Miami: Angelique Kerber vs Shelby Rogers
Highlights of the match at the Miami Open between Angelique Kerber and Shelby Rogers.
Highlights of the match at the Miami Open between Angelique Kerber and Shelby Rogers.
WTA Insider | In the latest WTA Insider Live Blog, keep up with all the action as Angelique Kerber takes on Karolina Pliskova for the US Open title.
Simona Halep reflects on her performance at the Miami Open.
Carla Suárez Navarro played some of the best tennis of her career at the Qatar Total Open to win her second career title and find herself one spot away from her season goal of reaching the Top 5.
The Spanish veteran dropped two games in the semifinals against reigning WTA Finals champion Agnieszka Radwanska, and recovered from a set down to dispatch 18-year-old Jelena Ostapenko, 1-6, 6-4, 6-4.
“I think in the final set I played really aggressive,” she told WTA Insider in the latest Champion’s Corner. “With my backhand I played more aggressive than with my forehand. I felt more confident today at the end of the match with my backhand. That helped me win the match.”
Suárez Navarro started the week ranked No.11, but the title brought her ranking all the way up to a career-high of No.6.
“I feel really, really close. I know all the top players, I know if you want to be in the Top 5 you have to have good tournaments like this or like Melbourne to take points. Also, at the tournaments where there are all the top players, I know I’m close.
“But I know the year is very long. I want to take the experience of last year where I start really good but I lost confidence a little bit and I couldn’t end the year inside the Top 10. But I know the key and I know the things I have to do to be there. But I’m really excited about No.6 and I’m really close to No.5.”
Starting the year well, Suárez Navarro reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Open for the first time since 2009 when she upset then-World No.6 Venus Williams in the second round.
“I started really good in Melbourne. I had good matches there. I lost to Aga. I want to take the experience of last year to play better in the Grand Slams. The Grand Slams are really important tournaments and when you are in the Top 20, you want to win good tournaments, big tournaments. You have to be there.
“I think the key is working and practicing really hard.”
With plenty of hard work and momentum from the Middle East Swing, Suárez Navarro appears poised for a breakout spring as February’s WTA Player Of The Month!
Final Results for February’s WTA Player Of The Month
1. Carla Suárez Navarro (44%)
2. Roberta Vinci (40%)
3. Sara Errani (16%)
2016 WTA Player of the Month Winners
January: Angelique Kerber
How it works:
Finalists are selected by wtatennis.com
Winner is then determined by a fan vote on wtatennis.com
MIAMI, FL, USA – World No.1 Angelique Kerber steamrolled past Japanese qualifier Risa Ozaki in barely an hour to move into the Miami Open quarterfinals for the third time in her career.
Kerber broke the Ozaki serve six times and hit 17 winners to Ozaki’s seven on her way to the 6-2, 6-2 victory.
“I think that she’s played a good tournament,” Kerber praised her opponent in post-match press. “She came through the qualies, she beat good players. I was ready for it.
“I talked with my team and I know that she’s moving good and bringing a lot of balls back. I was trying to play my game and be aggressive.”
.@AngeliqueKerber wraps up the set 6-2! #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/UOBifNUCYj
— WTA (@WTA) 27 de marzo de 2017
After a tentative start, with both players feeling each other out in their first encounter, it all went the German’s way as her powerful game started to click together. She dictated with the forehand, breaking Ozaki twice for a 4-1 lead. The 22-year-old Japanese earned one of the breaks back, but it wasn’t enough to halt Kerber’s momentum as she steamrolled to the opening set.
The same pattern emerged in the final set; Kerber rolled ahead to a 5-0, triple break lead, but faltered for a moment against Ozaki’s slices and the Japanese grabbed one of the breaks back. Kerber stayed solid, though, and wrapped up the match moments later.
Despite the result, 22-year-old Ozaki will still have reason to celebrate. After reaching the main draw in her Miami Open debut, Ozaki is set to rise to a career-high ranking on Monday, projected to land inside the Top 75.
Moving on!@AngeliqueKerber books a spot in @MiamiOpen Quarterfinals! Cruises past Ozaki 6-2, 6-2! pic.twitter.com/bIMObErLu7
— WTA (@WTA) 27 de marzo de 2017
For Kerber, the challenge continues in the next round as she’ll face the winner between WTA veterans Venus Williams and Svetlana Kuznetsova for a spot in the semifinals.
“I think it doesn’t matter against who because they are both amazing players,” Kerber said. “Playing against Venus, I’m looking forward [to it] if it’s Venus. But as well if it’s Sveta, she’s played great tennis in the last few weeks. She reached the final in Indian Wells. She’s on fire, but also Venus, she played amazing this year so far.
“I’m looking forward to playing against them. We’ll see tonight.”
MIAMI, FL, USA – Former World No.1 Caroline Wozniacki kept up her searing 2017 form, surging past an unseeded but dangerous Lucie Safarova, 6-4, 6-3, to join Karolina Pliskova in the Miami Open semifinals.
“I love playing out there,” she said of the electric crowd environment in her press conference. “The first night match is unbelievable; I think it’s the best slot of the day. I love being out there, competing, and just playing good tennis.”
Safarova has been ranked as high as No.5, but the former French Open finalist struggled to recover from various illnesses and injuries in 2016, causing her to start this season ranked outside the Top 60.
Finding vintage form in spurts coming into Miami, Safarova caught fire in South Florida, upsetting No.4 seed Dominika Cibulkova in straights to reach her first Premier Mandatory quarterfinal since the Mutua Madrid Open in 2015.
.@CaroWozniacki chases down the drop shot! ??? #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/RQZPNslfP8
— WTA (@WTA) March 29, 2017
Wozniacki suffered similar setbacks last year, but has been on a roll since reaching the semifinals of the US Open, and ultimately dispatched Safarova in two sets after a slow start.
“She’s been playing really well, and came out firing. Her lefty serve is also tricky, but I just kept staying in there.
“I felt like I moved really well today, and thought we played some really great points out there.”
Safarova was close to a double break lead on the onset of the match, but Wozniacki held on, mixing up the pace and forcing the uber-aggressive Safarova into uncomfortable positions as she moved the ball about the court.
.@CaroWozniacki downs Safarova 6-4, 6-3!
Sets @MiamiOpen Semifinal vs @KaPliskova! pic.twitter.com/s65Ef0EWVf
— WTA (@WTA) March 29, 2017
Still, things stayed close until the end of each set, when the Doha and Dubai runner-up pulled ahead, breaking in the first and serving out the second.
Up next for Wozniacki is No.2 seed Karolina Pliskova. The pair last played in the finals of the Qatar Total Open, where the Czech powerhouse won in straight sets.
“She beat me last time we play, so she’s clearly in good shape. I’m looking forward to getting another try, to see if I can beat her this time.
“I know her game, what her strengths and weaknesses are. I’ll have my team take a look at our last match and let me know; I’ve played so many matches in a row that they won’t want me to overthink it.”
See ya in the @MiamiOpen Semifinals @CaroWozniacki ? pic.twitter.com/QM7r1jaXts
— WTA (@WTA) March 29, 2017
It is hard to recall a tennis season in recent memory that has thrown up quite so many surprises as the opening few months to 2016.
Showcasing the unprecedented strength and depth of the women’s game, 14 tournaments have witnessed 13 different players lifting silverware. The result has been a Road To Singapore leaderboard featuring a pleasing mix of youth and experience.
Angelique Kerber still leads the way in the fledgling leaderboard thanks to her magnificent January, when she reached the final in Brisbane before an unforgettable triumph at the Australian Open.
Hot on her heels is Carla Suárez Navarro, whose title in Doha, backed up by semi and quarterfinal runs in Brisbane and Melbourne, sees her occupy the No.2 spot.
Reigning WTA Finals champion Agnieszka Radwanska has been as consistent as ever, reaching the semifinals or better on all three outings thus far – a title in Shenzhen followed by deep runs at the Australian Open and Doha. Since the US Open last year, no player has won more matches than Radwanska, who has accumulated a 32-7 record.
Most Match Wins Since 2015 US Open
Agnieszka Radwanska 32-7
Angelique Kerber 27-10
Venus Williams 24-5
Roberta Vinci 22-11
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 21-11
Current WTA world No.1 Serena Williams holds the No.4 spot on the leaderboard with her finals appearance at the Australian Open. Jostling for position below the early pacesetters are Victoria Azarenka, Roberta Vinci, Johanna Konta and Belinda Bencic, while Sara Errani and Jelena Ostapenko are among those just outside the qualification places.
In doubles, Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza cemented their place atop the leaderboard with titles at Brisbane, Sydney, Australian Open and St. Petersburg before their remarkable winning streak was finally snapped in Doha. Profiting from their slip-up were the Chan sisters, Chan Hao-Ching and Chan Yung-Jan, who left Doha with the title and the No.2 position on the leaderboard.
Click here to see the singles and doubles leaderboards heading into the BNP Paribas Open.
QUÉBEC CITY, Canada – No.8 seed Samantha Crawford survived a spirited challenge from Belgium’s Ysaline Bonaventure, edging through to advance 7-6(5), 6-7(4), 6-4 in the opening round of the Coupe Banque Nationale.
“I don’t know how many match points I had in that second set, but I know I had a few,” Crawford said after the match. “After losing the second set, I just wanted to not think about that. I was just trying to stay calm and stay in the present.”
After narrowly escaping with a tight first set – Crawford and Bonaventure traded breaks and wrestled with the momentum in the tiebreak – the American found herself holding match points after a couple of loose serves from Bonaventure. The Belgian fought her off twice to hold serve and send the match to another tiebreaker, where this time Bonaventure came out on top to even the scoreline. Some strong serving in the third set gave Crawford the edge, and the American took her third match point to advance to the second round.
Earlier this year, Crawford turned heads when she made it through qualifying at the Brisbane International to reach the semifinals, upsetting Belinda Bencic and Andrea Petkovic along the way. But it was in Québec City that the American announced her presence to the WTA, reaching the quarterfinals of the event last year after making it out of the qualifying rounds.
Also in action in Québec City, Catherine Bellis shined in her first match at the Coupe Banque Nationale, notching a 6-3, 6-2 victory over Amandine Hesse.
“We never played each other before, so I think it took a while for both of us to get used to each other’s game, and I just stayed more consistent.”
Aside from a tough opponent, Bellis also had to contend with the surface: being an indoor tournament staged on carpet, Québec is home to some of the fastest hardcourts anywhere on the tour.
“I had never played on this surface before,” Bellis said. “I think maybe a long time ago, but I liked it. I think it’s different, but I liked it a lot.”
More to come…
MIAMI, FL, USA – One lucky tennis fan got their hands on one of Caroline Wozniacki’s Stella McCartney-designed Adidas tennis dresses after the Dane marched into the semifinals of the Miami Open on Tuesday.
Wozniacki had just defeated Lucie Safarova 6-4, 6-3 and was clearly in the mood to make someone’s day after her impressive display.
“Any girls that play tennis want this skirt?” offered Wozniacki, before handing one of her red dresses to a very grateful fan.
Nice one @CaroWozniacki. Offers up her @StellaMcCartney @adidastennis kit to a fan @miamiopen. pic.twitter.com/UOcAUa1QGg
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) March 29, 2017
Victory for Wozniacki means that she now faces Karolina Pliskova for a place in the final, having previously defeated Dominika Cibulkova in straight sets.
Wozniacki enjoys a 3-1 head-to-head against Pliskova, but it was the Czech who won the last encounter, having defeated her in the finals of the Qatar Total Open.
A look at some of the best outfits on display this week at the Miami Open.