Tennis News

CHARLESTON, SC, USA – If Caroline Wozniacki scores just one more victory at the Volvo Car Open and defeats World No.66 Jelena Ostapenko, she’ll be rewarded with more than just a spot in the Charleston semifinals: she’ll be projected to break back into the Top 10 when the new WTA rankings come out, a happy ending to what has been an absolute rollercoaster last few years.

Wozniacki got her first taste of the Top 10 back in 2009, and has been a mainstay at the top of the rankings for the majority of her career – including a stint at World No.1, a ranking she held for 67 weeks.

In fact, from 2009 to 2014 she finished each year inside the Top 10, and her six year run had been the WTA’s longest active streak.  

But a struggle with injuries and recovery derailed the Dane’s progress, causing her ranking to plummet to as low as No.74 during the 2016 US Open.

It was during that US Open fortnight that Wozniacki’s comeback came together; she entered the tournament unseeded and went on to reach the semifinals, knocking out the likes of Svetlana Kuznetsova and Madison Keys along the way.

Once she got going, Wozniacki never looked back, and in the 14 events since her ranking dipped to No.74, she’s put together a stunning run which includes titles at the 2016 Toray Pan Pacific Open and the Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open, runner-up finishes at the 2017 Qatar Total Open, Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships and Miami Open, and a semifinal finish at the US Open.

She’s reached the quarterfinals or better at 11 of her last 14 events and now, by virtue of her incredible consistency, Wozniacki sits one win away from a return to her beloved Top 10 – the first time she’ll be there since September 21, 2015.

It won’t be easy with Latvian teenager Ostapenko standing in her way; Wozniacki lost in straight sets the only previous match they’ve played at last year’s Connecticut Open. And due to extreme weather conditions in Charleston, Wozniacki found herself having to double up and play two matches on the same day to reach the quarterfinals.

“I think I’m well-prepared for tomorrow,” Wozniacki said after her win against Anastasia Rodionova. “I got some clay tennis in today and feel like I’m just going to go out there and have fun and do my best and see how it goes.

“I’m just playing right now. I had one practice session before the tournament started for me, and that was it. I just kind of run on experience and try and figure it out.”

CHARLESTON, SC, USA – 19-year-old Jelena Ostapenko stunned No.11 seed Mirjana Lucic-Baroni in three sets to reach the final at the Volvo Car Open, 6-3, 5-7, 6-4.

With the victory Ostapenko is through to her third career final – and her first on clay – where he’ll face fellow-19-year-old Daria Kasatkina.

“It’s really nice to be in the third final, but first final on clay court, and especially here in Charleston,” Ostapenko told press after the match. “I’m really looking forward for tomorrow’s match.

“[Daria] kind of defensive player, and I think clay is her favorite surface, but I’m just going to try to stay consistent and be aggressive at the same time and just play my game.”

We're going three!

Mirjana Lucic-Baroni battles back to force a decider over Ostapenko 3-6, 7-5! #VolvoCarOpen pic.twitter.com/2g3oMKIpc5

— WTA (@WTA) 8 de abril de 2017

Just one point made the difference between Ostapenko and Lucic-Baroni during the tense, two-hour-and-seven-minute encounter. The Latvian employed her aggressive, fearless tennis against Lucic-Baroni, changing the direction in the ball and keeping her opponent on the run with her heavy groundstrokes.

Ostapenko was serving for the match at 5-4 in the second, but Lucic-Baroni had other ideas and the Croat put together a mammoth struggle to deny Ostapenko and break her serve.

Jelena Ostapenko edges Lucic-Baroni 6-3, 5-7, 6-4!

Sets All-Teen @VolvoCarOpen Final vs @DKasatkina! #VolvoCarOpen pic.twitter.com/ugpZVK2IAh

— WTA (@WTA) 8 de abril de 2017

She unleashed a barrage of winners against the Latvian, who had no response as Lucic-Baroni grabbed the next two games to take the match into a decider. But Ostapenko tamped down her nerves in the third and found her calm to make her way into her first final of 2017.

“I actually was quite emotional in the second set when I was 5-3 up and I couldn’t finish the set, but she liked when I was emotional,” Ostapenko admitted. “It kind of gave her confidence till then.

“In the third set I was just trying to be calm because I think it was tougher for her because I didn’t show any emotions, and it helped me, so I won the third set.”

BIEL/BIENNE, Switzerland – Marketa Vondrousova’s fairytale week continued at the Ladies Open Biel Bienne; the qualifier roared back from a first set deficit to surprise countrywoman and top seed Barbora Strycova, 7-6(3), 6-2 and book her first WTA final appearance alongside Estonian youngster Anett Kontaveit. Kontaveit triumphed in a 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 thriller against Aliaksandra Sasnovich earlier in the day.

A week after teenagers Daria Kasatkina and Jelena Ostapenko fought for the Volvo Car Open title, the WTA field continued to serve youth in Biel/Bienne, with 23 as the average age of the semifinalists – and that’s including 31-year-old Strycova.

Defense to offense from Vondrousova!

Back on serve #WTABiel pic.twitter.com/Iq1uDQk3R7

— WTA (@WTA) April 15, 2017

Vondrousova, who reached two Slam semifinals and won two major doubles titles as a junior, was playing her first tour-level semifinal, and that experience showed early as the World No.18 raced out to a 5-2 lead, later holding a set point in the 12th game of the opener.

The teenager gamely saved it behind a booming lefty serve and saved her best tennis for the ensuing tie-break, striking a screaming winner to clinch it.

First set ? Marketa Vondrousova

Saves a set point to surprise Strycova 7-6(3)! #WTABiel pic.twitter.com/7wJHPy2X8i

— WTA (@WTA) April 15, 2017

Strycova struggled to counter her fellow Czech’s aggressive game on the indoor hardcourts as Vondrousova took a 5-2 lead of her own in the second, breaking serve for the fourth and final time to advance into the biggest final of her career.

17 year old qualifier Marketa Vondrousova reaches FIRST #WTA Final!

Stuns Strycova 7-6(3), 6-2 @WTABielBienne! pic.twitter.com/YKFgxhkRIC

— WTA (@WTA) April 15, 2017

In all, the qualifier played a clean match, striking 22 winners to 13 unforced errors; Strycova’s own 13 winners were undone by 20 unforced errors.

Anett Kontaveit and Aliaksandra Sasnovich open @WTABielBienne Semifinals! pic.twitter.com/PAfhqglB2r

— WTA (@WTA) April 15, 2017

Awaiting Vondrousova in the final is another former junior prodigy in Kontaveit, who reached the US Open girl’s singles final back in 2012 and outlasted Sasnovich to start Semifinal Saturday.

“I feel really good, and really happy to be in my first final,” she said after the match.

Back in the Top 100 after reaching the third round of the Miami Open, the unseeded Estonian battled through a high-quality encounter with Sasnovich, who was playing her first WTA semifinal since 2015.

Anett Kontaveit takes a close opening set vs Sasnovich 6-4! #WTABiel pic.twitter.com/KuezLGrvmB

— WTA (@WTA) April 15, 2017

“I was down a break twice in the third set, but I tried to stay in there even though she was playing really well. I was just trying to stay with her do what I always do: fight and not give up.

“Mentally, I toughed it out.”

Hitting 26 winners to the Belarusian’s 29, Kontaveit’s consistency won the day, hitting 17 unforced errors against Sasnovich’s 29, and won four more points (114 to 110) by match’s end, converting her WTA final on her fourth match point after two hours and 24 minutes on court.

Drop shot Anett Kontaveit! ? #WTABiel pic.twitter.com/XzM7w5UjLP

— WTA (@WTA) April 15, 2017

It will be Kontaveit’s first meeting with Vondrousova, and knows to expect another tough match if she hopes to hoist her first WTA trophy.

“She’s had really good wins, and it looks like she’s playing well this week.”

First #WTA Final!

Anett Kontaveit battles past Sasnovich 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 at @WTABielBienne! pic.twitter.com/WkGZC8LdNr

— WTA (@WTA) April 15, 2017

More to come…

PRAGUE, Czech Republic – Lucie Safarova’s clay court revival at the J&T Banka Prague Open gathered further momentum on Thursday with a straight set win over Hsieh Su-Wei.

Watch live action from Prague & Rabat this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!

Going into her home tournament, Safarova had not registered a win all season, but after unraveling Hsieh’s unorthodox game in two tight sets she now has three in as many days.

In a topsy-turvy encounter, Safarova failed to serve out the opening set at 5-4, before coming within a few points of losing it two games later. In the tie-break, it was the Czech that held her nerve, taking it when Hsieh miscued a backhand into the tramlines.

Hsieh continued to pose problems in the second set, but once again it was Safarova that came out on top at the crucial moments, returning from a late rain delay to reach the semifinals 

Safarova’s 7-6(3), 7-5 victory followed on from an even more impressive performance from her compatriot and next opponent, Karolina Pliskova. Eager to minimize her time exposed to the elements on another chilly day in the Czech capital, defending champion Pliskova blew away Camila Giorgi, 6-2, 6-1, in just 51 minutes.

Pliskova and Safarova met only last week in Stuttgart, the former coming through a third set shootout, to add to victories over her Fed Cup teammate the previous year in Antwerp and Dubai.

Following her showing in Stuttgart and her run this week Safarova is feeling positive heading into the rematch. “I was on the way back already in Stuttgart, where I had a great match, and I was hoping the results would come. I’m happy and excited that it’s going this well.

“It was a tough match today; she’s always a very tricky player, defending the court very well and I’m very excited to be through to the semis.”