Hingis & Mirza Stay On Track
Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza moved one step closer to holding all four majors with a quick-fire second-round win over Nao Hibino and Eri Hozumi.
Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza moved one step closer to holding all four majors with a quick-fire second-round win over Nao Hibino and Eri Hozumi.
Serena Williams
2016 Quick Hits
Week 1 Ranking: No.1
Year-End Ranking: No.2
Season Highlights: Title at Rome, Wimbledon
Best Major Result: Winner (Wimbledon), RU (Australian Open, Roland Garros)
2 Days left until the 2017 #WTA season! pic.twitter.com/rDUVjeUZHg
— WTA (@WTA) December 30, 2016
2017 Outlook
Serena Williams ended 2016 by reaching a major milestone. Will happiness off the court help the 35-year-old achieve more records on it?
On Wimbledon’s hallowed lawns, Serena drew level with Steffi Graf’s long-standing Open Era record of 22 Grand Slam victories. It was an emotional occasion and one that proved to be the highlight of an injury-affected campaign. “Wimbledon was good for me,” she told BeIN Sports during the off-season. “Obviously, I was really excited to win that this year. I had a lot of tough matches, but I went in there and played the best I could.”
At two of the season’s other showpiece events, Williams found herself in the unusual position of giving runner-up speeches, after losing out to Angelique Kerber and Garbiñe Muguruza at the Australian and French Opens.
The competitive fire still burns brightly, though, and despite the toll on her body, few would back against the American creating more history in 2017. And while she is hesitant to talk of numbers, there can be no doubting their significance.
“30 [major titles] is a lot, but my goal is just to go out there, do the best I can and be happy,” she said to BeIN. “The only way for me to do that is to win every single match; that doesn’t always happen and that’s something you have to understand and learn to deal with over the course of your career.”
The quest for the next begins in Auckland, where Williams will make her first appearance since a shock US Open semifinal defeat to Pliskova. After that, Melbourne, where history could well await.
Simona Halep takes on Naomi Osaka in the third round of Roland Garros.
What are some of your favorite WTA stars’ New Year’s Resolutions? Check out some of the best tweets ringing in the 2017 season right here on wtatennis.com!
Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina weathered a rain-delayed match to continue on a collision course toward local favorites Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic.
BOL, Croatia – Ana Konjuh, the Croatian No.5 seed at the inaugural Bol Open 125K, continues to cruise in her home country. She booked her spot into the quarterfinals with a commanding win over Turkish trailblazer Ipek Soylu, 6-2, 6-1.
Watch free live streaming from Bol, Croatia all week right here on wtatennis.com!
Awaiting Konjuh in the quarterfinals is fellow Croat Tereza Mrdeza. A wildcard entry, Mrdeza beat Belgium’s Ysaline Bonaventure, 6-3, 6-3.
Mandy Minella had to pull double duty on her way to the Bol Open 125K quarterfinals. When yesterday’s rain delay interrupted play, Minella’s first round match against Evgeniya Rodina left her down a set but rallying back at 3-6, 4-1. She stormed all the way back to complete the comeback, 3-6, 6-1, 7-5, but her day was not over yet.
Awaiting her in the Round of 16 was the well-rested No.2 seeded American Varvara Lepchenko. She didn’t face a single break point in the first set and quickly grabbed a 6-1 lead, but Lepchenko won the second in a tiebreak to ensure the match went the distance. Despite narrowing Minella’s 4-2 lead to 5-4, the No.2 seed was no match for the on-form Luxembourger, who stormed into the quarterfinals 6-1, 6-7(4), 6-4 after two hours and twenty-three minutes.
Lepchenko wasn’t the only American who faltered today in Bol; despite a strong Day 1 showing, all of the Americans in the draw were defeated today, with Sachia Vickery, Jennifer Brady and Anna Tatishvili all bowing out. Marina Erakovic defeated Vickery 6-4, 6-4; Stefanie Voegele edged Brady 6-4, 4-6, 7-5; and Kristina Kucova downed Tatishvili 6-7(1), 6-2, 6-4.
The two other remaining seeds in the draw, No.7 Polona Hercog and No.4 Nao Hibino, both advanced in straight sets to reach the quarterfinalist. Hercog needed just over an hour to down Bulgarian qualifier Elitsa Kostova 6-1, 6-0, while Hibino overcame a late resistance from Ivana Jorovic on her way to a 6-2, 7-6(5) victory.
Patrick Mouratoglou discusses the pressure of being Serena Williams’ coach at a press conference at the ASB Classic in Auckland.
When was the last time a Dutch player reached the final? What first is Garbiñe Muguruza hoping to achieve? And just how impressive has Samantha Stosur’s serving been?
Doubles World No.1 Sania Mirza is a great tennis player, but how are her football skills? She met up with two players from the new AFL Women’s League to test them out!
AFL’s Sharni Eva doesn’t seem too impressed with Mirza’s kicking…
… but she gets an A for effort!
Later Mirza turned the tables, giving the AFL players a couple of tennis lessons.
Not too shabby!
Mirza was asked about how her AFL skills test panned out.
After everyone agreed to stick to their respective sports, they took time to meet with fans and sign a couple of autographs.
Defending champion Agnieszka Radwanska was joined by Simona Halep, Johanna Konta and many more for the glamorous Shenzhen Open player party.