Dubai: Thursday Day 5 Highlights
Highlights from all the quarterfinals action at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
Highlights from all the quarterfinals action at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
Top-ranked doubles team and WTA co-No.1s Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza brought their 36-match winning streak to the St. Petersburg Ladies Tophy, adding to their total with a first round win over Jelena Ostapenko and Evgeniya Rodina, 7-5, 7-5.
“We didn’t know how to play them that well in the beginning,” Hingis said in their post-match press conference. “We lost an opportunity at 3-2, 40-0 to go up and close out the match, and they came back to play a couple of really good games – especially Ostapenko, who hit some really great shots.
“I think it was great experience for them to play a match like that, and also for us to get into the tournament. I’m definitely happy we didn’t have to play a deciding set. It’s always nice to close out in straight sets; it makes us that much stronger.”
Hingis and Mirza haven’t lost a match since last August at the Western & Southern Opent, their now-37-match winning streak having taken them to titles at the US Open, BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global, and the Australian Open – with only the French Open standing between them and a possible “Santina Slam.”
“The streak that we’re on is amazing,” Mirza said. “To be honest, we knew we could play good, but not this good. We’re surprising ourselves as well, and we just want to keep going.
Asked about the media’s fascination with their streak, the longest since Jana Novotna and Helena Sukova won 44 straight matches in 1990, Mirza didn’t mince words.
“We’re counting, also.”
“Yes, we are,” Hingis added.
For Hingis, the partnership with Mirza marks her second to truly capture the imagination of the tennis world, the first being her late-90s domination with Russia’s own Anna Kournikova – still a popular topic in the St. Petersburg press room.
“She was a great player, a team player, and we had great times for those two years,” Hingis said, speaking about their two Australian Open victories in 1999 and 2002.
“She kind of was the one who started this Russian Armada – or Russian generation – along with Elena Likhovtseva. She was definitely the one who you could aim for and be like, go around the world and live the ‘Russian-American dream.’ I loved playing with her.
“We stay in touch, especially during the Miami event; we always try to see each other. I follow what she’s doing; she follows me.”
Mirza too fondly remembers the ‘Spice Girls’ of the women’s doubles circuit.
“At that time I think TV was not as evolved as it is today, combined with the computer, so it was not so easy to get to see matches all the time. But everybody knew Martina Hingis, everybody knew Anna Kournikova, and everybody knew that this partnership was winning a lot, and probably was one of the best doubles teams to play.
“She’s not that much older than me,” she added with a laugh. “Only five years; it’s just that she’s been around for such a long time!”
Another partnership Hingis looks forward to exploring involves fellow Swiss Roger Federer, who agreed to play mixed doubles with her at the upcoming Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
“I waited 10 months, and maybe after winning a lot with Sania, and becoming No.1 again and winning three mixed titles, I was hoping that would be persuasion enough to partner up.”
‘SanTina’ next face an all-Russian pair for a spot in the quarterfinals and Win number 38: rising Russian star Daria Kasatkina and Elena Vesnina, Mirza’s former doubles partner.
“We played together for a long time; she’s a very good friend of mine, and we’ve known each other since we were 13 years old.
“I have a feeling that the crowd will be behind them because she’s quite popular here, but hopefully there will be some people supporting us.”
Asked if they foresaw their partnership transcending to other endeavors, Hingis said they planned to let their racquets do the talking.
“We’ll stick to tennis; that’s what we do best.”
All photos courtesy of Getty Images.
Simona Halep takes on Agnieszka Radwanska in the quarterfinals of the Western & Southern Open.
DUBAI, UAE – No.7 seed Elina Svitolina is into the biggest final of her career after upsetting top seed Angelique Kerber in straight sets at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Friday; standing between her and her sixth career title is none other than 2011 champion and former World No.1 Caroline Wozniacki.
Check out everything you need to know about this high-stakes affair right here on wtatennis.com!
1. Svitolina can crack the Top 10 if she wins on Saturday.
Svitolina has been on the cusp of making her Top 10 debut for quite some time, and the Ukrainian youngster can close the deal should she beat Wozniacki in the final.
2. The Ukrainian is riding an 11-match winning streak.
Svitolina recovered from a third round upset at the Australian Open in impressive fashion, picking up her fifth career title at the Taiwan Open, leading her country to a Fed Cup victory over Australia, and reaching the final in Dubai.
3. Wozniacki is definitely at home in Dubai.
A Dubai Duty Free ambassador, Wozniacki overtook former World No.1 Jelena Jankovic’s record total of match wins in Dubai on Friday, winning a 22nd match in seven appearances. She last reached the final in 2011, when she beat Svetlana Kuznetsova for the title.
4. The Dane is surging in 2017.
Wozniacki began this season much like she ended last; since reaching the semifinals of the US Open, she’s been on fire, reaching back-to-back finals in Doha and Dubai; the last time she did that was in 2014, when she reached two straight finals in Flushing and Tokyo at the Toray Pan Pacific Open.
5. The No.2 spot on the Road to Singapore leaderboard is on the line.
Not only can Svitolina earn a career-high ranking, but a win on Saturday will also send her shooting up the RTS leaderboard, all the way to No.2. The runner-up will also be in the Top 8, ranked No.5. Svitolina would make be making her debut at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global, while Wozniacki qualified four times, most recently in 2014.
6. Svitolina saves her best for the game’s best.
The No.7 seed not only defeated Kerber for the second time this season, but also owns a three-match winning streak on the former No.1, dating back to the China Open in Beijing. She also knocked then-No.1 Serena Williams out of the Olympic tennis event; in her last three encounters with World No.1s, Svitolina’s won two.
7. Wozniacki aims for Miami Open revenge.
Wozniacki and Svitolina played just once before, in the third round of the Miami Open; Svitolina recovered from a set down to defeat the Dane, 5-7, 6-4, 7-6(1) in a late-night match.
8. Svitolina is one win from her biggest title yet.
Svitolina has already racked up five titles in her young career, but all on the International level. She finished runner-up at the Connecticut Open and the Huajin Securities WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai to Agnieszka Radwanska and Petra Kvitova, respectively, and reached the final four last fall in Beijing.
9. Wozniacki returns to the big time.
Barring the US Open final, Wozniacki hadn’t reached a Premier Mandatory or Premier 5 final since 2013 at the BNP Paribas Open. This would be her biggest title since beating Naomi Osaka in the Tokyo final last fall.
10. The final takes place after a rousing doubles championship match.
Before Wozniacki and Svitolina hit the courts, new Road to Singapore leaderboard No.1s Andrea Hlavackova and Peng Shuai face Olympic Gold medalists Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina. The Russians are into their second final of the season while Hlavackova are in their third, including the Australian Open.
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia – Ana Ivanovic moved confidently in the semifinals of the St. Petersburg Ladies Open with a 6-1, 7-5 win over qualifier Kateryna Kozlova.
Watch live action from St. Petersburg & Kaohsiung this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
In her opening round match Ivanovic took a while to get into her groove, but against Kozlova she hit the ground running, reeling off five straight games to pocket the opening set in 23 minutes. Kozlova, who was appearing the quarterfinals of a Premier event for the first time, gave a better account of herself in the second, battling back from 5-3 down before eventually succumbing.
Meeting Ivanovic for a place in the final will be another of the draw’s more established names, Roberta Vinci. And Vinci needed to draw on all her experience to see off Timea Babos in an absorbing encounter, 7-6(3), 4-6, 7-6(4).
Babos was in command for much of the final set – leading 5-3 and then 4-2 in the tie-break – but was unable to find the decisive blow. The decisive moment came in the 10th point of the tie-break when Vinci skipped around a second serve only to flash a forehand fractionally wide.
The Hungarian’s relief was short-lived, though, Hawk-Eye adjudging the ball to have clipped the outer edge of the sideline. This successful challenge took the No.2 seed to match point, which she converted when Babos sent a weary forehand sailing beyond the baseline.
“It was a long match, a tough match. Timea has a great serve – always 190km/h. Tough for me to return,” Vinci said. “I was 5-3 down at the end, but I stayed focused and won a great match today.
“In those moments you have to stay positive and don’t think about the score. In the end she was probably a little bit nervous, and a little bit tight, she missed some easy balls and I won.”
Vinci has lost six of her previous nine meetings with Ivanovic, although the two have not crossed paths for a couple of years.
“Ana is a great player. Of course it will be a difficult match. But I’m in the semifinals, nothing to lose, just enjoy! I will try my best – I need to be aggressive every single point. We will see.”
Friday’s shot of the day at the Western & Southern Open.
Watch Caroline Wozniacki hit the practice court ahead of the semifinals of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
Highlights from the round of 16 action at the Taiwan Open.
Angelique Kerber takes on Simona Halep in the semifinals of the Western & Southern Open.
DUBAI, UAE – No.7 seed Elina Svitolina took home her second title of 2017 – and the biggest one of her career – at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships after defeating 2011 champion Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets.
Playing in her first Premier 5 final, Svitolina showed no sign of nerves as she outhit the former World No.1 to claim the victory 6-4, 6-2 after an hour and 10 minutes.
“It’s very special for me [to win such a big tournament],” Svitolina said in her on-court interview. “I’ve played very amazing tennis this week and I’m happy it happened in Dubai.
“It’s the first trophy for me at such a big tournament, so it’s very special for me.”
“I dreamed for all my life to be in the Top 10” -@ElinaSvitolina pic.twitter.com/T4CooJ6Nw3
— WTA (@WTA) February 25, 2017
With the title, Svitolina will rise from WTA No.13 to No.10, making her the 120th player to make her Top 10 debut since the WTA Rankings were introduced on November 3, 1975.
“I’ve dreamed for all my life to be in Top 10. It’s a very amazing feeling to enter Top 10, and do it by winning the tournament! I’m very excited for the season and very excited I could win this tournament.”
The 22-year-old Ukrainian entered the matchup against Wozniacki with a 1-0 lead in the pair’s head-to-head record, with their only meeting coming last year in Miami where Svitolina came within two points of defeat before winning 5-7, 6-4, 7-6(1).
This time in Dubai, it was a more comprehensive affair, with Svitolina injecting pace into her groundstrokes to break down Wozniacki’s rock-solid defense.
.@ElinaSvitolina captures @DDFTennis Title!
Defeats Wozniacki 6-4, 6-2! pic.twitter.com/TA3LibF8zn
— WTA (@WTA) February 25, 2017
A pair of inch-perfect passing shots left Wozniacki wrong-footed and gave Svitolina the lone break in the first set at 3-2. But the Dane refused to fade away, batting away a pair of Svitolina set points at 5-4 with some bold tennis – including a second-serve ace – to force the Ukrainian to serve it out.
Wozniacki let three break points slip by that would have leveled the score, and instead Svitolina held serve from 0-40 down to take the opening set.
Svitolina continued her momentum into the final set; after trading breaks to start, Svitolina played more aggressive to chip away at Wozniacki’s defense as the Dane’s unforced error count continued to build. Svitolina rattled off the last five games in a row to close out the match and biggest title of her career.
“It’s been a good two weeks, @DDFTennis is a special tournament for me.” -@CaroWozniacki pic.twitter.com/xVVyG0fmXK
— WTA (@WTA) February 25, 2017
Despite the disappointing loss, Wozniacki is taking away positive signs from her Middle East fortnight, which saw her reach back-to-back finals.
“It’s been a good two weeks for me – two finals, lots of matches,” Wozniacki said in her on-court interview. “Making another final here [in Dubai] is definitely great, and I’m already excited to be back.”
Another piece of good news for Wozniacki? The Dane is inching closer to her return to the WTA Top 10: with her run to the final she’ll move to No.14, and is defending just 145 points until the US Open.