ever had,” the 2014 junior French Open champion set out on the town with her new trophy and coach Vlado Platenik for some celebratory photos in downtown Charleston after claiming the green clay crown.

Check out all of Kasatkina’s off-court trophy shots, courtesy of the Volvo Car Open:

Daria Kasatkina

Daria Kasatkina

Daria Kasatkina

Daria Kasatkina

Daria Kasatkina

Daria Kasatkina

Daria Kasatkina

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