The Gift That Left Sloane Speechless
Relive the moment that left Sloane Stephens speechless on the latest episode of Dubai Duty Free Full of Surprises.
Relive the moment that left Sloane Stephens speechless on the latest episode of Dubai Duty Free Full of Surprises.
MADRID, Spain – If Agnieszka Radwanska thought the absence of Serena Williams would make her task any easier at the Mutua Madrid Open, Friday’s draw provided an immediate reality check.
Williams’ withdrawal elevated Radwanska to top seed, but her reward is a meeting with one of the draw’s most dangerous of floaters: Dominika Cibulkova.
Last month in Indian Wells, Cibulkova came within a point of victory against Radwanska only to fall agonizingly short in a thrilling second-round clash. The Slovak followed this up with a title in Katowice and the former French Open semifinalist will present a real challenge on Radwanska’s least favorite surface.
And should she pass this opening test, things will not get any easier for the Pole. Awaiting her in the second round will be either Caroline Garcia or Johanna Konta, before a likely third-round date with one of the WTA’s finest clay courters, Sara Errani.
Defending champion Petra Kvitova is also in Radwanska’s half of the draw but has been handed a less formidable opening opponent in the shape of Lara Arruabarrena, while No.4 seed Victoria Azarenka begins against Laura Robson. Azarenka and Kvitova are projected to meet in the last eight.
Like Radwanska, No.2 seed Angelique Kerber has been placed in a tricky section. She starts against the mercurial Barbora Strycova, and also finds Sloane Stephens, Daria Kasatkina and Carla Suárez Navarro in her quarter.
Home hopes will rest chiefly on the shoulders of Suárez Navarro and Garbiñe Muguruza. Suárez Navarro opens up against big-serving Timea Babos, while No.3 seed Muguruza meets Anna Karolina Schmiedlova. Keeping Muguruza company in arguably the most open section of the draw are Simona Halep, Timea Bacsinszky and Karolina Pliskova.
Click here to see the draw in full.
Top half @MutuaMadridOpen. pic.twitter.com/cDLkYnuxPo
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) 29 April 2016
An interview with Victoria Azarenka before her first round match at the Mutua Madrid Open.
Garbiñe Muguruza takes on Anna Karolina Schmiedlova in the first round of the Mutua Madrid Open.
Petra Kvitova takes on Elena Vesnina in the second round of the Mutua Madrid Open.
Dominika Cibulkova had Tuesday’s shot of the day at the Mutua Madrid Open.
Simona Halep had Wednesday’s shot of the day at the Mutua Madrid Open.
Louisa Chirico takes on Daria Gavrilova in the quarterfinals of the Mutua Madrid Open.
MADRID, Spain – Following a couple of semifinal masterclasses, Simona Halep and Dominika Cibulkova go into Saturday’s Mutua Madrid Open final on top of their game. Here are 10 of SAP’s finest facts ahead of their showdown in the Spanish capital.
(6) Simona Halep (ROU #7) vs Dominika Cibulkova (SVK #38)
Head-To-Head: Cibulkova leads, 3-1
1) Cibulkova has historically proven to be a difficult foe for Halep.
Despite sitting over 30 places above Cibulkova in the rankings, Halep has struggled in their previous match-ups. While most of these came prior to Halep establishing herself at the top of the game, the mental scars from their most recent encounter – an emphatic Cibulkova victory in the 2014 Australian Open quarterfinals – could still linger. Comfort comes in the shape of Halep’s sole victory, which came a year previously in Brussels – their only meeting on clay.
2) Both players are Grand Slam finalists.
Cibulkova followed up that victory by reaching the final at Melbourne Park, where her dreams of Grand Slam glory were finally ended by an inspired Li Na. Halep is also no stranger to the business end of majors, losing a thrilling 2014 French Open final to Maria Sharapova.
3) But at Premier Mandatory level, Halep holds a decided edge.
For all her career accomplishments, Cibulkova is through to her very first Premier Mandatory final. Away from the Slams, her most significant final came at the Premier 5 Rogers Cup way back in 2008, where she lost to Dinara Safina. Halep, on the other hand, is appearing in her third Premier Mandatory final; she has a mixed record in the previous two, losing to Sharapova in Madrid two years ago and winning Indian Wells in 2015.
4) Halep and the Magnificent Seven.
Should Halep lift the trophy she will become the seventh active player to hold multiple Premier Mandatory titles. The others are Victoria Azarenka (six), Serena Williams (six), Maria Sharapova (three), Agnieszka Radwanska (two), Caroline Wozniacki (two) and Petra Kvitova (two).
5) World No.38 Cibulkova breaking Premier Mandatory records.
Since the introduction of Premier Mandatory status as part of the 2009 WTA Roadmap, Cibulkova is the first player outside the Top 30 to reach a final at a tournament of this stature. The lowest-ranked finalist (No.29 Svetlana Kuznetsova – 2015) and champion (No.24 Aravane Rezaï – 2010) at a Premier Mandatory event have both came in Madrid.
6) Madrid will have a significant impact on the Road To Singapore leaderboard.
Cibulkova, who has never previously qualified for the WTA Finals, came into Madrid at No.17 on the Road To Singapore leaderboard but – regardless of the result – will leave sitting in a qualifying spot. Halep will also crack the Top 8.
7) Cibulkova the marathon woman.
Despite skittling over semifinal foe Louisa Chirico in under an hour, Cibulkova has still spent plenty of time on court. She was taken to three sets in her previous four matches, taking her total time on court en route to the final to nine hours and 40 minutes. Halep meanwhile has dropped just the one set, spending five hours and 38 minutes on court.
8) Halep boom or bust in Madrid.
Aside from her two runs to the final, Halep has never won a main draw match in Madrid, falling at the first hurdle in 2010, 2011, 2013 and 2015.
9) Cibulkova will be close to the Top 20 again after this.
The former No.10 is projected to rise from No.38 to No.26 by reaching the final and No.22 by winning the title. In February she was ranked as low as No.66.
10) Halep serving notice.
Halep’s progress has been helped by some particularly potent serving. In five matches she has fired 15 aces and won a mightily impressive 90.2% of her service games – her 2016 average going into the tournament was 70.5%.
Every week on wtatennis.com we’ll bring you 10 Things To Know about the week – who’s playing, where and more. This week the Road To Singapore goes through the Internazionali BNL d’Italia.
1) Serena Williams debuts on the dirt.
The World No.1 has won Rome three times in her career – including back-to-back years in 2013 and 2014 – but injuries and illness have kept her out of the first half of the clay court season. Still in search of her first title of the year, could it come this week? She might have to go through two of the most in-form players to do it, including No.6 seed Simona Halep and No.4 seed Victoria Azarenka. She also took a doubles wildcard with sister Venus Williams.
2) Simona Halep aims for a clay court double.
Halep looked have put her early-season demons to rest with an emphatic run to the Mutua Madrid Open title. Dropping just one set en route, the Romanian will return to the Top 5 in next week’s rankings; might she pull off a major upset over Williams in the quarterfinals?
3) Victoria Azarenka balancing niggling injuries.
The Belarusian withdrew from last week’s tournament in Madrid with a lower back injury she said she picked up in her first round win over Laura Robson. Looking to maintain a clean bill of health ahead of the French Open, Azarenka has already proven she can play solid tennis on clay this season – winning two crucial rubbers in Fed Cup in addition to two wins in Spain. Projected to face Williams in the semifinals, how far will the former No.1 go?
4) How will Angelique Kerber rebound from her early Madrid loss?
No.1 on the Road to Singapore standings, Kerber suffered a suprising loss to Barbora Strycova in Madrid – the German had previously never lost a set in four previous encounters. Already a winner on clay at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, outdoor clay remains the final frontier for the Australian Open champion, who has yet to pass the quarterfinals at the French Open. She is all but guaranteed a tricky opening round opponent in either Jelena Jankovic or Eugenie Bouchard.
5) Can Garcia and Mladenovic keep up their streak?
Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic have been unbeatable since the start of the clay court season; with three straight titles in Charleston, Stuttgart, and Madrid, the Frenchwomen have won 13 straight matches and have beaten reigning Co-No.1s Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza in back-to-back finals. Taking out Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Lucie Safarova to win the Volvo Car Open, Garcia and Mladenovic are again seeded No.5 and could play Santina in yet another final.
6) Santina searches for a clay court title.
Hingis and Mirza have won a title on every surface but red clay – though their runs to the finals of Rome (2015), Stuttgart, and Madrid can’t be ignored. The pair are just one major trophy away from clinching a Santina Slam, and besides losses to Garcia and Mladenovic, have looked back to their best, losing just two games to Vania King and Alla Kudryavtseva (who beat them in Indian Wells) in last week’s semifinals.
7) All eyes on the Spanish quarter.
Garbiñe Muguruza and Carla Suárez Navarro are set to face off in the quarterfinals following difficult homecomings in Madrid. Muguruza lost a heartbreaking three-setter to Irina-Camelia Begu, while Suárez Navarro was dealing with an illness as she too lost in three sets to Samantha Stosur. Two of the best clay courters on tour, how will Suárez Navarro – last year’s runner-up – fair in Rome against her countrywoman?
8) Vinci comes home.
Playing her first Italian event since reaching the US Open final, Roberta Vinci had muted expectations ahead of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia, having only made it to the third round once in 11 appearances. Seeded No.7 this week, she will open against a qualifier or Johanna Konta, the British No.1 who enjoyed a breakout run to the semifinals of the Australian Open, but will be likely less comfortable on clay compared to her potential Italian opponent.
9) Kvitova on clay.
Armed with a new coach and new philiosophy, Petra Kvitova has played some of her best tennis on clay this season, reaching the semifinals in Stuttgart and the third round of Madrid before running into nemesis Daria Gavrilova. Opening against Madison Keys or Andrea Petkovic, the two-time Wimbledon champion is projected to face Kerber in the quarterfinals.
10) And see where you can watch action from Rome on TennisTV!