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News | WTA Tennis English

News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

The first half of the Middle East swing kicks off at the Qatar Total Open in Doha, with 10 of the WTA’s Top 20 taking to the Gulf in search of 470 ranking points.

Here’s what’s on tap for this week on the WTA:

CURRENT TOURNAMENTS:

Doha:

Qatar Total Open
Premier | $710,900 | Hard
Top-ranked players: Angelique Kerber, Karolina Pliskova, Dominika Cibulkova and Agnieszka Radwanska
Defending Champion: Carla Suárez Navarro

Carla Suarez Navarro

UPCOMING TOURNAMENTS:

Dubai:

Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships
Premier 5 | $2,365,250 | Hard
Top-ranked players: Angelique Kerber, Karolina Pliskova, Dominika Cibulkova, Agnieszka Radwanska
Defending Champion: Sara Errani

Budapest:

Hungarian Ladies Open
International | $226,750 | Hard
Top-ranked players: Timea Babos, Lucie Safarova, Andrea Petkovic, Julia Goerges
Defending Champion: None (First Staging)

Acapulco:

Abierto Mexicano Telcel
International | $226,750 | Hard
Top-ranked players: Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Monica Niculescu, Jelena Ostapenko, Kristina Mladenovic
Defending Champion: Sloane Stephens

Kuala Lumpur:

Alya WTA Malaysian Open
International | $226,750 | Hard
Top-ranked players: Carla Suárez Navarro, Elina Svitolina, Caroline Garcia, Yulia Putintseva
Defending Champion: Elina Svitolina

Angelique Kerber

TOP 20 PLAYERS SCHEDULE:

1. Serena Williams
2. Angelique Kerber – Doha, Dubai
3. Karolina Pliskova – Doha, Dubai
4. Simona Halep
5. Dominika Cibulkova – Doha, Dubai
6. Agnieszka Radwanska – Doha, Dubai
7. Garbiñe Muguruza – Doha, Dubai
8. Svetlana Kuznetsova – Dubai
9. Madison Keys
10. Johanna Konta – Dubai
11. Petra Kvitova
12. Venus Williams
13. Elina Svitolina – Doha, Dubai, Kuala Lumpur
14. Carla Suárez Navarro – Dubai, Kuala Lumpur
15. Timea Bacsinszky – Doha, Dubai
16. Elena Vesnina – Doha, Dubai
17. Barbora Strycova – Doha, Dubai
18. Caroline Wozniacki – Doha, Dubai
19. Victoria Azarenka
20. CoCo Vandeweghe

*Current player schedules as of February 13, 2017 – subject to change.

Roberta Vinci

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!
Best wishes to those celebrating birthdays this week: 

Annika Beck (GER) – February 16, 1994
Carina Witthoeft (GER) – February 16, 1995
Cara Black (ZIM) – February 17, 1979
Madison Keys (USA) – February 17, 1995
Roberta Vinci (ITA) – February 18, 1983

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Cibulkova Outguns Bouchard

Cibulkova Outguns Bouchard

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Dominica Cibulkova

LONDON, Great Britain – No.19 seed Dominika Cibulkova moved on to the fourth round at Wimbledon for the first time since 2011 after a comprehensive win over former finalist Eugenie Bouchard.

“Today I was 100 percent sure I could win and I stayed calm, played brave in tough situations and went for my shots,” Cibulkova said afterwards. “The things I’ve been working on, especially the serve have really helped me.”

Cibulkova smelled success early on, getting the first break in the fourth game of the match. Despite facing break points in her opening service game, the Slovak’s speed around the court and powerful groundstrokes, especially off the forehand wing, were clicking together and she was able to see off the challenge.

She held three set points on her serve at 5-3 when Bouchard finally roared back to get her first break of the match. Her delight was short lived, however, as Cibulkova put away the set on her next chance.

Bouchard got broken once more in the second for a 4-1 lead to Cibulkova and her frustration was clear, receiving a point penalty for throwing her racquet after yet another of her usually-reliable groundstrokes sailed long.

“I definitely was a bit emotional out there,” Bouchard said. “It’s frustrating to feel like you’re not playing your best tennis at Wimbledon. You know, sometimes when I get it out, I can turn it around and play a bit better. It didn’t really happen this time, though.”

After an hour and twenty-six minutes, Cibulkova became the first player in the top half of the draw to punch her ticket into the fourth round, and she celebrated the occasion with a mighty roar of elation.

Despite hitting 24 winners to Cibulkova’s 17, it was Bouchard’s unforced error count that cost her in the important moments, hitting 16 to Cibulkova’s 19. The Canadian also failed to capitalize on her break point chances, converting just one of four while Cibukova put away three of nine.

With the victory, Cibukova has now won eight matches in a row on grass courts, a streak extending back to her run to the title at the grass court tune up event in Eastbourne. Cibulkova also grabbed her first win over Bouchard, having lost to her in three sets in both of her previous matches.

This marks the first time since Cibulkova’s quarterfinal run in 2011 that she’s reached the second week at Wimbledon, and she awaits the winner between Agnieszka Radwanska and Katerina Siniakova.

“It’s all coming together,” Cibulkova said. “Here we are, I won Eastbourne and now I’m in the fourth round here and it feels great. I just want to keep going.”

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Insider Podcast: Serena-Angie Rematch

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

LONDON, Great Britain – Six months after Angelique Kerber’s stunning win over World No.1 Serena Williams at the Australian Open, the two face off once more in a major final, as the rivals each captured emphatic semifinal victories to compete for the Venus Rosewater Dish on Saturday.

Combined, the two women have dropped just one set throughout the wet and wild fortnight at the All England Club, but the stakes are as high as ever for Serena, who is aiming to capture her record-tying 22nd Grand Slam title. For Kerber, a second major title would not only solidify her status among the game’s highest echelons, but would also prevent the American from tying countrywoman Stefanie Graf’s record, a role she deftly played in Melbourne

WTA Insider Courtney Nguyen is joined by wtatennis.com contributor Chris Oddo as the two preview what promises to be an exciting ladies’ final and the fruition of a burgeoning rivalry between Williams and Kerber:

Subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, TuneIn or on any podcast app of your choice to ensure you never miss an episode when they go live. Reviews are always helpful, so if you like what you’ve heard so far, leave us one. You can also get new episode alerts by following us on Twitter @WTA_Insider.

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News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

DUBAI, UAE – Ana Konjuh breezed into the second round of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships after routing China’s Zhang Shuai 6-0, 6-1.

The score was a surprise given Zhang’s impressive run in Doha last week when she beat Garbiñe Muguruza en route to the quarterfinals.

But she found her Croatian opponent on devastating form, producing a display of awesome power hitting to seal a second-round meeting with Australia’s Sam Stosur.

“The last two years I played quallies, so I’m really happy to be in the main draw this year and to keep my game like that,” said Konjuh. “Hopefully I’m going to continue.”

A Chinese player who fared much better was Peng Shuai, who comfortably defeated Leisa Tsurenko 6-1, 6-1 to set up a second-round clash with Barbora Strycova. Surprises continued on Court 1 with Catherine Bellis eliminating 17th seed Yulia Putintseva 6-1, 7-5. Meanwhile, qualifier Elise Mertens upset Tsvetana Pironkova 6-3, 6-2 on Court 3.

Bellis, ranked 70th in the world, found herself 5-1 down in the second set before reeling off an incredible six games on the trot to seal a remarkable victory.

“I got myself in a bit of trouble in the second set, but I’m glad I got out of it. I just thought to myself, stick to my game plan, just keep steady, I can come back,” said Bellis afterwards. “I can come back against anyone I set my mind to. I’m really glad I got through it. in the beginning of the second, I think I won the first game. The second game was really long.

“So I just kept thinking to myself, I’m still in this match, obviously even when I was losing, still in this match, and I’m playing well, so I can come back whenever I want and whenever, you know, I get a good rhythm. So once I went down, I just stayed calm and stuck to my game plan and came back.”

Elsewhere, Kateryna Bondarenko survived an opening-set blip to come through 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 against Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus. Misaki Doi claimed a notable win against Madison Brengle, the Japanese beating the American in three tight sets.

Check out all the day’s results here.

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News | WTA Tennis English

News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

The second half of the Middle East swing continues at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, the first Premier 5 event of the year. Meanwhile in Hungary, WTA action returns to Budapest for the first time since 2013 at the Hungarian Ladies Open.

Here’s what’s on tap for this week on the WTA:

CURRENT TOURNAMENTS:

Dubai:

Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships
Premier 5 | $2,365,250 | Hard
Top-ranked players: Angelique Kerber, Karolina Pliskova, Dominika Cibulkova, Agnieszka Radwanska
Defending Champion: Sara Errani

Budapest:
Hungarian Ladies Open
International | $226,750 | Hard
Top-ranked players: Timea Babos, Lucie Safarova, Andrea Petkovic, Julia Goerges
Defending Champion: None (First Staging)

Sara Errani

UPCOMING TOURNAMENTS:

Acapulco:

Abierto Mexicano Telcel
International | $226,750 | Hard
Top-ranked players: Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Monica Niculescu, Jelena Ostapenko, Kristina Mladenovic
Defending Champion: Sloane Stephens

Kuala Lumpur:

Alya WTA Malaysian Open
International | $226,750 | Hard
Top-ranked players: Carla Suárez Navarro, Elina Svitolina, Caroline Garcia, Yulia Putintseva
Defending Champion: Elina Svitolina

Indian Wells:

BNP Paribas Open
Premier Mandatory | $6,993,450 | Hard
Top-ranked players: Serena Williams, Angelique Kerber, Karolina Pliskova, Simona Halep, Dominika Cibulkova
Defending Champion: Victoria Azarenka

Karolina Pliskova

TOP 20 PLAYERS’ SCHEDULES:

1. Serena Williams: Indian Wells
2. Angelique Kerber: Dubai, Indian Wells
3. Karolina Pliskova: Dubai, Indian Wells
4. Simona Halep: Indian Wells
5. Dominika Cibulkova: Dubai, Indian Wells
6. Agnieszka Radwanska: Dubai, Indian Wells
7. Garbiñe Muguruza: Dubai, Indian Wells
8. Svetlana Kuznetsova: Indian Wells
9. Madison Keys: Indian Wells
10. Johanna Konta: Indian Wells
11. Petra Kvitova
12. Venus Williams: Indian Wells
13. Elina Svitolina: Dubai, Kuala Lumpur, Indian Wells
14. Carla Suarez Navarro: Kuala Lumpur, Indian Wells
15. Caroline Wozniacki: Dubai, Indian Wells
16. Elena Vesnina: Dubai, Indian Wells
17. Timea Bacsinszky: Indian Wells
18. Victoria Azarenka
19. Samantha Stosur: Dubai, Indian Wells
20. Barbora Strycova: Dubai, Indian Wells

Eugenie Bouchard

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!
Best wishes to those celebrating birthdays this week:

Kateryna Kozlova (UKR) – February 20, 1994
Klara Koukalova (CZE) – February 24, 1982
Eugenie Bouchard (CAN) – February 25, 1994
Chen Liang (CHN) – February 25, 1989

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News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

DUBAI, UAE – Caroline Wozniacki has won six of her last seven matches in the Middle East, dispatching Swiss youngster Viktorija Golubic, 6-4, 6-2, to reach the third round of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

Fresh off her Monday night win over Daria Kasatkina, Wozniacki began even more emphatically against the reigning Gstaad champion, racing out to a 5-2 lead to start the match. Though the Dane was broken serving for the opening set, she broke to love to reclaim the momentum.

The final stages of the match proved the most dramatic, as Golubic saved four match points on her own serve before the 2011 champion converted on her fifth and book her spot in the round of 16 after nearly two hours.

Up next for the the former No.1 is either No.9 seed Barbora Strycova or resurgent Chinese veteran Peng Shuai.

Earlier in the day, Croatian teenager Ana Konjuh scored another big win in her young career, ousting No.12 seed and former US Open champion Samantha Stosur, 6-4, 6-3, breaking the Aussie’s serve four times in the 83 minute match.

No.8 seed Elena Vesnina earned a decisive win over Japan’s Misaki Doi, 6-2, 7-5, and will play Konjuh for a spot in the quarterfinals.

Olympic Gold medalist Monica Puig continued her winning ways in the Middle East, upsetting No.15 seed Caroline Garcia, 6-1, 4-6, 6-2, to book a potential Rio rematch against top seed Angelique Kerber, who plays later today.

It was a great day for the Americans, as Lauren Davis, Christina McHale, and Catherine Bellis all won on Tuesday, defeating Kristyna Pliskova, Naomi Osaka, and Laura Siegemund, respectively. 

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