Tennis News

MELBOURNE – Australia – Top seeds shine on Day 1: And to think everyone was worried. No.1 Serena Williams, No.4 Agnieszka Radwanska, No.5 Maria Sharapova, and No.6 Petra Kvitova all moved through without dropping a set. Serena and Sharapova looked particularly impressive in their first matches of the year. Serena played a solid match, serving 9 aces and hitting 19 winners to 22 unforced errors, to beat Camila Giorgi 6-4, 7-5. Sharapova showed minimal rust, beating Nao Hibino 6-1, 6-3.

Caroline Wozniacki’s Australian Open trend continues: The Dane earned her best result in Melbourne in 2011 when she made the semifinals. The top seed then, Wozniacki held a match point against Li Na before losing in a tough three sets. It’s been an unfortunate slide ever since.

2012: Quarterfinals
2013: Fourth round
2014: Third round
2015: Second round
2016: First round

Wozniacki couldn’t hold off the feisty Yulia Putintseva, who rallied to knock of the Dane 1-6, 7-6(3), 6-4 in 3h12m. A disappointed Wozniacki minced no words:

“I would say it’s a pretty s****y start to the season,” she told reporters. “It wasn’t a pretty first set but I got it done and really should have closed it off in two. I let her back into the match, and it was basically my own fault that I’m not here as the winner.”

Trio of Young Russians go seed-hunting: We’ve said it once here on WTA Insider and we’ll say it again: The Russians are coming.

21-year-old Margarita Gasparyan, 19-year-old Elizaveta Kulichkova, and 18-year-old Daria Kasatkina all knocked out seeds on Monday cementing a move en masse to fill the gap in young Russian tennis. Gasparyan started the day by ousting No.17 seed Sara Errani 1-6, 7-5, 6-1, posting 26 winners, 13 of which came from her distinctive one-handed backhand. Ranked No.58, Gasparyan is one of the few women on tour with a female coaching, recently teaming up with former WTA player Elena Makarova.

“She’s a very good coach and she’s a very good person,” Gasparyan told WTA Insider. “I like to stay with her and speak with her all the time. Not just a coach. A friend. That’s very nice.”

“When you have a [male] coach you cannot speak [about everything] with him. Just maybe tennis. When you have a woman you can tell all. How you feel, tennis, boyfriends. I’m relaxed. I don’t think a lot [about] tennis all the time.”

Kasatkina, also making her Australian Open debut, followed a few hours later with a 6-3, 6-3 win over No.27 seed Anna Karolina Schmiedlova. Kasatkina made waves last year at the US Open, where she made her main draw debut as a lucky loser to make the third round.

“It’s my second Grand Slam and I already have three wins,” the 69th-ranked Kasakina told WTA Insider. “Now every moment, every match is just a plus.”

Then in the evening session, it was 19-year-old Elizaveta Kulichkova who knocked out No.22 seed Andrea Petkovic 7-5, 6-4. The powerful Kulichkova was a junior champion in Melbourne in 2014 and, just like Gasparyan and Kasatkina, she was playing in her main draw debut.

Three Melbourne debuts, three seeds out, and three young Russians embracing their time. There’s a lot to like about this next generation of Russian talent.

– Kuznetsova picks up where she left off: The Russian veteran took the first set against Daniela Hantuchova with a 19-minute bagel and rolled to a 6-0, 6-2 win. Kuznetsova told me in Sydney that she needs to get a few matches under her belt to play well at the Slams. The way she played today, it looks like her run to the Sydney International title may have put her in mid-tournament form.

– Sloane Stephens can’t find her Auckland form: On the flip side, the ASB Classic champion led Chinese qualifier Wang Qiang 3-1 before losing nine straight games. She lost 6-3, 6-3. Disappointing result in Melbourne but hopefully the Auckland title is something to build on for Stephens.

– Kvitova sleepless over Kumkhum: Kvitova admitted she was shocked to see she drew Luksika Kumkhum in the first round again. She said she didn’t sleep well the night before the match.

– Gasparyan’s Federer connection: Gasparyan told me she grew up idolizing Roger Federer, Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova, and Victoria Azarenka, but it was her love of Federer that made her change from a two-handed backhand to her current one-hander.

“When I started to play tennis I played double-backhand,” she said. “I came to Moscow and I said to my father I would like to play a one-handed backhand. I always wanted to play one-handed backhand. It’s so beautiful. But I was little. I don’t have the power. At 12 I start to play one-handed.”

– Maria Sakkari’s WTA heritage: The 20-year-old from Greece, ranked No.170, backed up her qualifying run to make the second round, beating Wang Yafan 6-4, 1-6, 6-3. Sakkari’s mother is Angeliki Kanellopoulou, a former WTA player who made the quarterfinals of the 1994 Olympics and reached a career-high of No.47. The funny thing is, Sakkari never knew her mother was a pro tennis player when she picked up a racket. There was a tennis court next to her house and her grandfather was a coach. She just loved the sport.

“I did ballet but they kicked me out because I wasn’t that good, then they kicked me out of karate because I kept laughing all the time,” she said laughing. “And then I said I have no choice I have to play tennis because they are kicking me out of everywhere.”

– Nicole Gibbs continues her run: After winning three matches to qualify, the American beat Klara Koukalova 6-2, 2-6, 6-1 to advance. She’ll play Kristina Mladenovic, after the Frenchwoman beat 2014 finalist Dominika Cibulkova 6-3, 6-4. “We grew up together and played a lot of juniors against each other,” Gibbs told WTA Insider. “That would be the match where I would be most comfortable in terms of knowing my opponent’s game style and knowing what my game plan would be.”

– Putintseva’s mind games: Closing out matches is hard. Closing out the biggest win of your career on the biggest stage of your career? Even harder. As Putintseva stepped to the line to serve out her win over Wozniacki in front of a packed crowd on Hisense Arena, she convinced herself she was down in the scoreline.

“I imagined I was losing 5-4. It was easier for me that I was not winning, I need to comeback. So after it was easier to play.

“Because when I was thinking I’m on top and I was serving I was feeling pressure on myself that I need to finish the match, that it was maybe my last chance. But then I started to think different.” Hey, whatever works.

– Second round matches to watch: If you’re limited on time, make sure to tune into Radwanska-Bouchard and Gavrilova-Kvitova. Major upset alerts.

All photos courtesy of Getty Images.

With Simona Halep and Venus Williams out of the bottom half of the draw, opportunity is knocking. Who will take advantage? We preview the Day 4 action here.

Thursday, Day 4
Second Round

[3] Garbiñe Muguruza (ESP #3) vs. Kirsten Flipkens (BEL # 80)
Head-to-head: Tied, 1-1
Key Stat: Muguruza has never reached the quarterfinals at Melbourne.

Spain’s Garbiñe Muguruza is now the highest-seeded player remaining in the lower half of the draw, but that doesn’t mean she’ll have a cakewalk to the second week. The Spaniard will run up against an experienced veteran with a Grand Slam pedigree on Day 4 in 2013 Wimbledon semifinalist Kirsten Flipkens. The Belgian has started the season on a bit of a tear, qualifying for Auckland and reaching the quarters before outlasting fellow veteran Mirjana Lucic-Baroni in three sets in the first round on Tuesday. Muguruza has reached the round of 16 at Melbourne in her last two appearances, but after her breakout season in 2015 the pressure will be on her to surpass those results. It’s not something she’s bothered by. “Really no expectations,” Muguruza says. “Just try to keep my tennis level of what I’ve felt the last season, and that’s it.”

Pick: Muguruza in two

[9] Karolina Pliskova (CZE # 12) vs. Julia Goerges (GER # 45)
Head-to-head: Pliskova leads, 1-0
Key Stat: Pliskova hit 13 aces in her first match of the tournament.

Is it time for Karolina Pliskova to have her Grand Slam breakthrough? The 23-year-old achieved a Top 10 ranking for seven weeks in 2015, but the Czech has never been past the third round at a major. Though she stresses patience and process in her dialog with the media, Pliskova would clearly love to get the monkey off her back in Melbourne. On Thursday she’ll square off against an in-form Julia Goerges for a spot in the third round. The German is ranked 33 spots lower than Pliskova, but the powerful, aggressive Goerges proved her mettle in 2015 by reaching the second week at two majors. She also started the season on a mission, reaching her sixth career final—and first since 2012—in Auckland.

Pick: Pliskova in three

[14] Victoria Azarenka (BLR #16) vs. Danka Kovinic (SRB# 54)
Head-to-head: First meeting
Key Stat: Azarenka has already won four 6-0 sets this season.

Everything seems to be falling into place for two-time Aussie Open champion Victoria Azarenka. The health is perfect. The game is flowing—and lethal. The results? Well, it’s hard to argue with the double-bagel shellacking Azarenka put on Belgium’s Alison Van Uytvanck on Tuesday night in Melbourne. Azarenka herself was pleased, but she was happier about the process rather than the gaudy scoreline. “I don’t think I’m looking for perfection,” she told reporters. “I’m looking for effort. I’m looking for focus. I like that I was very composed today from first point to the last point. Like it didn’t matter what the score was, I was there on every point. So that’s what I’m very happy about today.” On Thursday Azarenka will put that fierce concentration to work against Serbia’s Danka Kovinic. Kovinic eased past Samantha Crawford in straight sets on Day 2.

Pick: Azarenka in two

[20] Ana Ivanovic (SRB #23) vs. [Q] Anastasija Sevastova (LAT # 113)
Head-to-head: Sevastova leads, 1-0
Key Stat: Two of Ivanovic’s Grand Slam losses in 2015 were to players outside of the top-100.

Ivanovic, who exited Melbourne in the first-round at the hands of qualifier Lucie Hradecka last year, is hoping to turn a favorable draw into a deep run in Melbourne. So far, so good as Ivanovic ousted world No. 459 Tammi Patterson in straight sets on Day 2 with very little difficulty. “Of course you’re going to have nerves for every match because it means so much to you,” Ivanovic said after the match. “But it’s about just trying to handle them. I did that well today.” The Serb will look to do the same on Day 4 against Anastasija Sevastova, a 25-year-old Latvian qualifier who reached a peak ranking of 36 in 2011 after making the round of 16 at the Australian Open.

Pick: Ivanovic in three

Around the Grounds: China’s Zhang Shuai will look to continue her magical ride in Melbourne when she faces France’s Alizé Cornet in the second round. Zhang, who admitted she had contemplated retirement after last year’s US Open, upset No.2-seeded Simona Halep for her first career win at a major in 15 appearances on Tuesday… No.7 seed Angelique Kerber, who saved a match point to get past Japan’s Misaki Doi on Day 2, will face Romania’s Alexandra Dulgheru… 15th-seeded American Madison Keys, a semifinalist here last year, squares off with hard-hitting Yaroslava Shvedova. Shvedova won their only previous meeting when Keys retired while trailing by a set at Wimbledon in 2014.

MELBOURNE, Australia – Playing just her third match of 2016, Garbiñe Muguruza looked in solid form en route to a two-set win over the unseeded Kirsten Flipkens, winning, 6-4, 6-2, on Rod Laver Arena.

The No.3 seed had been forced to retire during her season debut at the Brisbane International, but the Spaniard has shown few signs of stress at the Australian Open, hitting 23 winners past Flipkens, who was only able to hit six over her own against last year’s Wimbledon finalist.

“I’m extremely happy after today,” Muguruza said during her on-court interviw. “Kirsten is a very difficult opponent with a unique game, so I’m very happy to be in the third round.”

On a cool day in Melbourne, Muguruza raced out to a 5-1 lead in the second set. Though Flipkens was able to force her higher-ranked opponent to serve it out, it was smooth sailing at the end of the 78 minute match for the No.3 seed, who promptly held at love to reach the third round Down Under for the second straight year.

“I think the weather is very important for us. I think this temperature is perfect but I also like to play in hot weather, so either way, it’s great!”

Up next for Muguruza is Barbora Strycova, who edged past comeback kid Vania King, 7-6(5), 6-4; the two-time women’s doubles Grand Slam champion had been out for most of last year with a back injury, and though she had her chances, the Czech veteran proved too strong in the end.

Strycova and Muguruza have met twice before, with the Spaniard taking both of their meetings in straight sets, though she was clear in the notion that no one is to be underestimated – especially at this time of year.

“This is a Grand Slam where everyone is extremely fit because we’re coming from the pre-season so every match is very tough.

“I’m just happy to be here, playing great tennis.”