Tennis News

SINGAPORE – Ahead of the defense of her BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global title, wtatennis.com runs down 10 need-to-know facts about Poland’s finest, Agnieszka Radwanska…

1) Champion returns
Radwanska returns to Singapore for the sixth consecutive year – the longest active streak on the tour. Last year she finished the season in the best way possible, facing off against Petra Kvitova to win the WTA Finals championships match, 6-2, 4-6, 6-3.

2) Rank outsider
It might seem incredible, but right up until the US Open, Radwanska was still in with a shout of taking the World No.1 spot if she’d won the tournament. She arrives in Singapore as World No.3 after another year characterized by its consistency.

3) Early exit
Radwanska doesn’t have a great track record at the US Open, and this year was no different – she fell in the round of 16 at the hands of Ana Konjuh. She’s put a positive spin on that, though: she thinks that the early exit from the Slam gave her additional time to prepare for the Asian Swing, in which she once again excelled.

4) Cool in China
That’s been the case this year. Radwanska reclaimed the China Open title with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Johanna Konta, crowning a dominant week in which she did not lose a single set. It was her 20th career singles title, third of the year.

5) Success in Asia
Asia has traditionally been a happy hunting ground for Radwanska, who has won half of her 20 career titles there, including five of her last six.

6) Difficult defense
Radwanska is very well aware that it will be difficult for her to retain her title. “It’s the goal of everyone to qualify for the WTA Finals, and I’m happy to be returning to defend my title,” Radwanska said. “I’ve played at Singapore for a few years now, and qualifying again this year means I’ve had a great season – to be in the Top 8. It won’t be easy to defend my title, but that’s the goal. It will be exciting and a challenge to see different names and faces in this year’s field.”

7) Fabulous in fall
History is on her side, though – her tour record in the past five years shows that after the US Open she is the most difficult opponent to beat. Last year she went 17-4 in the Asian swing, winning all three WTA titles of the year in that stretch – and boosting her ranking from No.13 to No.5.

8) Five star
That meant she maintained her proud record as a fixture in the top five ranking slots – she dipped out in 2014, when she finished the year as World No.6.

9) Mandatory magic
After her win in Beijing this year, Radwanska became the fourth active player with three or more Premier Mandatory titles, joining Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka.

10) Major performer
Radwanska is one of four players to have reached the round of 16 at all four majors this year (along with Serena Williams, Madison Keys and Carla Suárez Navarro).

Jovana Jaksic was on the precipice of a Top 100 debut at 21 years old; two years later, the big-hitting Serb has set out to make the 2017 season one in which she rebuilds a ranking beset by injuries and inconsistency.

“A lot of matches did not go my way in 2016,” she confesses in a blog entry posted on her official website. “My confidence went missing, I didn’t pick up the ranking points I needed; in truth I lost my way.”

Jaksic peaked at World No.102 in the spring of 2014, not long after reaching her first WTA final at the Abierto Monterrey Afirme – falling to friend and countrywoman, Ana Ivanovic. She later made a pair of Grand Slam main draw debuts at the French Open and Wimbledon, only to see much of that progress undone at the start of the next season.

“I got injured for seven months with my back, and I made the huge mistake of trying to play tournaments hurt, which was not helping me at all,” she explained to WTA Insider at the US Open in August. “I’d also started with a new coach, which made a new injury of my shoulder I ended up struggling with for six months. Still, I was trying to play.

“When you don’t defend your points and you drop, that’s when the mental part comes in, and you start overthinking because you’re nervous wanting to push for something. It never works when you try to force it, so I changed everything, my whole team, to clear out all that negative energy from my life.

“Now I can say I’m out from under. I feel like a bird that had a broken wing, but now I’m all better and pumped to play matches. I can do it, just have to keep practicing and working, it’s going to come.”

At the still-young age of 23, Jaksic strives to see her struggles as learning experiences, things she might grow from as her career continues.

“I learned that I need to listen to myself more and I need to trust myself,” she continues in her blog. “I learned that I need to find happiness in myself so that I can enjoy everything else in life. I learned that I need to have more rest in between practices so my body can recover better. I learned to listen to my body.”

Now coached by her mother, the Serb returns from a relaxing off-season ready to take control of her life and the game she’s loved since she was eight years old.

“I’ve really missed being on the court and hitting that little yellow thing. I miss the clarity of mind that I have on the court, where I am in control of everything. I miss creating those irreplaceable emotions of winning or losing. I can’t see myself doing anything other than playing tennis. It’s in my blood. It’s where I ‘feel’ the most, it makes me sad sometimes, sure, but it also brings me the greatest joy.

“So you know what? I can’t wait to be back in 2017. I am excited to work hard, I have no points to defend and many new lessons to learn. I thank you for staying with me on this crazy journey. Life in tennis is a rollercoaster, but it’s MY rollercoaster and I don’t want to get off.”

Click here to read Jaksic’s full post on jovanajaksic.net.

SINGAPORE – Set to enter the Centre Court arena for her BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global debut is Karolina Pliskova, the Girl on Fire.

“It’s crazy, because that month in the States really changed everything,” she told WTA Insider after clinching qualification at the China Open. “I don’t know how far down I was on the Road to Singapore leaderboard before Cincinnati – pretty far, I think!

Down at No.17, to be exact, Pliskova was on no one’s Singapore short list in early August. But the Czech youngster quickly began cutting that ranking in half thanks to a blistering run at the Western & Southern Open, where she blitzed future No.1 Angelique Kerber for her second title of the season, and the biggest of her career.

“With my style, things can change a lot if I win a tournament or two.”

The winds of change blew at gale force speeds two weeks later. Rolling into the second week of a major tournament for the first time, she saved a match point to oust Venus Williams at the US Open, and became the fourth woman to beat both Williams sisters at the same Slam.

Roaring into her first Grand Slam final with a straight-set win over top seeded Serena, she finished second to Kerber in one of the best matches of the year, all but clinching the spot in Singapore she so narrowly missed 12 months ago.

“Last year was totally different,” she recalled with a wry smile. “I spent the whole season on the Road to Singapore, by the end, I was playing badly. So I didn’t make it.”

Tough weeks in Tokyo and Wuhan delayed the inevitable, but even after cementing her place among the Elite Eight, Pliskova was still ready to play, battling past young rival Daria Kasatkina in a tense third set tie-break.

“I was just praying to make it through one or two rounds because I knew I’m on the cut and only need a few points to get it. There’s always pressure, but I’m happy I made it, and able to win today after finding out last night. It confirms that I belong there.”

The tour’s ace leader will not only make her WTA Finals debut in singles, but also in doubles alongside partner Julia Goerges. Playing a sparse schedule but peaking at big events, Pliskova’s doubles season mirrors her singles, even if her approaches to the two disciplines are radically different.

“You can always improve things in doubles if you’re not feeling it in singles. I would maybe practice a few serves anyway after singles, so it can be a big help, where you can make improvements and practice there.

“I’m always in for doubles, and as long as it’s fun, and we’re winning, it’s good.”

Under the roof and away from the elements at the Singapore Sports Hub, her laser-like swings and unapologetic offense should be well suited to the indoor conditions. The 24-year-old knows where her strengths lie; playing for her first WTA Finals crown, she won’t be afraid to use them.

“For me, I still have one plan to play; I have to be aggressive otherwise I don’t have any chance to win.”

Zuhai, China – The 2016 Huajin Securities WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai (WETZ) announced it’s first three qualifiers today — two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova, 2015 US Open finalist Roberta Vinci and rising Ukrainian star Elina Svitolina.