Angelique Kerber Practices At Australian Open
Watch defending champion Angelique Kerber’s practice session ahead of the start of the Australian Open.
Watch defending champion Angelique Kerber’s practice session ahead of the start of the Australian Open.
Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic take on Belinda Bencic and Ana Konjuh in the first round of the Australian Open.
WTA Insider Courtney Nguyen | The second Insider Notebook of this year’s Australian Open takes in Lucie Safarova’s marathon, Serena Williams’ winning tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr. and the weird world of Naomi Osaka.
At the eighth time of asking, Elina Svitolina finally got the better of Ana Ivanovic, winning their third-round encounter at Roland Garros in straight sets.
MELBOURNE, Australia – No.7 seed Garbiñe Muguruza defeated Samantha Crawford in two tight sets on Wednesday evening to reach the third round of the Australian Open.
Breaks in the penultimate game of both sets proved the difference, Muguruza triumphing 7-5, 6-4 to book a meeting with Anastasija Sevastova.
Crawford, who first rose to prominence when she came through qualifying to reach the Brisbane semifinals 12 months ago, gave another good account of herself Down Under, overcoming a slow start to push the reigning French Open champion all the way.
Muguruza came out with her right thigh strapped after complaining of a sore leg during her first round, but showed few signs of sluggishness as she rattled off the first three games. Crawford began to settle into the contest and was soon back on level terms.
The pair exchanged a series of thundering baseline exchanges as the opening set reached its climax, Muguruza striking decisively with a backhand winner with Crawford serving at 5-5, 30-40. Mugurza went on to serve out the set. Muguruza held her nerve in an equally competitive second set to reach the last 32 for a fourth straight year.
“She was super-powerful and hit the ball very hard, which made it difficult,” Muguruza said. “Today, I had to concentrate and wait for my opportunity.”
“[My leg] is a little bit better. Honestly, I think the time is helping me. Hopefully now the next day is going to help me recover even more,” Muguruza said. “I definitely had a concern. But I knew I had to go out there and play with what I have. You know, I went, try to play my normal tennis, try to be focused. It was important match. Tough opponent actually. I’m very happy with this win.”
Agnieszka Radwanska takes on Barbora Strycova in the third round of Roland Garros.
Johanna Konta takes on Naomi Osaka in the second round of the Australian Open.
Serena Williams discusses what ‘being Serena’ means in her post-match press conference at the Australian Open.
PARIS, France – WTA Insider Senior Writer Courtney Nguyen and Web Editor David Kane reconvene on a rainy second Monday at the French Open to assess a first week free of the dramatic upsets and draw-changing results to which fans have become accustomed.
How has World No.1 Serena Williams fared as she began her quest for her record-tying 22nd Grand Slam title?
Plus, an analysis of the noteworthy but ultimately unsurprising early exits of No.3 seed Angelique Kerber and No.5 seed Victoria Azarenka, No.8 seed Timea Bacsinszky’s continued consistency on clay, unseeded Shelby Rogers’ role as the fortnight’s Cinderella story, and who will be most affected by the postponed round of 16 encounters involving No.2 seed Agnieszka Radwanska and No.6 seed Simona Halep.
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Watch Daria Gavrilova’s practice session at the Australian Open.