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News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Romanian captain Ille Nastase will play no further part in this weekend’s Fed Cup action as two days worth of controversy surrounding him came to a head during the team’s World Group II Play-off against Great Britain on Saturday.

In the second set of the rubber between Johanna Konta and Sorana Cirstea, Nastase verbally abused both Konta and Great Britain’s captain Anne Keothavong, before launching into a tirade against both the umpire and referee as a result of being warned for his conduct.

He was then removed from the court, and later the arena, entering in a row with the assembled press corps as he departed. After being suspended for 25 minutes, the match was later resumed, with Monica Niculescu acting as Romania’s captain.

“Romanian Captain Ille Nastase was removed from the court during the second rubber of the Fed Cup tie between Romania and Great Britain in Constanta,” the ITF said in a statement. “Mr. Nastase was asked to leave the court by ITF Referee Andreas Egli for unsportsmanlike conduct, having already received two official warnings. Mr. Nastase was also removed from the grounds due to his serious misconduct. His accreditation was removed and he will play no further part in this tie. The ITF has launched an investigation into this matter as well as previous comments made by Mr. Nastase throughout the week.”

On Friday, Nastase was reported as having made a racist remark about the recent announcement of Serena Williams’ pregnancy, and also made suggestive comments towards Keothavong while involving himself in a dispute with a member of the press.

ITF president Dave Haggerty added Saturday: ‘This is unacceptable behavior by a Fed Cup captain. No player, official, member of the media or fan should have to endure any kind of abuse, and Mr. Nastase will rightly play no further part in this tie. A formal investigation is already underway and any decision or sanction will be made by the ITF’s Adjudication Panel. We are unable to comment further on an ongoing investigation.”

After play resumed, Konta won the last five games to defeat Cirstea, 6-2, 6-3 and square the tie at 1-1. Simona Halep defeated Heather Watson, 6-4, 6-1 in Saturday’s first match.

Elsewhere in the World Group II Play-offs after Saturday’s play, Italy leads Australia and Australia leads Serbia, 2-0, while the tie between Kazakhstan and Canada is also level at 1-1.

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News | WTA Tennis English

News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

ZHENGZHOU, China – No.2 seed Wang Qiang earned her first WTA 125K Series title at the Biyuan Cup Zhengzhou Women’s Tennis Open at top seed Peng Shuai was forced to retire in the deciding set with the match standing at 3-6, 7-6(3), 1-1.

“I entered this tournament as the second seed, so there was an opportunity for me to win the title,” Wang said post-match. “I almost got knocked out in the second round. At that time, I didn’t feel as confident as I am today. I’m not quite sure what happened in the second set, but I tried to stay focused and play my game, not making too many mistakes. I knew that she would go for it whenever she had the chance.”

Wang Qiang, Peng Shuai

Peng led the match 6-3, 3-0 and served for the match, but surrendered the deciding tiebreak and could no longer play on after two hours, 15 minutes. Wang’s victory levels the head-to-head between the pair to 1-1.

It was a Chinese sweep for the home crowd as in the doubles final, Han Xinyun and Lin Zhu claimed the crown over Jacqueline Cako and Julia Glushko, 7-5, 6-1.

Lin Zhu and Han Xinyun

“We didn’t play each other before, so the only thing we could do was stick to the plan,” the pair said post-match. “The second set became easier as we found our rhythm. We were more powerful than our opponents from the baseline, and we had a better serve.”

All photos courtesy of the Biyuan Cup Zhengzhou Women’s Tennis Open.

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Watch: Opening Night In Stuttgart

Watch: Opening Night In Stuttgart

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

STUTTGART, Germany – The brightest stars of the WTA kicked off the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix at the Opening Ceremony, where they glammed up to be presented to the German crowd.

Defending champion and Germany’s No.1 Angelique Kerber started the night on the tennis court, joining tennis legends Michael Chang and Michael Stich and professional racing driver Mark Webber for a doubles duel. Afterwards, all the top seeds hit the red carpet and headed to Center Court for their presentations, where they were walked onto the court by their young mascots.

Check out the video above for a behind the scenes look at the Opening Ceremony, as well as a sneak peek into the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix official players’ dinner.

Click here for the full photo gallery!

Angelique Kerber, Ana Ivanovic

Agnieszka Radwanska

– Photos courtesy of Jimmie48 Tennis Photography

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Buyukakcay Continues Historic Run

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

ISTANBUL, Turkey – Cagla Buyukakcay delighted the Turkish fans at the TEB BNP Paribas Istanbul Cup, roaring out to a big lead and treating the crowd to a tense ending with a 6-0, 7-5 victory over Stefanie Voegele.

Watch live action from Stuttgart & Istanbul this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!

Buyukakcay turned heads earlier in the year with a run to the third round of the Qatar Total Open – upsetting Lucie Safarova en route – but has been even more impressive at home in Istanbul, running through four matches without losing a set to become the first Turkish woman to reach a WTA singles final.

“I was very nervous in the beginning,” she admitted after the match. “I was trying to focus on the point all the time; it was hard not to think about the future in the second, when I was 6-0, 2-0 up.”

Completely in charge through the opening eight games, Voegele – a former Volvo Car Open semifinalist in 2013 – found her way back to level in the second set, getting within one game of tying things up in the tenth game.

“I knew my opponent could come back at any time, but it’s normal that I lost a little bit of concentration. It’s tough to finish a match and I was starting to feel really tight, but also I was making some unforced errors. But I would be brave again and I’d tell myself, ‘Play your best and try. If it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work.’ It’s better to say this than ask, ‘Why didn’t I go for it?’ after the match.

“That’s why I was positive when I was 5-4 down, I was like, ‘Play your game, play aggressively like you did before.’ That worked well for me.”

Maintaining an incredibly high first serve percentage, Buyukakcay only missed three first serves through the one hour and 23 minute match, winning 63% of her first serve points and converting six of 11 break point chances on return.

“I hadn’t noticed, but I was told I was serving over 90%; that must have happened for the first time in my career!”

The top-ranked Turkish star was already the first from her country to reach a WTA semifinal, and Saturday’s victory allowed her to go one better, and assure herself of a Top 100 debut.

“It was very important for me to break the Top 100 this match; that’s why I was very emotional at the end. I’ve been working for it for the first time, and I’ll be the first woman in Turkish tennis to be Top 100. It’s a huge thing for me.

“I saw the Turkish flags around me, and I’m reminding myself all the time that it’s perfect to be here, and it’s working.”

Hoping to inspire other young women from her home country, Buyukakcay discussed her active role as President of the Athlete’s Commission through the Turkish Olympic Committee.

“I’m very happy about it because we have to encourage kids to be involved with sports. My role is to help them for their Olympic dreams and to have a good bridge between the athletes and the Olympic Committee, and what we can do together in the future.

“It’s an important role for me to be a good athlete, because when I was young I didn’t have any role models in tennis. That’s why my dreams were very far for me; I didn’t have anyone to look up to. But because of me, they can dream that they also can reach a WTA final. We could never dream about it before in Turkish tennis.”

Standing between the hometown favorite and a maiden WTA title will be Danka Kovinic, who overcame a topsy-turvy second semifinal to see past Katreryna Kozlova, 7-5, 6-4. In doubles, Buyukakcay’s compatriot Ipek Soylu continued the banner week for Turkish tennis as she and partner Andreea Mitu reached the final when Nao Hibino’s right shoulder injury forced she and Kurumi Nara to withdraw from the semifinals.

Kovinic is also in the doubles final, having won her semifinal with fellow No.3 seed Xenia Knoll on Friday, and withstood a spirited challenge from Kozlova to reach the singles final on Saturday.

“The conditions are completely different on this court than on Court 1,” she said after the match. “It´s a bit faster but I like it more because there is no wind.

“I am really happy that I finished in two sets. It has been a tough week for me coming from Fed Cup but I am really happy with my result here because I am a step closer to making it for Rio, to play for my country. I hope that tomorrow is a good match. I know Cagla very well. We are close friends and we played in Charleston a few weeks ago.

“I expect a crazy crowd tomorrow, but I like it when the stadium is full even if they are against me and I like that people come to watch and to support us.”

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