Social Buzz: Mud, Glorious Mud
Serena Williams is at the beach – and Melanie Oudin is running through swathes of mud.
Serena Williams is at the beach – and Melanie Oudin is running through swathes of mud.
Barbora Strycova takes on Ana Ivanovic in the quarterfinals at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
Top-seeded Peng Shuai led compatriots Wang Qiang, Duan Ying-Ying and Zheng Saisai into the semifinals in Zhengzhou with a straight-sets win over Zarina Diyas.
An interview with Sara Errani after her win in the final of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
DOHA, Qatar – Caroline Wozniacki survived a late wobble on Monday evening to edge past Ana Konjuh and into the second round of the Qatar Total Open.
Watch live action from Doha & Acapulco this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
Success has proven hard to come by for Wozniacki this year, and getting over the finishing line against a hungry young opponent proved anything but straightforward.
Having weathered an early storm, the former World No.1, appeared to be cruising towards victory at 5-2 in the final set. However, liberated by the apparent hopelessness of the situation, Konjuh started to swing from the hip, clawing her way back level before eventually succumbing, 4-6, 6-3, 7-5.
By the time one of her thumping forehands finally found the tape, the Croatian had saved eight match points and put Wozniacki and her camp through the emotional wringer.
“It’s the first match and you just want to get going,” Wozniacki said in her on-court interview. “I wasn’t hitting it well, and she was, but then I was 5-2 up in the third set. But I thought we’d give the crowd a little bit more excitement!”
After a sluggish start, the Dane tightened things up in the second set – in which she coughed up just four unforced errors – to turn the tide. She admitted that a faster start will be required next time out, when she takes on Daria Gavrilova, an impressive 6-1, 6-1 winner over Misaki Doi.
“Hopefully the next match is going to be better and I’ll get a better start,” Wozniacki said. “I’ve practiced with her a couple of times, but I’ve never played against her in a match.
“Yeah, she’s a fighter. She likes to come with a lot of different shots out there and she’s going to have you play that extra point.”
In the preceding match, Roberta Vinci celebrated her first day as a member of the Top 10 with a near-faultless 6-2, 6-1 victory over Lesia Tsurenko. Also advancing was her fellow Italian, Sara Errani, a 1-6, 7-5, 6-3 winner over Tsvetana Pironkova.
Agnieszka Radwanska takes on Kateryna Bondarenko in the second round of the Qatar Total Open.
All of the best shots of the third round at the Qatar Total Open.
Hey, it’s Nicole, remember me?
No?
Hmm, maybe you know me by Gibbsy then.
Oh, still nothing?
…
Well then, let me tell you a little bit about myself. I’m currently ranked around No.100 in the world in the WTA rankings. I’m a rare breed of professional tennis player who took time away from the tour to get an (ultimately half-baked) college education at Stanford University. After winning four NCAA titles – twice in singles, once in doubles, and once with the team – I left a year before graduating, in 2013, to play full-time. I reached the third round of the US Open in 2014 and have reached the second round of the Australian Open in 2015 and 2016. I have won four professional singles titles, and two professional doubles titles, all in the “minor leagues” of tennis.
When ur small so u make up for it with rly scary faces. ? pic.twitter.com/eVuO39XXKr
— Nicole Gibbs (@Gibbsyyyy) January 27, 2016
In summary, I’m good. But I’m not “Serena good” or even “Sloane good.” Not yet anyway.
On the off chance that my name did ring a bell for you, one of the following probably applies to you:
1. You are an insatiable tennis fan and have literally heard of every player to have ever played at a professional level;
2. You are one of the 10-20,000 followers I have carefully cultivated on social media – you likely added me after a narcissistic-looking selfie or a photo of me in some badass New Balance gear. You hoped following me would lead to an abundance of NB discount codes; it did not;
3. You have physically met me, maybe through tennis, maybe during a yoga class – in which I was noticeably the least flexible;
4. You came across my moderately emo – yet evidently palatable – Facebook post about my year at the end of 2015;
5. You thought you knew who I was but then it turned out you were thinking of the other Nicole girl: Nicole Vaidisova. Isn’t she making another comeback..?
Always wanted to know what I'd look like with fake blue eyes in fake snow ?❄
Snapchat @gibbsyyyy pic.twitter.com/Jx2tvKKXSP
— Nicole Gibbs (@Gibbsyyyy) January 31, 2016
The point that I’m trying to make here is this: being Top 100 is only sometimes what it’s cracked up to be. Every tennis player with dreams of playing on tour wants to be in the Top 100, wants to play in the main draw of grand slams. As someone who’s played in the previous six major tournaments, I’m here to tell you that there are truly fantastic moments – moments where you feel like all the work has already paid off and you’ve made it; the glitz, the glamour, everything exactly as you imagined it.
I’ve had the chance to hold a koala bear at Melbourne Park, eat strawberries and cream in the players’ lounge at Wimbledon, and drink champagne at a private party atop of the Eiffel Tour. I don’t have to worry about hailing taxis in New York because a private Mercedes is waiting for me each morning outside of my apartment. These are moments and facets of life on tour that have surpassed my expectations – things I never even knew to hope for or want.
And then there is the other side of “barely Top 100” that very few actually see. There are the qualifying round losses where I actually lose money on the flights, hotel rooms, and coaching fees. I’m left wondering, “How long can I stay afloat like this?” There are the weeks where I’m defending points that will make or break my entry into the next Slam, and thus the next big paycheck. There are the tournaments where I win a 7-6 in the third thriller in front of a crowd of 11 people and remind myself that I’m not in it for the attention; I’m in it for the love of the sport.
One W down ? pic.twitter.com/T0pR14ihqy
— Nicole Gibbs (@Gibbsyyyy) January 14, 2016
There’s, “Maybe I just can’t handle the pressure…” and “Will anyone remember me after I retire…?” In order to emerge from near anonymity and step into the spotlight, some hard work, dedication from my support team, and self-belief will be required.
So, you might not know who I am yet, but I’m determined for more of you to know me in the future. I want to know the feeling of lifting the trophy on the biggest stages in tennis. I want to know what it feels like for thousands to learn my name.
But most of all, I want to know that I can take myself to the very top of a game that I have committed nearly every waking moment to since the age of three.
In tennis, we love to say “on any given week,” and who knows, maybe this week in Monterrey, Mexico will be mine. But in the meantime, knowing that I love my life as someone who often draws a crowd the size of an 8am college lecture, I figure I don’t have too much to lose. 😉
Forgot how much I love playing in Mexico ??????. Can't wait to get going at @Abierto_MTY on Saturday! pic.twitter.com/9v2ij3zvVR
— Nicole Gibbs (@Gibbsyyyy) February 25, 2016
To keep up with Gibbsy, you can follow her on Twitter @Gibbsyyyy and Instagram. Nicole Gibbs will feature as a regular columnist for WTA Insider. Check back regularly as she files a variety of dispatches from the road to give fans a glimpse of her life on tour.
ACAPULCO, Mexico – No.2 seed Sloane Stephens needed a final set tie-break against unseeded former Australian Open finalist and 2014 Abierto Mexicano Telcel champion Dominika Cibulkova, but the American finally got the job done against the Slovak, winning, 6-4, 4-6, 7-6(5).
“I got a little bit better today because of her, and I wouldn’t want to have this memory with anyone else,” Stephens said of Cibulkova during the trophy ceremony.
Stephens led Cibulkova by a set and a break before the 26-year-old, who won their previous encounter at last year’s Rogers Cup, roared back to level the match at a set apiece. In what became the longest final thus far in 2016, the two fought through several long games in the final set before heading to a tie-break. Racing out to a 5-2 lead, Stephens held three match points, converting her third on a Cibulkova forehand error.
“We had a great week and a great start to the year, and I’m looking forward to keeping it going.
“I don’t think I’ve ever played in front of a crowd quite like this. Thank you for letting me experience this in Acapulco because it’s something I’ll remember forever.”
“This is one of my favorite tournaments,” Cibulkova said in her runner-up speech. “It feels like home because of the people who work here and all the fans and sponsors. I’m a little disappointed with the result today, but that’s tennis. I hope to be back here next year and maybe get the trophy again.:
Having started the year with a title at the ASB Classic – where she beat former No.1 Caroline Wozniacki en route – Stephens now has three WTA titles and, most impressively, remains undefeated in finals (winning her first title last year at the Citi Open).
The doubles final took place earlier in the evening, and top seeds Anabel Medina Garrigues and Arantxa Parra Santonja defeated No.2 seeds Kiki Bertens and Johanna Larsson, 6-0, 6-4.
Though she walked away with the runner-up trophy at the Qatar Total Open, Jelena Ostapenko’s run to the final of Doha nonetheless cut her ranking in half, moving up from No.88 to earned her a career-high ranking of No.41 – her Top 50 debut.
The Latvian joins fellow 18-year-olds Belinda Bencic (No.8) and Daria Kasatkina (No.46) to become the largest cohort of youngsters since April of 2009 (Caroline Wozniacki, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Sorana Cirstea).
“It’s great but it’s just the first step,” she said during the trophy ceremony – with all the impatience of youth. “But my goal is to be even higher, so I hope I can make it.”
Roaring through an effortless opening set, Ostapenko ultimately fell to Carla Suárez Navarro, 1-6, 6-4, 6-4; the 27-year-old Spaniard earned a second WTA title and rocketed up from No.11 to a career-high ranking of No.6, one away from her 2016 goal of being ranked among the Top 5 in the world.
“It’s amazing, a dream come true. I was in Top 10 last year but not No.6, so it’s a special number.”
Who else made big leaps in the last week?
Elena Vesnina (+29, No.118 to No.89): The 2016 Australian Open mixed doubles champion had struggled in singles for the last two years, but arguably played better than ever in back-to-back upsets over No.2 seed Simona Halep and former No.1 Caroline Wozniacki – a player she had only beaten once in seven previous encounters – to reach the quarterfinals in Qatar and return to the Top 100 for the first time since August 2015.
Zheng Saisai (+10, No.73 to No.63): Fellow Qatar Total Open quarterfinalist Zheng Saisai had a phenomenal day in Doha when she defeated top seed and reigning Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber, and later coming close to ending Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza’s then-40-match-winning streak in doubles. Zheng edges close to a Top 60 debut and returns to No.1 in China, taking the spot back from Melbourne quarterfinalist Zhang Shuai – a potentially crucial development looking ahead to Olympic qualifying.
Donna Vekic (+10, No.104 to No.94): The Croatian youngster also returned to the Top 100 following a solid week in Doha, qualifying for the main draw and pushing Suárez Navarro through two tight sets.
Eugenie Bouchard (+9, No.61 to No.52): Bouchard earned her first wins since the Australian Open; the 2014 Wimbledon finalist saved match points against qualifier Anastasija Sevastova in the opening round as she moves within striking distance of the Top 50.
Dominika Cibulkova (+9, No.66 to No.57): The 2014 Australian Open finalist made her first final in nearly two years at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel in Acapulco, playing an epic match against Sloane Stephens that ended in a final set tie-break.
Cagla Buyukakcay (+34, No.162 to No.128): A wildcard in Doha, the 26-year-old took out defending champion Lucie Safarova in the second round, rocketing up the rankings as she aims to make a long-awaited Top 100 debut.