Aga, Petra & Genie Glam Up In Shenzhen
The three biggest names at the Shenzhen Open – Agnieszka Radwanska, Petra Kvitova and Eugenie Bouchard – shone at the player party. See all the best pics right here.
The three biggest names at the Shenzhen Open – Agnieszka Radwanska, Petra Kvitova and Eugenie Bouchard – shone at the player party. See all the best pics right here.
STANFORD, CA, USA – No.3 seed Johanna Konta played one of the best matches of her career to dismiss former No.1 and two-time Bank of the West Classic champion Venus Williams, 7-5, 5-7, 6-2, to capture her first WTA title.
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“It’s quite an incredibly humbling experience,” she said after the match when asked about winning her first title. “It’s a validation of all the hard work you’ve already put in and a motivator on the things you want to keep improving on, and the lengths you might go to in order to become that much better at your discipline
Konta kicked off her career-best season with a win over the elder Williams sister in the first round of the Australian Open, going on to become the first British woman to reach semifinals Down Under since Sue Barker in 1977. The top-ranked Brit has only continued to rise since then, making the second week of both Indian Wells and Miami, and finishing in the semifinals of the Aegon International in Eastbourne.
“I’ve played her twice before and knew I’d be playing a magnitude of experience. Venus Williams doesn’t need an introduction, and I knew going into that I’d need to stay focused on myself and to be really grateful for the experience and try to learn from her within the match. I wanted to leave it all out there, but also absorb everything that I could possibly reinvest in my career moving forward.”
Playing Stanford for the first time at 25 years old, Konta overcame a quarterfinal wobble against Zheng Saisai to emphatically defeat No.2 seed Dominika Cibulkova on Saturday, and was on course for a similarly landmark win against Williams on Sunday, surging out to a set and 4-1 lead.
“Credit to her for playing great tennis; she played so well and all of her balls were landing today,” Venus said after the match. “It wasn’t my best day, but I tried to stay in there and fight, and that helped me get an opportunity to win the match.”
Where Konta was making her debut, Venus’ story began in Stanford over 20 years ago, playing her first WTA tournament at the Bank of the West Classic – even winning a match before falling to Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario in three sets. The American has played incredible tennis in her own right this season, and the Wimbledon semifinalist wouldn’t go down without a fight.
“Just because it’s 4-1 doesn’t mean the match is over; it’s not a favorable scoreline if you happen to be down, but it’s not over.”
From the aforementioned deficit, Venus won six of the next seven games to level the match at a set apiece.
“Quite honestly, you’d expect nothing less from a champion,” Konta said. “They don’t give away any match, much less a final. It was her 80th, so you could only imagine the number of different situations that she’s already been in. It was about keeping things in perspective, and understanding there’d be ebbs and flows in the match.”
Konta recovered in surprising fashion in the decider, relying on a fabulous serving day – one in which she hit 12 aces to three from Venus – and an aggressive ground game (42 winners to 39 unforced errord) to shake off a tricky final game to serve out her maiden WTA trophy.
“Every single point was a battle, and I tried to win as many battles as possible.
“The simpler you keep things, the more clarity you have, and the less dumb you play!”
Believe it @JoKonta91! ? #BOTWC pic.twitter.com/qO3pqpmmtO
— WTA (@WTA) July 24, 2016
Angelique Kerber takes on Camila Giorgi in the first round of the Brisbane International.
STANFORD, CA, USA – We Konta believe it!
Johanna Konta joined the winner’s circle, winning her first WTA title at the Bank of the West Classic. And she did in impressive fashion. To win the title, Konta knocked off the top two seeds in Dominika Cibulkova and Venus Williams and she’ll move to No.14 on Monday.
Hear Jo talk about her meteoric rise over the last 12 months — she was ranked No.126(!) this time last year — and her mouth-watering plans to celebrate her career milestone.
(Spoiler alert: It will be animal style.)
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LONDON, Great Britain – Heather Watson is coming off a career year that saw her earn hometown glory at the Wimbledon Championships in mixed doubles and win another WTA title in Monterrey.
Sitting down with Elle Magazine UK, the Brit had a no holds barred discussion about the differences between singles and doubles, getting into the right pre-match mindset, and how she injects her personal style into her on-court kits.
“In terms of mixed doubles, it’s a whole other ball game,” she said of her Wimbledon win with Henri Kontenin. “Personally, it’s just fun and I think that’s down to having had some incredible partners, which makes a big difference.
“I think I need to bring more of the mindset of ‘it doesn’t matter what the outcome is I’m just going to do what I need to do’, into my singles more.”
Watson also played mixed doubles with countryman Andy Murray, who went on to clinch the ATP World No.1 ranking earlier this fall.
“Andy is an incredible athlete. He’s so competitive, hardworking and so nice to be around. He’s not what people think he is. I find him quieter, very chilled and more relaxed off the court.”
Check out the full interview with Watson right here at ElleUK.com.
– The Carnage Continues: Playing her first match of the 2016 season, Garbiñe Muguruza was forced to retire from a tight second round encounter with American Varvara Lepchenko. Lepchenko had taken the opening set in a thrilling tiebreaker when the World No.3 took a medical timeout to address her left foot, which was later confirmed to be a recurrence of plantar fascia:
.@GarbiMuguruza on her left foot injury @BrisbaneTennis. pic.twitter.com/8F5PGNuvt3
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) January 6, 2016
– Epic Win: Naomi Broady aspires to be the WTA’s Ivo Karlovic, but mixed raw power with unfiltered drama at the ASB Classic against 18-year-old wildcard Jelena Ostapenko. Down 1-5 in the final set, the Brit won a match that must be seen to be believed.
– Upset Stomach: Over at the Shenzhen Open, Petra Kvitova had her own woes in the form of an unexpected GI illness that kept her from finishing her first round match against Zheng Saisai. While physically fit, the virus did keep the two-time Wimbledon champion off the practice court.
More on Kvitova’s retirement in Shenzhen: She was unable to hit for the last four days. Stayed in bed trying to recover.
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) January 6, 2016
– Ailing Aussies: Ajla Tomljanovic and Samantha Stosur are both dealing with physical issues early in the season; the former pulled out of the doubles tournament in Brisbane with an abdominal injury, while the 2011 US Open champion underwent an MRI that revealed tendon sheath damage to her right wrist. Both hope to be ready for their home major tournament in two weeks.
– Down, But Not Out: Simona Halep’s tournament may have ended before it began, but the World No.2 is still eager to serve up something major to start the season:
No tennis for 2 days but working hard to be ready for Sydney and/or Melbourne. Fingers crossed ? pic.twitter.com/Edv6VMKEem
— Simona Halep (@Simona_Halep) January 6, 2016
– Making a Racket: One former No.1 enjoying a clean bill of health is Victoria Azarenka; the two-time Australian Open champion eased past lucky loser Ysaline Bonaventure, who acquitted herself well in her second marquee match (The Tennis Island spoke with the Belgian last summer). Meanwhile, Azarenka remained coy about a possible equipment change in press:
Asked Azarenka whether she’s playing with the same racket as last year or if she’s changed it up. Her answer: “We’ll see.”
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) January 6, 2016
– Young Gun: Samantha Crawford’s star looked set to rise in 2012 when she qualified for the US Open main draw and went on to win the girl’s singles title – beating Anett Kontaveit in the final. Injuries have curtailed her progress, but the American is hitting her stride in Brisbane, upsetting Belinda Bencic to reach her first Premier quarterfinal. Learn more about the big-hitting Crawford here.
– Comeback Kid: Tamira Paszek came up in the same cadre of current WTA stars as Azarenka and Caroline Wozniacki, but an adductor injury nearly took her off the tour for good. Now fit, healthy, and back with former coach Andrei Pavel, Paszek has been making waves once again at the ASB Classic, overcoming reknowned battlers Francesca Schiavone and Svetlana Kuznetsova to reach her first WTA quarterfinal since 2012 (Seoul). WTA Insider spoke with the Austrian last fall.
– Dance Off: From the All-Blacks’ stint as ballboys for Caroline Wozniacki, Venus Williams and Bethanie Mattek-Sands. Williams whipped and nae-nae’d her way to a perfect practice with a little help from Julian Savea.
– Out From Under: Andrea Petkovic wasn’t sure if she would even be in Australia last fall, but a detour through the streets of Manhattan brought her back to Brisbane in stunning style; the German is into the quarterfinals after defeating Ekaterina Makarova in straight sets, and put on an even bigger show in the press conference:
When @andreapetkovic finds out 2 journos don't know who The White Stripes frontman Jack White is… #BrisbaneTennis https://t.co/PX76FQv0xM
— Brisbane Intl (@BrisbaneTennis) January 6, 2016
ZHUHAI, China – Sunday marked 100 days until the WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai, and the tournament rang in the start of an exciting countdown with the help of former World No.1 and Tournament Ambassador, Stefani Graf.
Graf took the role back in May, and couldn’t be more ready to help the WTA stars “Shine in Zhuhai” in what will be the final event of the 2016 season.
Check out the best photos from the event, which feature Tournament Director Peter Johnson unveiling Graf’s video announcement:
Photos courtesy of the WTA.
BRISBANE, Australia – No.2 seed Garbiñe Muguruza became the latest casualty at the Brisbane International when she was forced to retire from her second round meeting with Varvara Lepchenko on Wednesday evening.
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Following on from the last-minute withdrawals of Maria Sharapova and Simona Halep, the path to the title lay wide open, but Muguruza saw her chance of silverware scuppered when she aggravated a long-standing foot injury.
“I started to feel it at 3-3, something like that,” Muguruza said in her post-match press conference. “But it’s just a pain that sometimes you have in the foot, especially when you’re starting to compete and to run a lot.”
Visibly struggling for the remainder of the set, in which she coughed up 27 unforced errors, Muguruza played through the pain barrier, fending off four set points before finally succumbing in a tense tie-break. Despite lengthy treatment during the changeover, it was quickly apparent that her resistance would not last much longer, admitting defeat after Lepchenko held serve the following game.
The Spaniard remains optimistic that the injury, which she carried over from the previous campaign, will not jeopardize her chances at the upcoming Australian Open.
“Last year I felt it almost during the whole season. I felt it also in the pre-season a little bit, but especially here over the last few days, playing points, running more, more, more,” she said.
“I thought in the match I was going to be able to play with the pain, but it just got to a point where I’m like, ‘Hey it’s getting worse, so just stop and let’s treat it and hopefully it’s gone in couple of days.'”
Meeting Lepchenko, who had been leading 7-6(9), 1-0, for a place in the semifinals will be Muguruza’s doubles partner and fellow Spaniard, Carla Suárez Navarro.
“Carla’s a very tough opponent and she’s playing well so I’m expecting the best from her and I’ll have to fight for every ball,” Lepchenko said.
MONTRÉAL, Canada – No.12 seed Petra Kvitova weathered a rainy day at the Rogers Cup to rain down on Madga Linette, 6-1, 6-2, in just over an hour on Court Central.
Watch live action from Montréal this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
Kvitova’s first North American hardcourt title came in Montréal back in 2012, and he rode those good memories to an emphatic win over Linette on Monday night.
“I think the rain is following women’s tennis right now – wherever we are it’s a rainy day! – so I’m just happy I was able to play. It was the night session, but I just had to wait a little bit longer and I’m glad that I played, I won and I’m through,” Kvitova said after the match.
Linette pushed former No.1 Venus Williams to three sets last week at the Bank of the West Classic, but was overwhelmed by the two-time Wimbledon winner, who won nine of 12 points on second serve return points and didn’t face a break point in any of her own seven service games.
Thanks to the best ball kids! Haha and to the crowd for staying out after the rain, had fun out there tonight ?✌ pic.twitter.com/5p5QakiAhQ
— Petra Kvitova (@Petra_Kvitova) 26 July 2016
Kvitova’s next obstacle as she looks to rouse a slumbering season is either Alizé Cornet or Andrea Petkovic. “My first half of the season wasn’t as great as I would have wished, but I’m always believing that I can come back and play well. This is a chance for me and I’ll do everything I can to go far.”
Another seed making progress in the bottom half was 2011 finalist Samantha Stosur, who finished strongly to get past Heather Watson, 7-5, 6-3. “To get through in straight sets, I’m pretty happy,” Stosur said. “Overall I thought I served pretty well. There weren’t a lot of points off my serve where she could dictate off the first shot.”
Around the grounds, qualifier Camila Giorgi squeaked past Sloane Stephens, 7-6(2), 7-6(4). No.17 seed Elina Svitolina knocked out American qualifier Jennifer Brady, 6-2, 6-4, while Naomi Broady fought back to defeat Monica Puig, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2.
Victoria Azarenka takes on Ysaline Bonaventure in the second round of the Brisbane International.