Casey Dellacqua Vists Ronald McDonald House
Australia’s own Casey Dellacqua took some time off from the Brisbane International to cheer up children at the Ronald McDonald House South East Queensland.
Australia’s own Casey Dellacqua took some time off from the Brisbane International to cheer up children at the Ronald McDonald House South East Queensland.
MIAMI, FL, USA – No.13 seed Victoria Azarenka showed all of her grit and determination against an inspired Monica Puig, clinching a tight second set to win, 6-2, 6-4.
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Much like good friend and fellow BNP Paribas Open finalist Serena Williams, Azarenka had things all her own way to start, sprinting out to a 5-0 lead on a over-awed Puig. The Puerto Rican youngster was in no mood to sit back, however, and clawed one of the breaks back and played through most of the second set on level footing.
“With a game like this, she definitely has big potential going forward,” Azarenka told Andrew Krasny, complimenting Puig during her on-court interview but adding, “I have to be a little more careful because it was an escape a little bit in the second set.”
Keeping her side of the stats sheet even, the two-time Australian Open champion hit 19 winners to 19 unforced, while Puig was ultimately done in by 25 errors and eight double faults. In particular, the Azarenka serve has shown marked improvement to start the 2016 season, and the Belarusian finished the match with five aces – several appearing when she needed them most.
“I tried to be a little bit more aggressive because she started hitting everything on the rise, and I backed up a little bit. I just have to keep moving forward myself.”
Up next for Azarenka is qualifier Magda Linette; the Pole advanced after No.18 seed Jelena Jankovic was forced to retire just five points into their second round encounter with a right shoulder injury.
The former No.1 is the highest seed left in her section of the draw, with the bottom half seeds going 7-9 on the day – compared with the top half’s 10-6 record on Thursday. Among the casualties were No.17 seed Karolina Pliskova, who dropped a third set tie-break to Timea Babos, 5-7, 6-2, 7-6(0), No.25 seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, who lost to qualifier Kiki Bertens, 6-1, 4-6, 6-1, No.29 seed Sabine Lisicki, who squandered a 5-0 final set lead to Irina-Camelia Begu, 6-4, 1-6, 7-6(2), and No.27 seed Kristina Mladenovic, who fell to wildcard Nicole Gibbs, 6-2, 6-4.
Angelique Kerber talks through her second-round win over Ashleigh Barty at the Brisbane International.
Garbiñe Muguruza takes on Svetlana Kuznetsova in the quarterfinals of the Brisbane International.
Karolina Pliskova produced a clinical display on Friday night, swatting aside Elina Svitolina to take her place in the final of the Brisbane International.
WTA Insider Courtney Nguyen | After advancing to the Brisbane final, Alizé Cornet took a moment to pay tribute to a man who always reminded her to be thankful for her lot.
Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Sania Mirza produced a near flawless display to overwhelm Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina, 6-2, 6-3. The result ensures that Mattek-Sands will replace Mirza as the World No.1 when the new rankings are released on Monday.
Highlights from all of Saturday’s finals action at the Brisbane International.
SYDNEY, Australia – No.5 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova began her title defense at the Apia International Sydney with a decisive 6-1, 6-4 win over Irina-Camelia Begu.
“I started the year quite good with the feeling on court,” she said in her post-match press conference. “Sometimes the results don’t go with how you’re feeling, but I feel very good at the start of the year.”
It was a year ago that Kuznetsova came to Sydney to begin what would become her best season in nearly six years, but shrugged off the pressure of going for a second straight victory.
“I’m not thinking about defending my title. The trophy is at home and nobody can take it away from me. This is another year and another opportunity to play. I always feel like I need a lot of matches at the start of the year. I remember going to Auckland and not winning a single match. Then I came here and it gave me matches, confidence.
“If I played five weeks in a row at the end of last year, I can do three or four weeks here.”
The Russian veteran showed off similar form for much of the match against Begu, who struggled through the 31 minute opening set.
.@SvetlanaK27 has found her range early! pic.twitter.com/Gie2qUY2z3
— WTA (@WTA) January 8, 2017
Winning 10 of the first 12 games, the former World No.2 was on course for a seamless victory before the Romanian mounted a mini-comeback, drawing even at 4-4 in the second.
“What happened? What typically happens in a tennis match. I think I started to play more defensively, and she felt like she had nothing to lose. I got too passive.
“We practiced in December because she was also in Dubai; we played a practice match and that was good because I was able to remember her game.
“It’s a different style; she stays farther behind the baseline, not so much inside. She serves good, and it was hard to read.
.@Irina_Begu is on ?!
She breaks again to level the second set at 4-4! #SydneyTennis pic.twitter.com/FR3QXYMWRy
— WTA (@WTA) January 8, 2017
Kuznetsova closed the door from there, and served out her spot in the second round, where she’ll meet either 2011 US Open champion Samantha Stosur or compatriot Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.
“Overall, I think I did good, except for those four games when I didn’t play so good.”
.@SvetlanaK27 starts @SydneyTennis title defense with 6-1, 6-4 win over Begu! pic.twitter.com/fMeKx8at2m
— WTA (@WTA) January 8, 2017
BEIJING, China – Madison Keys held her nerve to win a dramatic quarterfinal encounter with Petra Kvitova at the China Open on Friday.
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Leading by a set and a break, Keys looked to be easing into the semifinals. However, a spirited Kvitova comeback ensured the match went down to the wire, Keys eventually closing out a 6-3, 6-7(2), 7-6(5) victory after two hours and 41 minutes.
“I think I played a pretty solid first set today, then she raised her level. I just think at the end it became a couple of points here or there. I think I got my serve back on track a little bit,” Keys said. “I mean, really, it could have gone either way. It was really close.”
Madison Keys' record in 3 set matches:
2014: 6-10
2015: 7-8
2016: 17-5— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) October 7, 2016
Keys’ victory was all the more impressive given Kvitova’s recent form. In Wuhan, she dismantled a series of higher-ranked opponents to win her first title in 13 months, before seeing off Wang Yafan and Garbiñe Muguruza this week to extend her winning run.
In Keys, though, she found an opponent capable of matching her firepower. After the first seven games went with serve, the American carved out the first break point by whipping a forehand return onto the line. Kvitova double faulted to surrender the break and ultimately the set.
Kvitova came roaring back in the second set, recovering from 4-2 down to level the match on a tie-break. The decider followed a similar pattern, Keys making the early running only to be pegged back when the Czech won the latest baseline slugfest. This time, however, Keys refused to be overwhelmed, surviving a series of arduous service games to reach the sanctuary of a tie-break. Locked at 5-5, she finally found the knockout blow, hammering a backhand down the line before serving her way into a maiden Premier Mandatory semifinal.
“I definitely think I got frustrated. You know, it’s always tough when you’re serving for a set and you have a bad game,” Keys said. “Doing that a couple of times in a match is frustrating.
“But, you know, I think I did a really good job at staying focused and just trying to regroup and worry about the next point. You know, she made it really tough today. I’m just really happy that at the end I was able to get my serve back on track and get myself ahead in the tiebreaker.”
Keys moves on to face Johanna Konta in the semifinals, knowing that a run to the title would secure her a debut at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.
“Jo is playing really well. I mean, at this point everyone’s trying to qualify, everyone’s trying to play their good tennis at the end of the year,” Keys added. “Pretty much whoever you play is going to be a tough match.”
