Siniakova Outguns Riske To Lift Shenzhen Title
Katerina Siniakova won her maiden career title with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Alison Riske in Saturday’s Shenzhen Open final.
Katerina Siniakova won her maiden career title with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Alison Riske in Saturday’s Shenzhen Open final.
MIAMI, FL, USA – Garbiñe Muguruza produced a thrilling final set comeback to defeat Dominika Cibulkova in an absorbing second-round encounter at the Miami Open on Friday.
Watch live action from Miami this fortnight on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
Two crushing returns helped Muguruza claim the decisive break in the penultimate game before she calmly wrapped up a 6-7(3), 6-3, 7-5 victory.
“The match today was so tough but I’m so happy I’ve been through this against Dominika,” Muguruza said. “She played very well and I think it was a tricky second round because she’s really tough. But I’m very happy that I fight all the match – even though I lost the first set hard – and I was able to come back.”
Earlier this month in Indian Wells, Cibulkova came within a point of upsetting World No.3 Agnieszka Radwanska. While she did not come quite so close to victory against Muguruza, she will be no less disappointed at her failure to get over the line once again.
After splitting two high-quality sets, Cibulkova looked to be heading for the third round when she surged 3-0 ahead in the decider. However, she was unable to hold onto the momentum, sending a backhand long to surrender her serve in the fifth game.
Considering her struggle for form this year, Muguruza showed tremendous poise with the match in the balance. Trailing 5-4, the Spaniard refused to wilt, a couple of pin-point serves fending off the danger. The same could not be said for Cibulkova in the next game, Muguruza jumping on a couple of short second serves to strike decisively.
Muguruza faces wildcard Nicole Gibbs in the third round. Gibbs reached the fourth round in Indian Wells and continued her superb spring by beating No.27 seed Kristina Mladenovic, 6-2, 6-4, earlier on Friday.
“I don’t know her that well. But she’s here because she’s playing great and feeling at home because she’s from the US. I’ll just do my stuff, prepare and fight until the last point,” Muguruza added.
Former World No.1 Caroline Wozniacki enjoyed a day of paddleboarding on the Sydney beaches before starting her week at the Apia International Sydney.
MIAMI, FL, USA – Ekaterina Makarova dug deep to topple fellow lefty Petra Kvitova and grab the first spot in the fourth round at the Miami Open in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4.
Watch live action from Miami this fortnight on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
In tennis, as in many sports, left handers typically have a unique advantage over the right-handed population – but what about if the opponent is another lefty, and a two-time Wimbledon champion at that?
“Of course it’s always tough to play against a lefty… we’re not used to it!” Makarova said. “Petra’s such a great player, it was really tough to play against her. I’m just really happy I came through.”
The No.31-ranked Russian found herself in trouble early on, quickly going down 1-4 against Kvitova’s strong groundstrokes and tricky lefty serve. But Makarova put her problem solving skills to the test and adjusted her game, jamming Kvitova with body serves to cut off her deadly angles.
The tactic worked and Makarova rattled off five straight games to come back and win the opening set, Kvitova’s frustration mounting along with her unforced error count. Kvitova hit 26 winners to 24 unforced errors in the match in contrast to Makarova’s tidy 9 to 9.
She's on the move!@KateMakarova1 wins five straight and takes the opening set vs Kvitova 6-4! #WTA https://t.co/MxrYSvcWaM
— WTA (@WTA) March 26, 2016
With the pressure coming steadily from the other side of the net, Kvitova’s woes continued into the second set. Makarova grabbed a crucial break at 3-2, and kept her lead to take the match in an hour and a half.
“Today was actually really tough to play, especially against Petra and in these conditions,” Makarova commented in her post-match interview, referring to Miami’s heat and humidity.
“She started unbelievable – a lot of winners. I just kept going and going, wanting to hit longer points and just being on the court and enjoying it.”
Makarova now meets Elina Svitolina, the winner of a titanic struggle against Caroline Wozniacki in Saturday’s evening session.
In a match lasting 20 minutes shy of three hours, the result was in the balance until the very end. Wozniacki came within two points of victory, only to see Svitolina produce a final flourish to prevail, 5-7, 6-4, 7-6(1).
HOBART, Australia – There have been plenty of hints over the past year, but on Monday Francesca Schiavone finally revealed her retirement date.
Following her 6-3, 6-2 defeat to Jana Fett at the Hobart International, Schiavone announced that this year would be her last as a professional tennis player.
“I made too many mistakes, it was not easy for me to find a good rhythm,” Schiavone said following the match.
The 2010 Roland Garros champion has been one of the most charismatic players on tour for the best past of two decades, but waning motivation and a battle-weary body have convinced her to finally call it a day at the end of the current season. “This is my last year of tennis, that’s why I’m upset I didn’t give the best here,” Schiavone said.
“This year I want to give everything that I’ve learned in the last 19 years. In life I think I’ve arrived at the time to take the decision. This sport is a drug for me, I love to play this sport.”
The 36-year-old, who is still in the doubles draw in Hobart alongside Pauline Permentier, will now turn her attention to the Australian Open.
“I go to Melbourne hoping, working to find my feeling [before the Australian Open],” she added.
“This is my last year of tennis. I've arrived at the time to take the decision” – @Schiavone_Fra @HobartTennis. Via: https://t.co/EZmYQ6b6Ju
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) January 9, 2017
The new WTA Rankings – the ones the Australian Open seeds are made from – are out. Where will your favorite player be seeded at Melbourne Park? Find out right now!
No.2 seed Agnieszka Radwanska avoided the upset bug sweeping through the draw to defeat Christina McHale and secure a quarterfinal spot at the Apia International Sydney.
BEIJING, China – Johanna Konta recovered from a nightmare start to defeat Zhang Shuai and end home hopes at the China Open.
Watch live action from Beijing on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
After losing the first four games, Konta turned the match on its head to quieten the crowd and run out a 6-4, 6-0 winner. The result sets up a semifinal showdown with fellow BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global contender Madison Keys and also within touching distance of reaching the Top 10.
“Even though it was 12 games in a row, the scoreline was a lot closer,” Konta said. “Every single point was a really high level. I had to fight a lot at the end and I’m really happy to get through.”
In the previous round, Zhang upset Simona Halep for the loss of only three games. Against Konta she picked up from where she left off, delighting the crowd as a run of 13 straight points helped build an early lead.
Konta stopped the rot when Zhang sent a volley long to hand back one of the breaks. The following game she produced a couple of big serves to hold serve from 0-30, as the confidence began to course through her game.
In the ninth game she edged ahead, slapping a forehand winner after dragging Zhang ragged. Even a few interruptions from the crowd managed to derail the Briton, who served out to love before rattling through the second set.
This summer, Konta was one win from reaching the Top 10 only to produce a subdued performance against Kristina Kucova. Judging by Keys’ showing against Kvitova earlier in the day, a repeat performance will end in further disappointment.
The stakes are equally high for Keys – who will qualify for the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global by winning the title. Konta also remains in contention for a place in Singapore – victory over the American would edge her ahead of Dominika Cibulkova and into the eighth and final qualifying berth.
“I really do my best to not think far ahead and really not try to crave those sort of things,” Keys said when asked about a potential Top 10 debut. “I think if you live yourself into that, really bring your head out of your bubble, things become a bit more sticky, a bit more difficult to keep manage of.
“If it’s on the cards for me, great. If it’s not, it’s not. That’s okay, too. I’m really grateful for the journey that I’m having. However it pans out, it’s mine. Yeah, I’m just enjoying playing.”
BEIJING, China – With her victory in the semifinals of the China Open, Great Britain’s Johanna Konta is poised to make her Top 10 debut when the WTA Rankings are updated on Monday, October 10th.
“Yeah, it’s pretty cool. But, yeah — actually I don’t know. I don’t know,” Konta laughed in her post-match press conference, at a loss for words at her achievement.
“I think because I’m so immersed in this tournament still, it’s obviously something that’s really humbling and really nice to hear.”
The 25-year-old Brit started the year with her shock run to the Australian Open semifinals and has continued to chip away at her ranking in workmanlike fashion.
She won her first title at the Bank of the West Classic, and has made the quarterfinals or better at nine events this season, including the Australian Open, Olympic tennis event, and two WTA Premier Mandatory events.
As a result, Konta will become the fourth woman to make her Top 10 debut this year after Roberta Vinci, Belinda Bencic and Madison Keys joined the club earlier in the season, as well as become the 121st woman overall to do so since the WTA Rankings were introduced on November 3, 1975.
Konta’s rise to the WTA’s Top 10 also ends a 32-year drought for British tennis; the last British woman to grace the Top 10 was Jo Durie, who made her debut the week of August 20, 1984.
Konta also adds her name to an historic and elite group, becoming just the fourth British woman to break the Top 10; only Virginia Wade (career-high of No.2), Sue Barker (career-high of No.3) and Durie (career-high of No.5) have done so previously.
In addition to entering the Top 10, Konta will move into the Top 8 on the Road to Singapore Leaderboard and is one step closer to qualifying for the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.
Agnieszka Radwanska takes on Elina Svitolina in the semifinals of the China Open.