Wozniacki Tries Out Paddleboarding Ahead Of First Match In Sydney
Former World No.1 Caroline Wozniacki enjoyed a day of paddleboarding on the Sydney beaches before starting her week at the Apia International Sydney.
Former World No.1 Caroline Wozniacki enjoyed a day of paddleboarding on the Sydney beaches before starting her week at the Apia International Sydney.
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.
February 3rd marks the 30th annual National Girls and Women in Sports Day. NGWSD is a celebration created by the Women’s Sports Foundation, an organization founded by none other than WTA Founder Billie Jean King.
The theme for the 2016 NGWSD is entitled Leading the Way, and “is a nod to all those individuals and organizations who are on the front line for girls and women in sports: the organizations committed to advancing women’s issues, athletes who have overcome barriers, coaches who challenge their teams to succeed, girls who have faith in their own potential, and all those who continue to use the power of example to inspire greatness.”
Click here to learn more about NGWSD, and check out King’s tweet celebrating the day’s 30-year milestone:
Happy National Girls & Women in Sports Day! Join the @WomensSportsFdn in recognizing #girlswithgame across our nation #NGWSD
— Billie Jean King (@BillieJeanKing) February 3, 2016
An interview with Agnieszka Radwanska ahead of the Western & Southern Open.
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia – The comeback continued for two-time Wimbledon quarterfinalist Tamira Paszek on Monday, as the Austrian dispatched 2005 French Open quarterfinalist Sesil Karatantcheva, 7-6(3), 6-4, to reach the main draw of the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy.
Watch live action from St. Petersburg & Kaohsiung this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
Once a Top 30 player, Paszek came back to the game last spring and has rocketed up nearly 140 spots in the rankings since last fall. Starting the season at No.172, she had to play qualifying at the ASB Classic and the Australian, going on to reach the semifinals of the former to put herself within striking distance of a Top 100 return.
“The good part about playing qualies is that you get a lot of matches, and you get a good rhythm, which is especially important at the beginning of the year,” the 25-year-old told WTA Insider in January. “I’ve always been the type of person that tries to see the positive aspect of things, so I’m really looking forward to it.”
Awaiting the Austrian in the main draw is Carina Witthoeft; the two played once before in French Open qualifying back in 2014, with Paszek winning, 6-0, 6-1.
Joining Paszek in the main draw is Klara Koukalova; the former World No.20, who took out Patricia Maria Tig, 6-4, 6-3.
All four qualifiers will be in action again on Tuesday, along with Fed Cup heroines Monica Niculescu – who nearly led an upset of defending champion Czech Republic with a win over two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova – and Barbora Strycova, who took part in the decisive doubles rubber to defeat Romania, 3-2.
Niculescu begins her tournament as the No.9 seed – so bumped when Anna Karolina Schmiedlova withdrew due to a right ankle sprain – and takes on local wildcard Natalia Vikhlyantseva. Strycova takes on one of the qualifiers, Kateryna Kozlova; Kozlova defeated top qualifying seed Laura Siegemund, but the German nonetheless found her way into the main draw as a lucky loser.
Closing out play on Tuesday will be a pair of Russians, No.5 seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and the fast-rising Margarita Gasparyan, who take on Koukalova and Bojana Jovanovski, respectively.
Highlights from first and second round action at the Western & Southern Open.
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia – Playing in her home country, No.5 seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova won a thrilling first round encounter with qualifier and former Top 20 player, Klara Koukalova, 6-4, 4-6, 6-4.
Down 0-3 to start the match, the 24-year-old won six of the next seven games to take the opening set, but it came down to the wire against the Czech veteran, who had beaten her in their last two meetings.
“She started really well; actually she played really good the whole match,” the Russian said in her on-court interview. “She played three matches in qualifying, so I think that was the key for her. I had a really slow start and didn’t feel in good shape, but the only thing I did was fight.
A new event on the WTA calendar, Pavlyuchenkova was impressed by some of the in-match entertainment, including an intricate light show to announce the players.
“That was amazing. Maybe that’s why I had a slow start,” she said with a laugh. “I was still thinking and looking around.
“The crowd was amazing, as well. I love playing at home. It’s Russia!”
The Russian was equally effusive in her praise of the event before main draw action began at the gala dinner.
“It’s good for Russian tennis and great for Russian fans to have another WTA tournament in this country. St Petersburg is a beautiful backdrop for this event. I’m very happy to be here and proud to welcome players from all over the world to my home country.”
Clocking in at just over two hours, Pavlyuchenkova booked a spot in the second round, where she’ll play German youngster, Carina Witthoeft.
“I’m really old already, 24! But it’s not about age. I think she’s good. She’s fresh, and didn’t have a bad start to the year. I have to be really focused and play a lot better than today.”
Earlier in the day, Witthoeft had dispatched qualifier and former World No.26 Tamira Paszek, 6-3, 6-3. Fellow qualifier Kateryna Kozlova had better luck, upsetting Fed Cup heroine Barbora Strycova, 6-3, 6-4. No.9 seed Monica Niculescu had few problems taking out local wildcard Natlia Vikhlyantseva, 6-0, 6-3, and Yanina Wickmayer set up a second round with No.2 seed Roberta Vinci when she beat Jelena Ostapenko, 6-4, 6-3.
Rising Russian starlet Margarita Gasparyan played the final match of the night in St. Petersburg, dismissing Bojana Jovanovski, 6-1, 6-2.
In her downtime in Montréal a few weeks ago at the Rogers Cup, Petra Kvitova paid a visit to the WTA Media TV truck to find out a little bit more about the people who broadcast her matches all around the world.
She learned about everything that goes into producing a tennis match, from switching between the eight to 12 cameras per court, keeping match stats, creating slow motion replays, and much more.
“It’s amazing how many cameras there are at the same time on the same court!” Kvitova said. “When I play, sometimes I just see one camera!”
A joint venture between the WTA and Perform Group, WTA Media will produce all main draw singles matches and semifinals and finals of all doubles matches from 2017.