Venus: I Really Enjoy Seeing 'Williams' On The Trophy
Venus Williams had nothing but praise for her younger sister Serena Williams after their Australian Open battle, and is taking only positives from her run to the final.
Venus Williams had nothing but praise for her younger sister Serena Williams after their Australian Open battle, and is taking only positives from her run to the final.
Highlights from the second round action at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
MELBOURNE, Australia – Following her record-breaking 23rd Grand Slam triumph at the Australian Open, newly re-crowned World No.1 Serena Williams sat down with a small pool of reporters after her non-stop media duties, reflecting on her fortnight and look ahead at what’s to come:
Q: Setting aside Slam No.23, World No.1, how do you assess your two weeks here in Melbourne? How do you feel it sets you up for 2017?
Serena: I feel like my game is good. I was thinking yesterday on the practice court, ‘Gosh, I’m playing better than I have, maybe ever.’ I’m moving better – I’ve always been a fast mover, but I kind of stopped moving in the middle [of my career] thinking, ‘I don’t really have to move.’ But I was like, man, I’m hitting pretty well. So it felt pretty good to know that I’m playing better. I’m here to take this game pretty seriously.
Q: What’s the key difference? Is it a physical thing or a mental thing?
Serena: I don’t know. Every year I sit down with Patrick, and look at the things I want to improve. I want to do something better, and so we sat down this year to do the same thing. We said we wanted to do better, and we did better; we don’t want to stop, we want to continue to do better.
#SAPStatOfTheDay: @SerenaWilliams wins SIXTH Grand Slam without dropping a set all tournament! First time at the #AusOpen! pic.twitter.com/qpIhS4MiTy
— WTA (@WTA) January 28, 2017
Q: Did being No.2 motivate you at all to want to get back here and play your best? Did it piss you off?
Serena: It didn’t piss me off. I didn’t deserve to be No.1; I think Kerber played unbelievable. She was the most consistent, and she definitely deserved to have that position. That’s one thing about me, that when credit’s due, you have to give a person credit. She absolutely deserved it; it looked weird, because I never felt like No.2, but I think she definitely deserved to be No.1, she played well.
Q: We saw the genius of your father expressed this week. What was so special about him? What did he bring to your family, and as a dad?
Serena: Well, he’s brought everything. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for him; this was his vision. It’s literally his vision, and he wrote this. He knew this would happen, us playing each other for yet another Grand Slam. He gave us the best games possible, that we could always build on; he gave us the best techniques possible. It’s crazy, really crazy. Another thing that’s so great is how our family is so important, and realizing that above all, we have to put each other first, way in front of a tennis ball. I think that’s something that I’ve always been able to appreciate. The older you get, the more you appreciate this.
Q: This is still very fresh, but after a performance, like that, how many more Slams do you think you can win?
Serena: I don’t think about that any more. At the next Grand Slam, I’m going to request you guys not to ask me about it again, because I just have to take it a day at a time [laughing].
What is a champion?
World No.1 and 23x Grand Slams, @SerenaWilliams! #MakeHistory pic.twitter.com/bUkH5Tbyto
— WTA (@WTA) January 28, 2017
I’ve been saying this since this tournament began: this is a bonus for me. I don’t have anything to prove; I don’t have to win another match. I can just relax, and that’s what I’m doing now. I’m going out there, relaxing and playing hard. I’m just enjoying my time, like this little fly over here [Note: A fly was buzzing around the small interview room].
Q: Talking about the last couple of years, you’ve been saying you have nothing to prove, and playing with house money. It seems like this tournament has been the one where you really lived that, as opposed to the last few tournaments where you’ve felt the tension.
Serena: I’ve been trying to live it for quite some time, but I definitely agree. I was really able to do it at this tournament. I’ve been trying to do it, and trying and trying. I don’t know why it worked now. I think having to play those matches in the first two rounds, I was like, ‘I have no choice but to be better.’
I was really just ok with, not losing, but I knew that I didn’t have to win here to make my career. For whatever reason, that settled with me this time. I don’t know why; I wish I could tell you, but I want to know because I definitely want to do it again next time. I need to figure that one out.
.@SerenaWilliams 23 Grand Slams!
7x @AustralianOpen ?
3x @RolandGarros ?
7x @Wimbledon ?
6x @USOpen ? pic.twitter.com/s5Bwpl35VG— WTA (@WTA) January 28, 2017
Q: By regaining the No.1 spot, do you think trying to stay No.1 will be more of a priority, and will you play extra tournaments outside of the regular schedule?
Serena: I don’t know. I honestly was thinking, ‘I should go to Dubai and try to get my No.1 ranking back.’ I had no idea I was going to be No.1 after this. I was thinking about it, but I’m enjoying my time on the court, my game, the style I’m playing. It’s been kind of refreshing, and I definitely want to keep the momentum going. I don’t know; I’m going to go home, take a deep breath, and then start from there.
Every week wtatennis.com brings you 10 Things To Know about the week – who is playing, where and much more. This week the Road To Singapore goes through Doha and Acapulco…
1) Doha is the first Premier 5 tournament of 2016.
The Qatar Total Open is a Premier 5 event and part two of the WTA’s fortnightly tour of the Middle East – part one is the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. There’s nearly $3 million on the line, with the winner pocketing $518,500 and a whopping 900 points for the Road To Singapore leaderboard.
Click here for a full analysis of the Doha draw.
2) World No.2 Angelique Kerber plays her first tournament since winning the Australian Open.
Kerber played a solid weekend in Fed Cup – going 1-1 in her singles matches against Timea Bacsinszky and Belinda Bencic – but the German comes to Doha looking to build on her early season momentum; she remains the only player to reach more than one final in 2016. It won’t be easy for the 2014 finalist with her fellow Top 8 seeds in tow: Simona Halep, Agnieszka Radwanska, Garbiñe Muguruza, Petra Kvitova, Bencic, Lucie Safarova, and Carla Suárez Navarro.
3) Agnieszka Radwanska is also hoping to build on her strong start to the season.
Out since the Australian Open with a left leg injury, the reigning BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global champion was undefeated through the semifinals in Melbourne, having won the title at the Shenzhen Open. Though she fell to World No.1 Serena Williams in her last match, the Pole has otherwise looked good since last year’s US Open, and is poised to rise to World No.3 on Monday.
4) Defending champion Lucie Safarova makes her 2016 debut.
Safarova’s stellar 2015 season started off last year in Doha. The Czech earned back-to-back Top 10 wins and beat former No.1 Victoria Azarenka in the final, parlaying that result into a maiden Grand Slam final at the French Open. A bacterial infection derailed her season after the US Open, and though she qualified for Singapore, Safarova hasn’t played since, but with several weeks of practice in Doha, look for the defending champ to make some noise with her big lefty game.
5) Can Halep, Muguruza or Kvitova kickstart their years in Doha?
No.2 seed Halep has been looking for matches all season, but they were hard to come by in Dubai; the Romanian had to face former No.1 Ana Ivanovic in her opening round match, losing in straight sets. Muguruza has been dealing with a foot injury that has kept her from feeling prepared to play her best tennis, while Kvitova has won just one match all season and has yet to name a replacement coach since splitting the David Kotyza. All three have the talent to win in Doha; can one or more catch fire this week?
6) Azarenka does Acapulco.
While most of the game’s biggest names are duking it out in Doha, Victoria Azarenka has opted to ease into her North American hardcourt swing by playing her first tournament since the Australian Open at this week’s International event at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel. Top seed in Acapulco, Azarenka is joined by tricky opposition in Sloane Stephens, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, and Dominika Cibulkova.
7) Can Konta go further?
Johanna Konta rocked the tennis world when she made her historic run to the semifinals in Melbourne. A likely seed in Acapulco, how will the Brit back up that result as she aims to continue her march up the rankings; she is currently at a career-high ranking of No.27.
8) How will Sloane Stephens rebound?
Stephens came to Melbourne looking like a dangerous floater having won her second career title at the ASB Classic, but took a surprising first round loss to Wang Qiang. How will the American fare in her first event since then?
9) Welcome back, Galina.
Former World No.42 and No.1 Kazakh Galina Voskoboeva was close to a career-high ranking when multiple foot injuries kept her off the court for nearly two years. Playing her first matches earlier this month at Fed Cup and an ITF Challenger, Voskoboeva makes her WTA return in doubles this week with Anastasia Rodionova. Stay tuned for more insight into Voskoboeva’s comeback on WTA Insider.
10) Find out where you can watch live action this week.
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia – Unseeded and looming Daria Gavrilova enjoyed a strong start at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy, dispatching Russian wildcard Anna Kalinskaya, 6-4, 7-5, to reach the second round.
“It was a tough match,” the Aussie said after the match. “I felt like I didn’t play my best tennis but I’m happy with the way I fought. I got the win but I think that I need to up my level.”
Gavrilova burst onto the scene as a junior prodigy, winning the 2010 girl’s singles title at the US Open and the Youth Olympic Gold medal; it was a full circle moment then for the now-22-year-old to face Kalinskaya, a runner-up at 2015’s junior Wimbledon.
“She’s four years younger than me. I didn’t actually know before that the gap was that big – I asked her and was surprised.
“I asked around because didn’t know how she played, which isn’t very easy. I asked a few girls but they didn’t give me much! My coach watched some videos and gave me some notes.”
Coming off another run to the second week of the Australian Open, Gavrilova battled through several long games to seal a 52-minute opening set, and recovered from a 3-5 deficit in the second to win the final four games and book a meeting against No.3 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova.
“It’s not easy but I felt that I should be confident with my game. I had some long matches in Australia so I was feeling pretty confident.”
Gavrilova last played Kuznetsova last fall in Russia, where she made the final of the Kremlin Cup in singles and doubles; this is her first time the Moscow native is playing in St. Peterburg, which celebrated its inaugural event last year.
“I actually don’t remember when I was last in St. Petersburg. But I’m really enjoying being here and the organizers and sponsors did well with the hotel – it’s one of the best I’ve stayed in.”
Earlier in the day, Andrea Petkovic booked her spot in the main draw with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Anastasiya Komardina, while Kirsten Flipkens needed three sets to dispatch Donna Vekic, 6-4, 5-7, 7-5.
Highlights from the quarterfinal round action at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
Sara Errani has Friday’s shot of the day at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
Sara Errani has Saturday’s shot of the day at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
No.2 seed Dominika Cibulkova rounded out St. Petersburg’s last eight line-up with a decisive win over Donna Vekic to book a quarterfinal encounter with No.5 seed Elena Vesnina.
DOHA, Qatar – On Monday, Agnieszka Radwanska met the press ahead of the Premier 5 level event in Doha, the Qatar Total Open, and she discussed everything from her strong start to the season, her Fed Cup plans and the next generation of tennis. Here’s what the World No.3 had to say…
On her red-hot start to the season, which saw her win a title in Shenzhen and reach the semifinals at the Australian Open…
“I had very good start, and I just hope I can keep going and playing the same good tennis I was playing in Australia. I have a good rest after that. I was practicing at home and working hard. Hopefully I can really do well here.”
On the challenge of the “openness” of the women’s game…
“For us, for some players that being in the Top 10 for a while, it’s also tough to stay there. There are a lot of talented, young players coming up and playing great tennis. This is another challenge for us to stay there.
There’s a lot of players deserve to be Top 10. We can also see everything is changing every week about the majors as well.”
On how Serena Williams’ dominance affects that openness…
“Of course Serena is always there, especially last year, but other years totally different. She’s definitely dominating if she’s on fire. When she’s playing her best tennis, she just playing unbelievable and too good, but otherwise it’s open.”
On her plans to play in Poland’s Fed Cup tie against Taiwan…
“I want to help my team in April to stay in that World Group, so this is my plan and I hope I can play that. Of course we can see individually busy schedule and tight schedule because of the Olympics, so I really want to stay healthy the whole year. But here we have match at home, so I’m ready to play.”