Tennis News

MELBOURNE, Australia – On Day 5 of the Australian Open, the favorites took care of business. The two surprises of the day came from Anastasia Pavluchenkova knocking out No.11 seed Elina Svitolina and Sorana Cirstea continuing her good form to beat Alison Riske and advance to her first Round of 16 at a Slam since the 2009 French Open.

Here’s what you missed:

The Top Half Round of 16 is set for Sunday.

No.1 Angelique Kerber vs. No.35 CoCo Vandeweghe
No.78 Sorana Cirstea vs. No.7 Garbiñe Muguruza
No.116 Mona Barthel vs. No.17 Venus Williams
No.27 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova vs. No.10 Svetlana Kuznetsova

@MonaBarthel chats on court after progressing to the fourth round pic.twitter.com/mP2kbRXziT

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 20, 2017

Mona Barthel’s long road back.

The German’s talent has never been a question. With a fluid backhand that can take the ball down the line with remarkable precision and disguise, the 26-year-old hit a career-high of No.23 in 2013. But she came into Melbourne having to qualify for the main draw, with a ranking that plummetted to No.116 after an undiagnosed illness derailed her 2016 season.

“Nobody knew what it was exactly,” Barthel said. “Starting around here last year when I got back home I just couldn’t do anything. Walking 100 meters was totally exhausting for me. It was a really tough time. Tennis wasn’t really a part of it, I was just trying to get back to live a normal life. I really didn’t know if I could return.

“It was a tough year for me. I was really sick for a long time. It took me a lot of time to come back and feel physically good again. I think since December I felt a lot better and could practice a lot more and get the hours on the court. I’m just physically much fitter than I was before and that helps me mentally because I know I can play the long rallies and go for three sets.

into the 4th round @AustralianOpen
Bravo @BarthelMona ???
Danke für den Support @WitthoeftCarina @philliplang91
???? pic.twitter.com/iJbXpaAnM1

— Christopher Kas (@KasiTennis) January 20, 2017

“It was mentally tough because if you don’t have a diagnosis you don’t know if it’s coming back. It was tough sometimes on court. I just didn’t know where my body was, if I could trust it again. But it’s much better now.”

Barthel needed all her reserves to get past another solid performance from Ashleigh Barty, coming back from a break down in the third to win 6-4, 3-6, 6-3. The win puts Barthel into her first Round of 16 at a Slam where she’ll face Venus Williams.

“She’s a great player. If she’s on, she’s playing unbelievable. But I won six matches in a row. Nothing is impossible.”

Svetlana Kuznetsova plays another marathon in Melbourne.

It was six years ago that Kuznetsova played her part in setting the record for the longest women’s match at a Slam, eventually succumbing to Francesca Schiavone here in Melbourne in 4 hours and 44 minutes. The No.9 seed didn’t have to go that far this time, but she needed 3 hours and 36 minutes to get past Jelena Jankovic 6-4, 5-7, 9-7. Kuznetsova rallied back from 0-3 down in the final set to nip Jankovic in the end.

You're welcome.#ausopen pic.twitter.com/fdqLiuKmcE

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 20, 2017

CoCo Vandeweghe swags past Eugenie Bouchard.

In the most anticipated match of the day, Vandeweghe came back from a break down in the third set to beat Bouchard 6-4, 3-6, 7-5 in a top-quality battle between two big hitters. The win puts Vandeweghe into her first Round of 16 at a hard court major and she’ll get a chance to pull off the upset over No.1 Angelique Kerber on Sunday.

One thing is for sure: Vandweghe will not be short of confidence. The American was asked whether her win over Bouchard ranked high on her list of career victories and Vandeweghe dismissed the idea.

Coco #Vandeweghe will “be as prepared as possible” for her 4R clash #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/cAWiC7xFaD

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 20, 2017

“Actually, not that high now that I think about it,” she said, smiling. “I think there are different moments in my career that I have, my short career, that I enjoy, different wins for different reasons.

“I think probably my favorite match that I won — well, I probably have to say tournament, is probably my first WTA title would be my favorite. Then after that, I had a really good run at Montreal where I beat Jankovic and Ivanovic back to back, and that was the first time I ever beat two — I believe they were top 10, both of them, at the time, first time I had ever done that.

“So this one isn’t that high for me. It was kind of expected, in my mind, to get the win and to get the victory and to move a step closer to achieving what I want to achieve for this year and also this tournament.”

Venus Williams doesn’t age.

The 36-year-old has now made the second week at four consecutive Slams and has done so in seven of her last nine majors. On Friday she lost just one game to Duan Ying-Ying, sealing the match in under an hour.

Kristyna Pliskova has a surprising admirier.

The Czech couldn’t do much against Kerber, losing 6-0, 6-4 in 55 minutes. But she certainly caught one Gladiator’s attention:

@KrisPliskova you will be a champion, if you decide to be … You are more powerful than you realise . Strength and honour

— Russell Crowe (@russellcrowe) January 20, 2017

Quote of the Day: “It wasn’t a horrible trip.”

Bouchard leaves Australia with a lot of positives, having found some consistent form to make the Sydney semifinals and come within a few games of the Round of 16 here.

“Obviously, deep down, always expect more, but, you know, I couldn’t expect too much, considering I trained for a month, and it’s the first, you know, really good training I got in a while, first time I got a good break in a while, first time I trained well in a while,” she said.

“It’s kind of like a restart process. I can’t expect too much at the beginning. It wasn’t a horrible trip.”

The Barty Party is over.

It was a great tournament for Barty, who will jump to around No.150 after the tournament. “I think if you would have asked me 12 months ago if I was going to be in the third round of the Australian Open, I would say, Mate, you’re kidding,” Barty said. “Obviously it’s disappointing tonight that we couldn’t execute what we wanted. But still a very positive week.”

Now we’ll just end it on this:

Go @ashbar96 All of #IpswichQld is behind you. #winning #AusOpen We couldn't resist this flashback pic taken 2002 @AustralianOpen @7tennis pic.twitter.com/S7ca81o1ov

— Ipswich City Council (@IpswichCouncil) January 20, 2017

NEW YORK, NY, USA – It has been an axiomatic to the point of cliché statement about Serena Williams’ prospects at any tournament, that if she is physically fit and motivated, she’s the overwhelming favorite at every tournament she enters.

But it’s true. This year there are no questions about motivation as she heads to the last Slam of the season. Once again she will be playing for history, but this year it will be history on two fronts.

Serena is aiming to break the record she currently holds with Stefanie Graf for the most major singles titles in the Open Era. She matched that record in July by winning her seventh Wimbledon title and 22nd major overall. A seventh US Open victory here would give Serena sole possession of the modern record.

“I’m cheering her on, yes,” Graf told CNN’s Open Court. “Because it’s great for the sport. Why not? She’s done so much for the sport. She’s out there working hard.”

Regardless of what happens over the next two weeks, Serena will also leave New York having tied Graf’s record for consecutive weeks at No.1 at 186 weeks. But with the top ranking under threat from No.2 Angelique Kerber, No.3 Garbiñe Muguruza, and No.4 Agnieszka Radwanska, Serena must make at least the semifinals to have a chance of remaining in the top spot on the Monday after the tournament. If she can secure the No.1 ranking after the US Open she will break Graf’s record outright and add to an era-defining resume that already spans the length of the new Arthur Ashe Stadium roof.

“I’m happy for her, I’m excited for her,” Graf said. “It’s cool that records are being broken, that’s what they’re there for. She’s been phenomenal for the sport of tennis, it has been great to watch. I hope she does break it.”

The questions concerning Serena surround the state of her right shoulder. She withdrew from the Rogers Cup earlier this month with shoulder inflammation and was clearly compromised in her third round loss to Elina Svitolina at the Olympic tennis event. For the first time since 2009, Serena heads to the US Open without a summer hard court title under her belt, having played just three singles matches since Wimbledon.

Her withdrawal from the Western & Southern Open last week was particularly worrisome. Serena was not originally entered in the event but took a late wildcard a few days before the tournament. She came to Cincinnati, cut her first practice short after less than an hour and subsequently withdrew, again citing shoulder inflammation.

Serena doesn’t lose often in New York, and a good draw that would give her time to play herself into form and confidence might be all that she needs. Since coming back from injury and illness in 2011, the World No.1 is 32-2, adding three more US Open titles to her major haul. Since returning to No.1 in 2013, Serena has never lost to a Top 10 player in New York, though the last time she faced a Top 10 player here was back in 2013, an indication of just how frequently the draw has been breaking the last two years.

To do it all Serena’s serve will need to be at the ready, and all eyes will be on that singular shot during the first week of the tournament. Notably, she will have a day’s rest between singles matches, which was not the case in Rio. If the scheduling breaks her way and she’s able to get the rest and recovery time she needs between matches, No.23 is well within striking distance.

NEW YORK, NY, USA – Serena Williams was on top of the world at Wimbledon, winning a 22nd major championship to tie Stefanie Graf’s modern era record. Less than 24 hours later, the American began feeling pain in her shoulder.

“Ironically enough, the day after the finals of Wimbledon,” she said during her US Open pre-tournament press. “I was like, how did I win?”

The injury followed her through the Emirates Airline US Open Series, forcing her withdrawal from the Rogers Cup and Western & Southern Open, with a third round loss at the Olympic tennis event in between.

“At the end of the day I knew I gave the best effort I could, and it just wasn’t enough. I just. For the, Olympics I just practiced two days before playing my match. It’s not ideal, but it was all I could do.”

Serena heads to the site of her first major triumph with less than ideal preparation, but feels stronger than yesterday as she attempts to not only break Graf’s record with a 23rd major crown, but also break the all-time US Open record with a seventh victory (currently tied with Chris Evert).

“I haven’t played a lot, I haven’t practiced a lot, but I’m just now starting to feel a little better.

“Hopefully just every day I will keep going higher.”

Still, the top seed will have to hit the ground running in Flushing; her first round is a rematch of her 2014 semifinal with Russia’s Ekaterina Makarova, who won the Olympic Gold medal in women’s doubles.

“I think I try to look at it we all have tough matches. I know she’s a good player. I’ve just got to do the best I can.”

Makarova and partner Elena Vesnina were just the third team to grab a gold medal in women’s doubles since 2000, when Serena and sister Venus Williams began their dominance of the event – winning three times overall.

“She’s a big fighter. She never really stops.

“I think one thing I think that’s pretty impressive is she gets a lot of balls back. You think she’s not super quick, but she is.”

Even with a difficult stretch, Serena bore a quiet confidence in press, knowing that her best tennis is never too far behind her.

“I did serve pretty well at Wimbledon this year. I felt like I was able to hit aces when I wanted to. So, a couple months ago, a few weeks ago.”

NEW HAVEN, CT, USA – Sania Mirza and Monica Niculescu capped off their newly rekindled doubles partnership with their first title together at the Connecticut Open, edging past Kateryna Bondarenko and Chuang Chia-Jung 7-5, 6-4.

Watch live action from New Haven this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!

The last time Mirza and Niculescu partnered up was way back in 2010, where they joined forces to reach the quarterfinals at the Western & Southern Open. They played that one tournament together before calling time on the partnership, but the pair have remained friends ever since.

So when Niculescu called Mirza last week asking them to team up again, it was inevitable that World No.1 Mirza would say yes.

“I asked Sania in Cincinnati,” Niculescu explained. “I had an idea maybe she wants to play here. I ask her. When she said yes, I was so excited. It seems we won the tournament, so I’m happy I asked her.”

“We know each other for a long time,” Mirza added. “Also our games kind of suit each other, so you have that confidence. I think it helped we got a couple first easy matches in terms of the way we played. We kind of found our rhythm almost immediately.”

The newly minted pairing opened their Connecticut Open campaign with a commanding straight sets win over American wildcards Alison Riske and Louisa Chirico, then overpowered regular duo Darija Jurak and Anastasia Rodionova in straight sets. They faced a close fight against the No.3 seeded Andreja Klepac and Katarina Srebotnik, squeezing out a comeback, 2-6, 6-3, 10-8, to make it to the final.

“It’s always nice to have the week before a Grand Slam where you’re able to ease up,” Mirza explained in post-match press. “We go to New York and there’s so much happening there. Here you have nice restaurants and even though we’re in the city, you feel quite quiet around here.

“I was actually not planning on completely playing this week. But when Monica asked me, I thought we could obviously win together.”

Despite winning a title on their first tournament back together, they both made it clear that this partnership is just for the short term and both will return to their regular partners in time for the US Open.

“I play with Barbora Strycova,” Mirza assured.

“I play with Vania King,” Niculescu added. “That’s why I said I hope it’s not the last time we going to play together.”

CHAMPS! Mirza/Niculescu win the #CTOpen16 doubles title 7-5, 6-4 over Bondarenko/Chuang pic.twitter.com/Yi8WMVeUxX

— Connecticut Open (@connecticutopen) August 27, 2016