SAP Stat Of The Day: Kristina Mladenovic
In today’s SAP Stat Of The Day, Kristina Mladenovic scored a milestone win at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
In today’s SAP Stat Of The Day, Kristina Mladenovic scored a milestone win at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
BUDAPEST, Hungary – Top seed Timea Babos kicks off her Hungarian Ladies Open campaign with a solid victory in front of her home crowd, knocking out Turkish wildcard Ipek Soylu in straight sets to move into the second round.
“I’m just happy to play here at home,” Babos enthused after the match. “It’s very special for me, it motivates me a lot – I’m very happy to have this first win.”
With the support of the vocal home fans, Babos powered her way to a 6-3, 6-2 victory over Soylu, breaking her serve five times and needing just an hour and twenty minutes to advance.
“Already for the first round to have such a great crowd and such a big number of fans, it’s an amazing feeling. Hopefully this week I can continue that, and playing singles and doubles will bring out plenty of people.”
Besides being Babos’ first victory in Budapest since 2013, it’s also the Hungarian’s first main draw win of the year after a disappointing string of first-round losses stretching back to October 2016.
“It was not an easy season so far for me,” Babos reflected. “I started to play better at the St. Petersburg Ladies Open, but I played a lot of Top 30 players. I lost some tough three-setters.
“But then I had Fed Cup, which helped a lot. I played very, very consistent and I beat some Top 30 players and started to feel better.”
Also in action, No.8 seed Annika Beck had to fight against the home crowd on her way to the quarterfinals against Hungarian wildcard Fanny Stollar.
Yesterday, Stollar thrilled the local fans by notching her first ever WTA main draw victory against Danka Kovinic, but the No.282 was unable to back it up and fell to Beck, 6-2, 6-0.
“It was a very good match and she started off pretty well,” Beck said afterwards. “I backed off a bit at the start and fought my way through the games. I got on top of her and was able to finish it off, even with the score it was still a close match since the games were close.”
“It’s my first quarterfinal of the year, I’m just happy I can keep up the good results and have more success on the court.”
Joining Beck in the quarterfinals is No.2 seed Lucie Safarova, who needed just 56 minutes to sweep past Hsieh Su-Wei, 6-2, 6-1. The 2015 French Open finalist took an early lead in both sets, opening with a break in each to control the match and battle past the No.102 Taiwanese.
“It’s always nice to play the tournaments which are close to home so more friends and family can come,” Safarova said. “This week my coach’s family and little kids are here. Those are my friends! It’s nice and I’m enjoying it.”
Rounding out the quarterfinals are No.3 seed Julia Goerges, who defeated Donna Vekic 6-2, 6-2 in less than an hour, and Belarusian qualifier Aliaksandra Sasnovich, who scored another upset to knock out No.6 seed Pauline Parmentier, 7-6(3), 6-4.
These WTA stars definitely know each other’s game, but can they spell each other’s name? Find out if your favorite players passed the WTA Spelling Quiz!
DUBAI, UAE – No.6 seeds Andrea Hlavackova and Peng Shaui continued their solid start to 2017, knocking out Mandy Minella and Anastasija Sevastova, 7-5, 6-2, to reach the quarterfinals of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
Peng shook off a disappointing singles loss to Sevastova to pair Hlavackova, with whom she reached the Australian Open final, to get her revenge on the Latvian in doubles.
“It’s not always easy to play after Shuai loses in singles on the same day,” Hlavackova said after the match. “Obviously, you’re sad, but it’s nice that we were able to work as a team and just fight for the doubles anyway. That’s what I felt today. We were just better players but they played very solidly. Sevastova’s having a good week so she was playing unbelievable serves and forehands. It was always close so I’m happy we got through.”
The duo raced out to a 4-1 lead to start, and survived a surge from Sevastova and Minella to clinch the opening set and ride the momentum to a one hour and six minute victory.
“It seems like it’s going well. We always had good results together, so it’s not a huge surprise for both of us. But nothing is guaranteed, so we’ve worked hard for every win.
“We’re looking forward to playing more big events like these. We play very well together.”
Hlavackova is coming off a longterm partnership with Lucie Hradecka, with whom she qualified for the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global the last two years in a row. What do Hradecka and Peng have in common? A two-handed forehand.
“Maybe I like their mentality, but whatever happens I guess I need to keep looking for more double-handed players!” joked the Czech veteran.
Up next for Hlavackova and Peng are No.4 seeds Martina Hingis and Chan Yung-Jan, a newly formed team who reached the semifinals just last week at the Qatar Total Open.
Earlier in the day, top seeds Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic recovered from 0-4 in the match tie-break to oust Viktorija Golubic and Kristyna Pliskova, 7-5, 4-6, 10-5. Mladenovic had to shake off a singles loss of her own to reunite with Garcia in time to reach the quarterfinals, where they’ll play No.5 seeds Chan Hao-Ching and Yaroslava Shvedova, who defeated Irina-Camelia Begu and Daria Kasatkina, 6-3, 6-3.
No.3 seeds Sania Mirza and Barbora Strycova also advanced on Wednesday, easing past Kiki Bertens and Johanna Larsson, 6-3, 7-5; they’ll next face No.7 seeds Abigail Spears and Katarina Srebotnik.
RABAT, Morocco – Top seed Timea Bacsinszky righted a mid-match wobble to advance to her second WTA quarterfinal of the year at the GP SAR La Princesse Lalla Meryem.
Bacsinszky was facing her first big test of the tournament against 22-year-old Kateryna Kozlova, an opponent who took her to three sets in their last encounter at Nottingham.
“This was a tough one for sure,” Bacsinszky said in her post match interview. “Kozlova is playing better and better every week, so this was a tough match.”
The rapidly rising Kozlova might be ranked No.117 but she sits at No.75 on the Road To Singapore Leaderboard due to her impressive results this year. In St. Petersburg she turned heads with her run through qualifying to the quarterfinals – beating Laura Siegemund and Elena Vesnina along the way – and last week she notched a semifinals appearance in Istanbul.
Bacsinszky drew first blood early on, breaking Kozlova’s in the first game of the match and again to go up to a 4-1 lead. The Swiss’ heavy high-bouncing forehands kept Kozlova back on her heels and out of position. Kozlova broke Bacsinszky’s serve to start mounting a comeback in the final games of the set, but the top seed quickly broke right back close out the set.
Kozlova found her pace in the second set, and put together the play that has impressed throughout the year. She overpowered Bacsinszky from the baseline and took the set to level the match. But the Swiss player put the mid-match dip behind her and won the deciding set after two hours and twenty minutes.
“She raised her level in the second set,” Bacsinszky said. “She was pushing more against me and had me more on defense. It was hard to hit winners against her.
“But I found my way to change things in the third set and in the end I was lucky enough to win the last point.”
Bacsinszky’s opponent in the quarterfinal is Johanna Larsson, who knocked out Teliana Pereira 6-4, 6-4.
Elsewhere, New Zealand qualifier Marina Erakovic had a bittersweet entry to the quarterfinals – she was up 6-4 against the No.7 seed Lesia Tsurenko when the Ukrainian was forced to retire due to pain in her right thigh from an injury sustained during fitness training.
“It’s always tough when you win like that,” Erakovic said afterwards. “You never want to see your opponent injured – I feel sorry for Lesia and hope she’s okay.
“But, you know, good for me. I’ve got through five matches here, which is great. I’m gradually playing better and better each match which is what you want.”
She sets up a quarterfinal clash against Aleksandra Krunic next round, who earlier ousted the No.2 seed Ekaterina Makarova, 6-2, 6-2 in the day’s biggest upset.
“I’ve never played her before but I know her,” Erakovic said. “It’s another challenge, another match, another chance to compete and keep improving my game. That’s what I’m thinking about.”
“Here in Rabat every day is a nice day – the sun is always shining, so tomorrow should be a good day.”
A clip from Caroline Wozniacki’s press conference after her quarterfinals win at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
Throwback all the way to the very first Madrid champion: Dinara Safina won the inaugural Madrid Open in 2009, beating Caroline Wozniacki in the final.
Madrid is known for its innovations: the venue that hosts the event, La Caja Mágica (The Magic Box), which was also unveiled in 2009, has an unprecedented three courts with roofs.
In 2010, Aravane Rezai made headlines with her fairytale run to the Madrid title.
Rezai upset former No.1 Justine Henin in the first round, then powered past the likes of Andrea Petkovic, Jelena Jankovic and Lucie Safarova before beating Venus Williams in the final.
2011 was a banner year for Kvitova: at Madrid she lifted what was by then her third title of the year, and her first ever Premier Mandatory.
Kvitova would go on close out the 2011 season as the champion of Wimbledon and the WTA Finals.
Serena Williams won Madrid’s first – and so far, only – staging on blue clay in 2012.
In 2013 she became the first person to defend her Madrid title, and was joined by a special furry friend for the trophy ceremony.
Actually, the World No.1 was joined by several new friends!
Maria Sharapova won the Madrid title in 2014, one step on her road back from injury. A few weeks later she went on to win her second Roland Garros title.
2014 was an emotional year for the Russians in Madrid. Dinara Safina (left) – who presented the trophy to Sharapova – announced her official retirement from tennis at the Mutua Madrid Open.
Petra Kvitova won her second Madrid title in 2015 – can she defend her title and become Madrid’s first three-time champion?
Caroline Wozniacki takes on CiCi Bellis in the quarterfinals of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
DUBAI, UAE – 2011 champion Caroline Wozniacki put an end to CiCi Bellis’ dream run at the quarterfinals of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, notching commanding 6-3, 6-2 win over the 17-year-old American.
Bellis announced herself to the Dubai draw in a big way with her stunning upset over World No.6 Agnieszka Radwanska in the last round to reach her first Premier 5 quarterfinals, but she had no answers against her childhood idol Wozniacki.
“I have been there myself, so I know what it’s like,” Wozniacki said of her young opponent. “I just try to put myself in her shoes.
“For me, it was just very important to stay strong and not show any negative emotions but just stay positive all the time, show that I have the presence on court and really make her play those extra balls and points.
“She would really have to play on a really high level to beat me, because I was going to give that extra ball back. I wasn’t going to just give it to her.”
.@cicibellis99 is ?! #DDFTennis pic.twitter.com/SrQdj4TNOl
— WTA (@WTA) February 23, 2017
The American’s tricky disguised groundstrokes – which troubled Radwanska time and again in the third round – kept Wozniacki second-guessing as the teenager dictated the early rallies. She calmly took the break at 3-1, but it would be the only lead of the match for Bellis as the former World No.1 came roaring back.
Wozniacki kept to her game plan, tracking down every shot and making Bellis play an extra ball to draw out unforced errors. The American’s game plan crumbled, rewarding Wozniacki with the break back to level the match 3-3.
The Dane took full command from there, reeling off nine straight games to grab the opening set and take a daunting 4-0 lead in the second, and she went on to serve out a spot in her sixth straight Dubai semifinals.
The unforced errors count marked the difference between Wozniacki and Bellis: while they were almost evenly matched in winners (12 for Wozniacki to 14), Bellis struck more than twice as many unforced errors with 33 against Wozniacki’s 15.
.@CaroWozniacki advances to @DDFTennis Semifinals!
Cruises past Bellis 6-3, 6-2! pic.twitter.com/GRnNkCy797
— WTA (@WTA) February 23, 2017
“She’s just really solid, really solid off the ground and serving well,” Bellis explained after the match. “[She was] more consistent than me today. Moved me a lot. I think all that combined.
“She’s such a great player. It was really fun for me to see what the highest level is.”
Up next the 2011 champion will take on Anastasija Sevastova for a spot in the final. The pair last met in the quarterfinals of the 2016 US Open, with Wozniacki emerging victorious in a comfortable straight sets.
“She’s a player that mixes the pace up quite a bit,” Wozniacki said. “She’s definitely going to try and get me out of my own rhythm. I’m just excited to play and be in the semifinals once again.”
Elina Svitolina takes on Angelique Kerber in the semifinals of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.