New Haven: Svitolina Interview
An interview with Elina Svitolina after her win in the semifinal of the Connecticut Open.
An interview with Elina Svitolina after her win in the semifinal of the Connecticut Open.
Caroline Garcia has Wednesday’s shot of the day at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
An interview with Sara Errani after her in in the quarterfinals of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
Sara Errani takes on Madison Brengle in the quarterfinals at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
Sara Errani takes on Elina Svitolina in the semifinals at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
An interview with Sara Errani after her win in the final of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
ACAPULCO, Mexico – Great Britain’s Johanna Konta is no stranger to making British tennis history – she did plenty of that during her historic run to the Australian Open semifinals earlier in the year. This time, though, she did it without even having to lift a racquet.
Over the weekend, the 24-year-old reached a career-high ranking of No.26, the highest ranking for a Brit since Jo Durie held the spot in 1987. But as always, the milestones and accolades don’t faze the always-cool Konta.
“It looks pretty cool on paper,” Konta told wtatennis.com after being informed of the achievement. “Obviously I’m really happy to be where I am but I’m also very much focused on the process of things and just really giving my best in every match that I play.
“If do that where I’m ranked 26 or if I do that where I’m ranked 150, the objective stays the same.”
The objective was clear when Konta took the court at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel. The No.4 seed took on Estonia’s Anett Kontaveit in her first match since Melbourne.
The Brit quickly took a commanding 5-0 lead in the first set but struggled to close it out, Kontaveit winning three games in a row before Konta sealed the set 6-3. But after being given an inch, the Estonian took a mile when she came back to win the second set 6-3 and level the match. Konta’s woes continued in the third set – her serve was broken in the very first game for 0-1. Konta stayed calm, though, and got the break back and finished the match winning 6-3, 3-6, 6-4.
“It was a tough one,” Konta said after the match. “But it was a good match, she played really well. I really had to stick in there and keep fighting every single point and really just work hard for my opportunities.”
The drama continued in Acapulco when No.8 seed Yanina Wickmayer defeated Mexican wildcard Victoria Rodriguez 6-7(5), 6-0, 7-6(2). Rodriguez – nicknamed “Chely” by her fans – was making her WTA main draw debut against Wickmayer, and she certainly did it in style too, taking Wickmayer to three sets and two points away from defeat.
No.3 seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova had an unexpectedly easier road to the second round, going up 6-0, 2-3 against qualifier Urszula Radwanska before a nasty-looking left ankle injury forced the Pole to retire.
“I’m actually really happy with the way I started the match and how I was playing, especially in the first set,” Pavlyuchenkova said afterwards. “I think everything was working and that’s why the score was 6-0.”
Though the match ended in a retirement, the Russian – who is coming off of a quarterfinals run in St. Petersburg – relished the chance to get in some match play and adjust to the conditions in Mexico.
“I’m still a little bit jetlagged from traveling a long time so I’m pretty happy with the way it went. Just really unlucky and feel sorry for Urzsula for hurting her ankle.”
Also in action, wildcard Naomi Osaka and No.6 seed Johanna Larsson cruised in their opening round matches while Mariana Duque-Mariño dealt an upset to Alison Van Uytvanck, sending the No.5 seed out in a 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 defeat.
The WTA’s biggest stars took a break from their preparations to join the Qatar Tennis Federation and Total E&P Qatar at the Qatar Total Open players’ party.
Daria Gavrilova is hoping to follow up her incredible run at the Australian Open.
Swiss player Timea Bacsinszky is the No.11 seed.
Simona Halep – the 2014 champion here in Doha – is the No.2 seed.
Lucie Safarova, Barbora Strycova and Andrea Hlavackova had some fun checking out the props.
The Qatar Total Open player party festivities kicked off in style at the Al Gassar Ballroom in the St. Regis Doha.
The players were treated to the best of Qatari hospitality… from a banquet to a magic show!
Agnieszka Radwanska – known to her peers as “the Ninja” – had a few tricks up her sleeves, too.
Kerber came up to the stage for a magical demonstration.
Halep looked a little skeptical…
…which Radwanska found to be hilarious.
After the show and the speeches, Kristina Mladenovic and Elena Vesnina were ready for some food.
Mladenovic kept a watchful eye over Belinda Bencic and Caroline Garcia, too.
Caroline Wozniacki stopped for a chat with Nasser Al-Khelaifi, president of the Qatar Tennis Federation.
Garbiñe Muguruza was all smiles by the end of the night.
The US Open has undergone more than a few changes in the last year, and while the majority of players have given the improvements two thumbs up, few have been as effusive in their praise as Monica Niculescu.
“We have stands everywhere,” Niculescu told WTA Insider after her first round win over Babora Strycova. “We have Hawkeye on Court 5; it’s incredible. I haven’t played under the roof yet, but it looks great. We even have more money on the badge to eat! So I’m happy.
“I love Manhattan. If you’re out at 1AM, there are still people out on the street, having fun. There are all the shops on Fifth Avenue. I love New York, and I love the US Open; it’s the best, and I’m happy I can do well here.”
Niculescu has done very well thus far at the US Open; unseeded and ranked No.58, the Romanian recovered from a second set hiccup to knock out Strycova, seeded No.18, and raced out to a 6-0, 5-0 lead before ultimately dispatching compatriot Ana Bogdan in straight sets.
“I wasn’t happy about the draw, what can I say? Strycova had some great results before the US Open; she beat Stosur in Cincinnati and had a great match against Kerber. I knew it was going to be a tough one, and that’s why I’m happy about my game.”
Her signature slicing and dicing will face its biggest test yet as she opens Day 5 on Arthur Ashe Stadium against two-time finalist and former No.1 Carolina Wozniacki. The Dane has won all five of their previous encounters in straight sets, but the pair haven’t played since 2013. Plus, Niculescu has a secret weapon.
“There are many Romanians here,” she said when asked about the voracious crowd support. “They come to New York all the time.”
She also had the opportunity to play doubles with World No.1 Sania Mirza just last week at the Connecticut Open. An impressive doubles player in her own right, winning three titles with three different partners in 2016, the former World No.28 considered the week with Mirza to have been an absolute masterclass.
“It was amazing. Listen, I learned so much from that week, and she gave me so many tips on how to play certain girls and how to see the game. She has so much power and it was so nice to play with her; she was hitting so big and I just had to go to the net and do my stuff. I learned so many things. I want to thank her for playing with me, and I felt fantastic. I’m hoping to play again, when I can with her, because it was great.
“I think the doubles helped me a lot. I came here, played very good tennis, and that’s because I had so many matches in New Haven. It was difficult, and I had so many important moments; in doubles, you have to stay focused, and I think it helped me so much.”
Some retail therapy might also help ready the Romanian for her first trip to the US Open second week since 2011.
“It’s sad, but the thing I love doing most in New York is shopping. I love shopping, and I cannot wait to relax and do that.”
All photos courtesy of Getty Images.
Day 8’s stat of the day from the Miami Open, presented with SAP.