Tennis News

Angelique Kerber and Serena Williams have already booked their spots in the upcoming BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global, and while Karolina Pliskova can’t assure herself of a spot this week, her results at the Toray Pan Pacific Open could make her road to qualification even easier as the Asian Swing kicks into high gear.

Seeded No.3 in Tokyo, the US Open runner-up is the highest-ranked woman on the Road to Singapore leaderboard playing this week. RTS No.3 Simona Halep was forced to withdraw due to a left hamstring injury, but is still in pole position to reach Singapore for a third straight year. Set to return to the court in time for the Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open, the Mutua Madrid Open and Rogers Cup champion could book her ticket by reaching the final, possibly the semifinal based on other results.

As it stands now, Pliskova would have to win Wuhan to guarantee her WTA Finals debut, having narrowly missed out on qualification in 2015 – but a good run in Tokyo will likely take the pressure off as the race heats up.

The same goes for defending WTA Finals winner Agnieszka Radwanska, who is seeded No.2 in Tokyo and last year’s champion. Ranked No.5 on the Road to Singapore leaderboard, the Pole can lessen her Wuhan load with a strong swing through the Japanese capital.

Further back from Radwanska is French Open champion Garbiñe Muguruza, who reached the semifinals last year in her debut with a perfect 3-0 round robin record. Muguruza is the top seed in Tokyo, and has a 500 point lead over No.7 Dominika Cibulkova. Her chances of a second straight Singapore appearance are strong, but replicating last year’s stellar fall swing would doubly assure her chances of a return.

In doubles, Sania Mirza appears to be aiming for a second qualification spot, despite already assuring herself of a return to Singapore with former partner Martina Hingis. Pairing up with Barbora Strycova at the Western & Southern Open, Mirza is ranked No.19 with her new partner, but is set to play the Toray Pan Pacific Open this week and could narrow the 500 point gap between her and the Top 8 with a title in Tokyo.

Click here to learn more about the doubles storylines and qualification scenarios in the latest Insider Doubles Take.

Check out the Top 8 and click here for the full Road to Singapore leaderboard:

INDIAN WELLS, CA, USA – A year ago, Venus Williams sat at home in Florida, never thinking that in 12 months time she would be walking back out onto Stadium Court at the BNP Paribas Open. But there she was on Friday afternoon, being greeted by a raucous standing ovation as the Jackson 5’s “I Want You Back” blasted from the stadium speakers.

Oh baby, give me one more chance (To show you that I love you)
Won’t you please let me back in your heart

And as the message became clear – yes, this crowd very much wanted her back – an impossibly wide, genuine, unbreakable smile spread wide across Venus’ face.

“I’m a person that’s not into the spotlight so much, so I guess such a warm welcome I actually felt a little shy,” Venus said after the match. “It’s been a wonderful moment. Fifteen years later to have such a joyous return is more than I could have ever. It’s such a blessing.”

Venus’ return to Indian Wells for the first time in 15 years was in stark contrast to Serena’s last year. While Serena kept her head down as the thunderous applause came, Venus looked up to the rafters and waved. Serena struggled (and failed) to hold back tears as she tried to settle into her chair. Venus beamed and sat triumphantly in her chair and took a moment to let it all wash over her.

She leaned back, smiled, and let out a huge sigh of relief as she soaked in the moment she never thought would come.

Welcome back! ? ? ?@VenusesWilliams returns to the @BNPParibasOpen after 15 years! #WTA https://t.co/wr7FU9gZ9X

— WTA (@WTA) March 12, 2016

“It was wonderful to be able to enjoy a moment. As an athlete you’re so focused that you don’t really realize the circumstances and how awesome it is to play in big stadiums like this until it’s all done because you’re just so focused. To have the moment and be able to enjoy it even for a few moments is worth a lifetime of memories.”

Venus’ return was a tag-team effort. When Serena told her last year she was thinking of returning to the desert after 14 years away, Venus did not actually believe her. She knew her sister was thinking about it, but Venus confessed on Friday that she never thought her kid sister would go through with it.

“Obviously I saw Serena come back last year, so that was really a wonderful moment,” Venus said. “Then just being here, just being on the practice court and on-site has been so positive and such a great experience.

“It just shows that you can always come back home, I guess. You can always go home.

“I did get emotional. When we were doing the coin toss I got a little watery eyed. Your opponent, you don’t want to give them any more encouragement. It was wonderful. I think I smiled the whole warm-up. I had to get my game face on. It was tough to do.”

Venus was unable to get the result she wanted, losing 6-4, 6-3 to Kurumi Nara in the second round. The match was played in cold and windy conditions, interrupted once by a lengthy rain delay. Nara played a smart, consistent match, while Venus struggled to get her big serve going in the wind.

“I think it wasn’t about winning,” Serena said after beating Laura Siegemund 6-2, 6-1 to advance to the third round. “When I come here, even to this day it’s not about winning. It’s just about closing that chapter in my life and her life and our lives and try to move on with our heads up, as we always had our heads up. But just continue to do that.”

“Not everything can end in a fairy tale,” Venus said. “It’s enough of a fairy tale to be here. Sometimes there’s a little bit of a glitch. Doesn’t mean that I can’t come back next year and try to do even better.”

In a thoughtful press conference after the match, Venus elaborated on what kept her away from the tournament since 2001.

“I’m definitely not an angry person, so I wouldn’t characterize it as anger, but I would characterize it as, you know, if you feel like there is a place where you don’t feel that welcome, then you can choose not to go somewhere where you don’t feel comfortable being,” she said. “At the time I didn’t feel comfortable. I wouldn’t have felt comfortable coming back through those doors. The very next year would have just been too overwhelming.

“So at the time it was just about being able to play in circumstances that are – and we’re not even talking about favorable, but just normal circumstances. You try to put yourself in a position where you’re not facing any adverse circumstances. So that’s really what it was at the time.

“I wasn’t angry,” she repeated. “I’m not an angry person. I definitely probably hold on to stuff like anybody normal.

“I have watched the tournament on TV. Enjoyed the matches and thought it was a great tournament. It just didn’t seem like a tournament for me. That’s more or less what it was. I didn’t dwell on or boycott or not watch it and all those things. It wasn’t like that at all.”

Venus reiterated the theme of forgiveness that drove Serena’s decision to return last year. “I think it’s a two-way street,” she said. “We could have come back here and everyone could have picked up where they left off.

“But everyone was welcoming, and also for us, we could have never come back. But we came back. You know, change your attitude and those sort of things. The change of attitudes on both ends isn’t always easy, but it’s definitely was a two-way street. For it to work, both parties involved, both us and the fans and the city had to have a positive attitude towards toward it. That’s how it worked.

“I think after Serena came back last year and she had such a warm welcome, I definitely thought to myself, I’ve got no reason not to go anymore. It was time to be able to just move on and let the past be the past.”

All photos courtesy of Getty Images.

The BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global are just a month away, and 30 days out from the culmination of an exciting 2016 season, the WTA has announced that former No.1 and three-time WTA Finals champion Monica Seles will serve as a tournament ambassador – joining fellow WTA Legends Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, and Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario. Seles will be traveling to Singapore for the first time in over two decades.

“Last time I was there was back in 1990, when I played Jennifer Capriati in a one-night exhibition,” Seles said in a conference call Thursday morning. “I never really got the chance to see much of the city.

“It’s a great honor to be back at the WTA Finals, where you get to see the best tennis champions, who work hard all year to be in the group. There are no easy matches; every match is like a Grand Slam final. We still have some open spots on the Road to Singapore with 30 days out, and it’s a lot of pressure for them.

“But for me, I’m just really excited and honored to be one of the Ambassadors for the tournament, and I very much look forward to coming back to Singapore and seeing all of the fans there.”

A nine-time Grand Slam champion, Seles qualified for the WTA Finals nine times through her Hall of Fame career, winning a hat trick of season-ending championship titles between 1990 and 1992. Her fondest memory of the tournament remains her first victory, when she overcame a tremendous five-set fight with Gabriela Sabatini in New York City’s Madison Square Garden.

“Looking back on my career, with all the Grand Slams and tournament wins, that one match stands out the most. You go in knowing it’s the last match for quite some time, and I’d worked all year to be part of the WTA Finals, winning all these matches that week to be in the final.

“That feeling that I had in the match, knowing I finished the year by winning the season-ending championships, even when I was already No.1 in the world, it was extra icing on the cake that solidified my entire year.

“For me, I always felt I brought my best tennis to the WTA Finals, especially because I loved playing indoors – no win and no sun! – I always rose to the occasion. All the fans know they’re seeing the best players in the world all in one arena. As a player, you just feed off of that, but as a spectator, I really can’t wait to experience that in Singapore in 30 days.”

Seles played her last match in 2003, and has immersed herself into several ventures since she officially retired from tennis in 2008, including an appearance on Dancing With The Stars and co-authoring a series of tennis-themed young adult novels with James LaRosa. Through it all, the game remains her greatest passion.

“Mentally, I still wish I was playing out there when I’m watching some of some of the tournaments; I still want to be there. For me, coming back to Singapore will be a lot of fun because it’ll be one of the first times I’m watching tennis and all the top players for that many days in a row.

“Hopefully, I won’t get the urge to jump onto the court and play!”

Asked to give her expert analysis, Seles fielded several questions about Angelique Kerber and Serena Williams the first two women to qualify for Singapore, and whose rivalry has defined a season of surprises.

“I never experienced the numbers Serena hit in terms of Grand Slams, and so I cannot imagine the pressure she faces. But if anyone can play under that pressure, it’s Serena. She is the most mentally tough player I’ve ever faced, and so if she can stay injury-free, I believe she has the hunger to keep going.

“At the WTA Finals, I’m sure Serena will want to prove to everyone that she wants to win it and cap off the year because, as a former player, I can tell you that the last tournament and how you finish the year sets the tone for how you view your season and how you approach the next.”

Seles pegged Kerber, the new World No.1 and reigning Australian Open and US Open champion, as the 22-time Grand Slam champion’s biggest threat in Singapore, lauding the German veteran’s meteoric rise to the top of women’s tennis.

“It was amazing to see that all come together this season for Angelique. If someone told me in 2015 that she’d win two Grand Slams, I might have thought, ‘Maybe one was possible,’ but even for her, you could see the expression on her face after she won the US Open and became No.1, it was almost like a dream.

“Hopefully, that shows to a lot of up and coming players that with hard work and pure perseverance, your dreams can come true.”

Making her last WTA Finals appearance in 2002, Seles never played the round robin format that was installed a year later, one that the American fans benefits fans and players, especially defending champion Agnieszka Radwanska.

“It’s a lot better for fans because you’ll get to see the stars a couple of times, and as a player, you can still batten down the hatches for the next two matches if you lose the first.

“I really hope that, for Radwanska, she can put it all together because she has the pieces, and we’ve obviously seen it last year when she won the WTA Finals, and when she won last year, I felt it gave her so much more confidence.”

Her wildcard pick may well be Karolina Pliskova, who rocketed up the Road to Singapore leaderboard after her win at the Western & Southern Open and run to the US Open final, where she became just the fourth woman ever to defeat both Williams sisters at a major tournament.

“I was very impressed by her all-around game in Cincinnati, and how she goes for her shots whether she’s up 15-0 or down break point. I really like that attitude. I really think she could surprise us in Singapore because the court speeds will favor her. She’ll like playing indoors because you won’t have to deal with the elements, and she has a flat game, so that will suit her very well.”

For Seles, what makes the WTA Finals all the more special is how it not only provides an thrilling conclusion to one season, but also foreshadows what may happen in the next.

“It’s the last tournament before you get to take a break, so you to give it your all. You want to finish your season on the highest note and solidify your place in the game – whether you’re No.1 or have won a Grand Slam – to say, ‘Hey, I’m here to say and watch out for me next year.’ That’s the mentality.”

The WTA Finals begins on October 23; click here to book your tickets to Singapore.

All photos courtesy of Getty Images.