Roland Garros: Stosur vs Halep
Samantha Stosur takes on Simona Halep in the fourth round of Roland Garros.
Samantha Stosur takes on Simona Halep in the fourth round of Roland Garros.
Serena Williams takes on Elina Svitolina in the fourth round of Roland Garros.
And then there were four. Who will be left standing in Paris for Saturday’s Roland Garros final? We preview today’s semifinal action right here on WTATennis.com.
Friday, Semifinals
[1] Serena Williams (USA #1) vs. Kiki Bertens (NED #58)
Head-to-head: Williams leads, 1-0
Key Stat: Bertens has won 12 matches in a row to reach her first Grand Slam semifinal.
Serena Williams has won 10 matches in a row. Kiki Bertens has won 12 matches in a row. Something will have to give on Friday as the tour’s two hottest players collide with a spot in Saturday’s final on the line in Paris. Bertens prolonged her magical run on Thursday when she defeated Timea Bacsinszky in straight sets to become the first Dutchwoman to reach the Roland Garros semifinals since 1971. But the 24-year-old will have to steady herself for one of the toughest challenges in tennis when she takes the court against top-seeded Serena Williams on Friday. Williams, arguably the best big-match player of all-time, owns a 26-4 record in Grand Slam semifinals and has won 12 of her last 13. Bertens, who hits an extremely heavy ball, will have to go big or go home against Williams. After suffering an injury to her left calf during the win over Bacsinszky, she’ll likely take a more aggressive approach against Williams, hoping to get the World No.1 on the run early and often. “I have some problems with my calf,” she admitted on Thursday. “I’m just gonna prepare again for tomorrow, do everything what I can with the physios, and we will see how it is.” Williams was disappointed with her effort against Yulia Putintseva in Thursday’s quarterfinal, and was quick to admit that fact in press. “I just was not playing my best,” Williams said. “I kept missing, just misfiring. Honestly, at one point I didn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel.” Williams scraped through the second set and then dominated the third in vintage fashion to advance. She knows she’ll need a more Williams-like effort to survive Bertens’ bullets on Friday. “Obviously she has a big serve and a big forehand,” Williams said. “She really moves the ball around well… I have to do something better and different if I’m going to stick around.”
Pick: Williams in two
[4] Garbiñe Muguruza (ESP #4) vs. [21] Samantha Stosur (AUS #24)
Head-to-head: Stosur leads, 1-0
Key Stat: Stosur owns a 2-2 record in Grand Slam semifinals
2010 Roland Garros runner-up Samantha Stosur has found her groove in Paris in what will be her last event with her longtime coach David Taylor in her box. Can the 32-year-old Aussie prolong Taylor’s coaching career for one more day? To do so she’ll have to get past a scorching-hot Spaniard who is looking more and more impressive with each passing round. Garbiñe Muguruza has won her last ten sets on the terre battue and is wearing the calm, collected expression of a champion in the making. Already a Wimbledon finalist, the Spaniard is hungry to prove that she’s an all-surface maven this weekend. Muguruza overcame a slow start to defeat Shelby Rogers in the quarterfinals on Wednesday, but is well aware that another slow start could mean the death of her dream in Paris. “I need to dictate play from the very beginning of the match,” Muguruza said afterwards. “I know that my opponent started in full swing; I shouldn’t wait for my opponent to dictate play.” Stosur hasn’t been this deep at a major since she reached the semis at Roland Garros in 2012, but the 32-year-old has demonstrated remarkable poise throughout the fortnight, weathering difficult conditions, a tricky draw and an injured left wrist to reach the final four. Now she knows the margins are thin and the intensity will be high, but it’s a challenge she appears more ready to accept than ever. “I probably have more belief in some ways now than what I did then,” Stosur said, referring to her lone Grand Slam title in 2011, after defeating Tsvetana Pironkova in the quarterfinals on Wednesday. “You don’t know if you can do that. Now I know I have done that. I know I can do it.”
Pick: Muguruza in three
Around the Grounds: The French duo of Kristina Mladenovic and Caroline Garcia is the highest-seeded team remaining in the doubles draw. The fifth seeds will take on Russia’s Margarita Gasparyan and Svetlana Kuznetsova for a spot in the doubles final on Friday. The other doubles semifinal will be contested by seventh-seeded Russians Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina and the unseeded Czech duo of Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova.
By The Numbers
3 – Number of players to own more than three Roland Garros singles titles (Evert, 7, Graf, 6, Henin, 4).
26 – Williams has reached 26 major finals, compared to three for the other three semifinalists, combined.
27 – Bertens is projected to reach a career-high ranking of 27 as a result of her semifinal appearance in Paris. She could go as high as No.10 if she wins in the title.
1977 – The last time a Dutchwoman reached the semifinals of a major (Betty Stove, U.S. Open).
2 – Number of players born in the 1990’s remaining in the draw (Muguruza, Bertens). The only player born in the ’90s to have previously won a major is Petra Kvitova.
-Chris Oddo, wtatennis.com contributor
BOL, Croatia – Former World No.66 Mandy Minella enjoyed a career-best week at the Bol Open, an inaugural WTA 125K Series event, defeating three seeds en route to her first WTA title over No.7 seed Polona Hercog, 6-2, 6-3.
Watch free live streaming from Bol, Croatia all week right here on wtatennis.com!
Minella’s best Grand Slam results have come on the hardcourts of the US Open – where she twice reached the third round and pushed Sloane Stephens to a third set tie-break in 2013 – but Luxembourg’s top ranked talent came to Bol with a pair of doubles titles on clay (both with Timea Babos in 2013). Her week began with a dramatic win over No.2 seed Varvara Lepchenko, and wins over Marina Erankovic and No.5 seed Ana Konjuh (via retirement) soon followed.
Against Hercog, an experienced clay courter who has won two titles on the surface, Minella was in solid form to dispatch the Slovenian star in 83 minutes. Converting six of her eight break points, she dropped just 10 points behind her first serve to capture the biggest singles title of her career.
In doubles, former World No.42 Petra Martic won her first WTA title of any kind on Sunday, pairing with Xenia Knoll to upset top seeds Raluca Olaru and Ipek Soylu, 6-3, 6-2.
More to come…
‘S-HERTOGENBOSCH, Netherlands – No.6 seeded American CoCo Vandeweghe scored another win in her happiest of hunting grounds, having little trouble against Indy de Vroome in her 6-2, 6-4 opening round win at the Ricoh Open.
Watch live action from ‘s-Hertogenbosch this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
There’s something about playing on grass that causes Vandeweghe’s powerful game to click together. Right here in the Netherlands, Vandeweghe brought home her first WTA title back in 2014, and last year she reached her first Grand Slam quarterfinals at Wimbledon.
Vandeweghe hardly needed more than an hour and fifteen minutes to reach the second round against Dutch wildcard de Vroome. The 20-year-old showed a lot of promise against the American; perhaps surprisingly, de Vroome out-aced the big serving Vandeweghe with eight aces to one. But Vandeweghe played more consistently in the important points, grabbing three of the four break chances she created.
Another American notched a victory today, with Madison Brengle scoring a big win against No.5 seed Laura Siegemund. Playing at the Ricoh Open for the first time, Brengle completed a three set upset against Stuttgart finalist Siegemund, coming back from a mid-match deficit to win 6-3, 3-6, 6-2 in just over two hours.
Siegemund wasn’t the only seed that took a tumble today with No.7 Eugenie Bouchard bowing out in straight sets at the hands of Belgian qualifier Elise Mertens. Mertens allowed the Canadian only one break point chance in the whole match and ran roughshod over Bouchard on her way to her 52-minute, 6-2, 6-0 victory, her first WTA main draw win of her career.
The grass is always greener! On to the second round ricohopen ?? https://t.co/36RVMvv4U6
— CoCo Vandeweghe (@CoCoVandey) June 6, 2016
May was defined by four breakthrough players who brought some impressive performances on and off the court. Which one soared the highest?
Have a look at the nominees for May’s Breakthrough Performance of the Month and cast your vote before Thursday at 11:59pm ET! The winner will be announced Friday, June 10.
May 2016 WTA Breakthrough Performance of the Month Finalists:
Louisa Chirico: The young American enjoyed a major splash at the start of the clay court season, qualifying for the Mutua Madrid Open and making it all the way to the semifinals, defeating former No.1 Ana Ivanovic and Daria Gavrilova along the way. Chirico qualified for the French Open and won her first-ever Grand Slam main draw match before falling to 2002 finalist Venus Williams in the second round.
Yulia Putintseva: Putintseva reached her first Grand Slam quarterfinal, dropping just eight games through her first three match wins over Aleksandra Wozniak, 2014 semifinalist Andrea Petkovic, and Karin Knapp. Playing Serena Williams for a spot in the semifinals, the fiery young Kazakh was just five points away from victory, but nonetheless charmed the crowd in a thrilling three-set epic.
Shelby Rogers: Rogers built upon her clay court resume in emphatic style in Paris, knocking out a quartet of big name players to reach her first Grand Slam quarterfinal. Starting the week with a win over No.17 seed Karolina Pliskova, Rogers went on to beat Elena Vesnina, Petra Kvitova, and Irina-Camelia Begu before bowing out to eventual champion Garbiñe Muguruza after having a set point in the opening set.
Kiki Bertens: Bertens enjoyed a dream run to the semifinals after winning her second career title in Nürnberg as a qualifier, winning 12 straight matches over the course of three weeks. Fighting off injury and 2015 semifinalist Timea Bacsinszky, the Dutch powerhouse satisfied her country’s Olympic requirements and pushed World No.1 Serena Williams throught two tough sets just before the final weekend.
2016 Winners:
January: Zhang Shuai
February: Jelena Ostapenko
March: Nicole Gibbs
April: Cagla Buyukakcay
How it works:
Finalists are selected by wtatennis.com
Winner is then determined by a fan vote on wtatennis.com
With Roland Garros in the books, relive in photos the 20 best moments from the fortnight: the Cinderella stories, the agony of defeat, and the moments of victory.
‘S-HERTOGENBOSCH, Netherlands – Top seed Belinda Bencic was made work again in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, coming back from a set down to win against Varvara Lepchenko and set up an all-Swiss quarterfinal at the Ricoh Open.
Watch live action from ‘s-Hertogenbosch this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
Playing in her first matches of the season on grass – and her first since her two-month injury layoff – Bencic had trouble finding her rhythm early on and struggled with her serve, striking six double faults.
“My level is still not there where I want it to be,” Bencic said afterwards. “I don’t think it was a really good match from my side. But all I could do myself was just to fight and keep going. That’s what I’m trying every day so I’m just hoping to improve.”
Lepchenko took advantage of Bencic’s service woes to break early on in the first set, taking it 6-3. Bencic found her range in the second, and in the third set she broke twice and strung together more consistent rallies to take the match 3-6, 6-3, 6-2.
Bencic’s win sets up an all-Swiss quarterfinal at the Ricoh Open; she’s set to face qualifier Viktorija Golubic in the next round. She defeated Japanese qualifier Risa Ozaki, 6-4, 6-2.
The pair are Fed Cup regulars for Switzerland, as well as good friends off the court.
“I’m very happy for her that she’s having such good results,” Bencic said. “I just think it’s very positive for the Swiss to have two players in the quarterfinals.
“I’m really good friends with her so I hope that it will be a good match. I will have fun out there and try to fight like today.”
The luck ran out for the other two seeded players in action today in ‘s-Hertogenbosch as No.2 Jelena Jankovic and No.4 Jelena Ostapenko went tumbling out.
“I’m so happy to win today,” said Evgeniya Rodina, who knocked out Jankovic 6-7(2), 6-1, 6-4. “I’ve played against her three times before, and three times I lost.
“I just tried to play every single point, hit hard and just try to do my best.”
NOTTINGHAM, Great Britain – Karolina Pliskova and Alison Riske emerged victorious after a busy day of quarterfinals and semifinals action to book their spots in the final of the Aegon Open Nottingham.
With rain washing out the day yesterday, players had to complete both rounds on the same day to stay on schedule.
Top seed Pliskova was originally slated to play three matches today – two singles matches and a doubles semifinal with her sister Kristyna Pliskova – but didn’t have enough in the tank after singles.
“This morning I was thinking maybe I can have three matches today, with the doubles, but no, then we had to withdraw,” Pliskova said after her second match.
“It’s been a long time since I played two singles matches, maybe once in years, I don’t remember. But it just happened and you have to be ready for it.”
Up first for the Czech was Australia’s Ashleigh Barty, who was competing at the WTA level for the first time in two years. The Australian didn’t show any rust, and despite the defeat she kept the score line narrow 7-6(2), 7-6(7). In fact, she held set points in both sets before Pliskova edged out the victory.
Barty had only positive takeaways from her first WTA tournament since 2014.
“It’s nice to know that straight off the bat I can come in and compete with the best in the world,” she said. “That’s really good, this week’s been a massive bonus for us [me and my team]. Being able to get so many matches against quality players has been really good.
“It’s been great to be back on court at the WTA level, it’s obviously been a while since I played at this level. It’s just pleasing to know that straightaway I’m able to come back in and mix right in the fold.”
With one match already under her belt, Pliskova flew through her semifinal against No.4 seed Monica Puig in just 54 minutes, 6-2, 6-2. The Puertorrican, who bested Tamira Paszek in the quarterfinals earlier in the day, couldn’t keep up with Pliskova’s powerful serve; she was unable to break in three chances and allowed nine aces to zoom past unanswered.
“It would be nice to end the week with a win,” the Czech said. “So I’m just going to get ready for that. I had a tough day today, so hoping for nice weather tomorrow and even if I don’t get the trophy I still think it was a good week on grass, for a first week.”
Joining Pliskova in the final of the Aegon Open Nottingham is Riske, the unseeded American who notched back to back wins over Anett Kontaveit and Saisai Zheng to reach her second WTA final of the year.
“My first match was quick, because I knew that if I won I would have to play a second one,” Riske said after her semifinal match. “Both players were very tough, I had to be in it to the end. I’m looking forward to the final tomorrow.”
Despite an innocuous-looking score of 6-1, 7-5 against Zheng, the American faced almost let slip away the second set. She was up 5-2 and held match point two times as the Chinese player rattled off three straight games to level the score. Riske finally took her third match point, winning after an hour and 26 minutes.
Pliskova leads the head-to-head record against Riske with two wins to one.
WIMBLEDON, Great Britain – Over the weekend, World No.1 Serena Williams, French Open champion Garbiñe Muguruza, Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber, two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova, and British No.1 Johanna Konta spoke to the media on the eve of Wimbledon and the vibe of each press conference captured their emotions as the third major is set to begin on Monday.
Serena looked like a woman who wanted nothing more than to stop talking and start playing. Muguruza still looked fresh and bubbly in the afterglow of her win in Paris. Kerber and Konta had a no-nonsense air about them and Kvitova seemed as curious as the inquisitive brigade of reporters as to how she’ll perform at her favorite Slam.
Here are the highlights from a busy weekend in the press room.
Serena Williams addressed the press on Sunday at her Champions’ press conference. Here’s how she’s been preparing for her title defense:
“I got here I think on Monday. So I’ve had a lot of time on the grass. In the States, usually I just hit on the hard court. But the grass has slowed down a lot. I mean, it’s a huge difference still, but it’s not like it was 10 years ago. I did the same preparation, and it seems to work for me.
Angelique Kerber says she can serve pain free now, which wasn’t the case at Roland Garros:
“I mean, the time after Paris, few days going home, having a lot of treatments for my shoulder and everything, that was good for me like mentally, physically, everything, to get this time, getting a little bit down. Right now I’m feeling good, so the shoulder is already much better. Yeah, no pain when I’m serving.”
Garbiñe Muguruza on whether she feels different at Wimbledon now that she is a Slam champion:
“I don’t feel different because I’m so convinced that not because winning French Open I’m going to come here and this is miracle and I’m going to win every match. I’ve been in the situation where you win a lot of matches, and then suddenly, you know, you lose. You’re like, Oh, I thought I was going to win. I don’t take anything for granted.
I’m going for the first match, like everyone else, from zero. And, yeah, not thinking about that.”
Serena on whether she feels any pressure at Wimbledon:
“Well, this year I don’t feel as much tension as I usually do. Well, there’s some years I haven’t felt any tension either. I’m feeling pretty good. I don’t feel any pressure or stress.”
Wimbledon is a special place for Petra Kvitova. She explains:
If you ask any other tennis player what they want to win it’s always Wimbledon. So it was the same with me when I was a kid. I didn’t really expect to win it twice already which is like the dream really came true. It’s really special. Wimbledon for me is a real historic place and you just feel it from the moment you just went to the area. It’s great feelings.
Johanna Konta was grilled about the pressure of playing in front of the home crowd as the No.1 Brit. She wasn’t biting:
Q. You say you don’t know what to expect from the fans, but you see what happens with Jamie and Andy. It’s going to step up an extra level. Do you have to prepare for that?
JOHANNA KONTA: Actually, I really don’t because I’ve never been in Andy’s or Tim’s shoes. I don’t know how they experience what they experience. For me, this will be a new thing. I’m looking forward to it. Equally, you know, I’m here to play my tennis, just really enjoy what I do.
Q. Does a big reaction push you forward or is it something you have to manage?
JOHANNA KONTA: I guess the less I think about it, the less of a thought process I need to go into it. I’m here to play, not to have a reaction or manage other people’s expectations. I’m here for me, so…
Kerber on her reaction after a disappointing first round exit from the French Open:
“Of course after few days, I was disappointed still. But, to be honest, I was not watching Paris from this moment. I was going home, I was taking my time off, because it was a lot in the last few months. I was trying to take these days just for myself, spending the time at home, then trying to be ready also mentally and physically with my shoulder to going on court, yeah, going there and giving again everything.
So I just saw a little bit the final, but that was it. I know from Paris, I just know that it was raining the whole week. This is what I know.”
Kvitova on who the favorite is to win the title:
It’s Serena. [laughs] Well definitely it is. Of course she is the biggest favorite and she has the best game to win it here.
Get ready for the spotlight, Garbiñe:
Q. I’m sure you’re used to sharing attention from the Spanish media when Rafa is at a tournament. Now that Rafa is not here, are you getting the sense that all the Spanish media is focused on you?
GARBINE MUGURUZA: I thought about that the other day when I saw that Rafa, you know, was not playing [Look of wide-eyed shock]. No, I’m just joking.
For sure, people are more looking at what I’m doing, will be more watching me. But I think that’s fine. It’s a good sign. I like it. I’ll try to do my best.
But I was so happy, finally this year, I’m like, I did better than Nadal in French Open. I’m like, This is so weird (laughing).
Kerber on her preparation:
Q. On a scale of 1 to 10, how prepared are you physically and mentally coming into Wimbledon?
ANGELIQUE KERBER: 1 to 10? Let’s say 11 (smiling). No, I’m really prepared. I did everything I could.
Serena on her favorite memory of watching Venus play at Wimbledon:
“Probably playing Lindsay Davenport in the final here. I think it was really an incredible match. I think she was down a match point or two. It was an insane match. It was three sets. It was a really, really good match.
“I just remember her being very happy, but very confident. I was more happy that she won. When someone you love wins, you are just so happy for them. Yeah, it was just a great experience, a wonderful experience.”
Konta is as level-headed a player as you’ll find on the tour, never allowing herself to get too high or too low. She was asked whether her Eastbourne run to the semifinals gave her more confidence at Wimbledon:
It would be hypocritical of me to say, Oh, yes, I feel more confident, because going into Australia, I’d actually lost two first rounds. I think it’s more about not so much the wins, but how you feel in the matches that you’ve played.
“I feel like I’ve had some really good matches against some really good players. Whether I’ve won some, lost some, also having time on the grass, I feel very lucky to have had that.”
Kvitova on the effect of Serena losing the last two Slam finals:
I don’t think that it’s, like, the biggest problem on the tour [laughs]. I just think that she will find the way she’s gonna win another final someday. It’s just how it is. I think that if someone is playing Serena in a final they feel like they don’t really have something to lose. Serena is always the favorite and I think it’s a little bit more relaxed from the opponent.
Muguruza was wearing a Spain jersey as she did her pre-tournament press:
“I mean, in Spain, if you don’t follow football, you’re dead. You don’t have conversation.”
Konta on whether her reaction to Hungary advancing to the quarterfinals of the European Championships.
“Mom probably couldn’t give two hoots. But dad was very excited. I’m happy that my dad’s excited. I think that’s the best way to describe football at home (smiling).”
Kvitova on whether she feels the bullseye on her back at Wimbledon:
I think it’s tough because of course for me I should be kind of confident on the grass which I am to play on the grass I know how well I can play on it. But I think the other girls want to play a little better and they want to beat me especially here because they know what happened here. But you can look at it from both sides. But I think the opponents are playing less with pressure.
Kerber on her confidence level on grass:
“I like to play on grass. I mean, it’s always nice to have a few tournaments on grass of the year. It’s always something different. On grass, the rallies are not so long as on clay and also on hard.
I like to have the short rallies, or, like, also to going for it. What is really important on grass is the serve and the return. That’s the two shots, they are really important. This is what I like. I don’t dislike grass, so it’s always good on grass for me.”
Kvitova on her best performances at Wimbledon:
I have probably two. When I beat Venus in 2014 in the third round which I felt that she was better player on the court in the first two sets and I was able somehow to win it. And then definitely in the final against Bouchard.
Kerber on what it’s like to sit next to her on the couch while watching football:
“I’m jumping, screaming. Sometimes I’m quiet as well. So it’s everything. A lot of emotions in these 90 minutes.”
Muguruza on playing mixed doubles with Rafael Nadal at the Rio Olympics:
“I never played mixed. I think he told me he never played mixed. I think last minute, in case we play, I don’t know, it’s going to be like, Well, Rafa, what do you do? I don’t know. You? I think it’s going to be very like that.”
Serena and Venus are playing doubles at Wimbledon and they’re already practicing for a medal bid at the Rio Olympics.
“We’re doing a little preparation. We’re practicing a little bit in doubles. Whenever I hit a return out in singles, I’m like, It counts for doubles, so it works out (smiling).”
Konta was asked for her thoughts on the “Brexit” vote that will see Britain leave the European Union:
“Obviously I’m aware of what happened during the referendum. But, yeah, in terms of my own opinions, I think they’re very much best discussed at the dinner table.”
Serena on the effect of the Brexit vote on prize money this year:
“Yeah, I mean, I’m not a citizen of here, but I think at this point the Euro, the pound and the dollar went down after that decision. It affected the economy I think in a whole. However, I think it’s too soon right now to see how long that effect will last, or if it won’t last long. It’s a very volatile economy right now. We’ll see what happens. I’m watching really closely, though.”
All photos courtesy of Getty Images.