My Performance: Johanna Konta
Johanna Konta talks through her victory in the final of the Miami Open.
Johanna Konta talks through her victory in the final of the Miami Open.
Kirsten Flipkens, Elena Vesnina, Bethanie Mattek-Sands, Venus Williams, and Caroline Wozniacki – who will win March’s WTA Shot Of The Month presented by Cambridge Global Payments? Vote now!
Women hear a lot of obnoxious things in their daily lives. World No.1 Serena Williams is ready to do something about it.
In conjunction with her fabulous cover story for Glamour Magazine, Serena starred in a video in which she hit back – literally – at some of the sexist things she and so many women have heard in their every day lives.
“Today I’m here to express some of the frustrations that I have about the obnoxious things that men sometimes say about women,” Serena says in the video. “I’m doing this for all womenkind. I’m kinda doing it a little bit for me, on the low.”
So what are some of the comments that drew Serena’s ire, compelling her to thwack a tennis ball at her padded-up co-star Alec?
– You’re really talented…for a girl.
– You should smile more!
– It’s okay that you’re upset. Girls are supposed to get emotional!
– You get really loud when you play, like really loud.
– Stop being so dramatic!
– So how much time do you spend picking out your competition outfits?
– Do you think you could ever beat a guy, just once?
– Only guy’s sports are worth watching.
Yeah. Don’t say those things. Especially to Serena.
Watch the full video here.
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova thanks her fans after winning the Abierto GNP Seguros.
CHARLESTON, SC, USA – In the first all-teen WTA final since 2009, Daria Kasatkina knocked out former junior colleague Jelena Ostapenko, 6-3, 6-1, to win her first WTA title at the Volvo Car Open.
“It’s very difficult to describe my feeling now,” she said in her post-victory press conference. “I feel I’m just sleeping and everything is not real. I’m so happy. Really.”
Kasatkina and Ostapenko took back-to-back Grand Slam titles back in 2014, the Russian winning the girls’ French Open while the Latvian swept the junior Wimbledon Championships, and the two have been on a collision course since making their WTA debuts the following year.
Ostapenko was in her third career final after finishing runner-up at the Tournoi de Québec in 2015 and the Qatar Total Open in 2016, and won their only previous tour-level meeting last year at the Aegon International in Eastbourne.
But Kasatkina proved far more at home on clay after earning wins over Olympic champion Monica Puig, good friend Daria Gavrilova, No.10 seed Irina-Camelia Begu, and clay court specialist Laura Siegemund en route to her first final.
“Yesterday evening and all night I couldn’t sleep. I woke up during the whole night like two or three times. I was so nervous, you cannot imagine. I was feeling like, I want to just go on the court and everything, let’s finish, play. I cannot feeling this anymore. But now it was worth it.”
.@DKasatkina turns defense into attack! #VolvoCarOpen pic.twitter.com/f1CRBWoXoG
— WTA (@WTA) April 9, 2017
The pair exchanged early breaks to start the match; Ostapenko won a long sixth game to level the opening set only to see Kasatkina run away with the contest from there, losing just one more game in the 66-minute match.
“I was ready to be on the court five, six hours. Because it’s a final, I have to be ready for everything, but I’m happy that I finished it in, let’s say, an easy way. So I am very happy and proud of myself.
“When I won the last ball, everything like closed and I just feel like I’m dreaming.”
Playing clean, consistent tennis, Kasatkina struck just six winners to the Latvian’s 25, but also only seven unforced errors to Ostapenko’s 38, and converted five of seven break point chances over two sets.
“Today, the tactic was to be a little bit more defensive, go back, spin, slice the ball because it’s clay, and she’s playing really aggressive. Usually she beats aggressive players because she likes this type of game, everything. So we decided that I have to go back and make her tired. It was a good tactic, I think.”
“I was playing good all the days this week,” Ostapenko said after the match. “I beat some great players, but today was really not my day, and I just didn’t feel the ball that well. I was missing too much, and because she was defending during the whole match. It was just probably not my day.
“I think I got a bit more consistent on clay, and I think I improved my serve and I’m moving better, but I still have a lot of things to work on. I think it’s pretty good because now I can climb in the ranking.”
First #WTA Title!@DKasatkina races past Ostapenko 6-3, 6-1 to win @VolvoCarOpen! pic.twitter.com/yYmKy299Qp
— WTA (@WTA) April 9, 2017
The Russian will move back into the Top 30 after the win as she aims to return to Roland Garros as a seed for the second straight year, while Ostapenko returns to the Top 50 following her impressive week and wins over former No.1 Caroline Wozniacki and Australian Open semifinalist Mirjana Lucic-Baroni.
Kasatkina joins an illustrious list of former champions, including Stefanie Graf, Martina Navratilova, Martina Hingis, and Venus Williams. None of that had quite sunk in with the 19-year-old so soon after the match.
“I need to prepare for these things. It never happened to me before. So little bit makeup for the pictures!” she said when asked about a post-victory portrait.
“I don’t realize it yet, so I’m just enjoying it every moment, every second. And really, when I was on the court after the last point, I just wanted the moment to stop because it was one of the best moments in my life.”
.@DKasatkina fights back the tears during champion's speech #VolvoCarOpen pic.twitter.com/g5SW68mjMD
— WTA (@WTA) April 9, 2017
Earlier in the day, World No.1 Bethanie Mattek-Sands took her third title of the year, and second with partner Lucie Safarova, overcoming a tough test from BNP Paribas Open finalists Lucie Hradecka and Katerina Siniakova, 6-1, 4-6, 10-7.
All photos courtesy of the Volvo Car Open.
The WTA’s Top 9 stayed the same after a week of action on the green clay of Charleston, where Daria Kasatkina took home her maiden title at the Volvo Car Open, and in Monterrey where Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova powered to a fourth Abierto GNP Seguros title.
The only major change in the Top 10 is the return of Madison Keys, who knocked out Venus Williams and leapfrogged Caroline Wozniacki to rise from No.11 to No.10.
Wozniacki was a win away from returning to the Top 10 for the first time since September 2015, but she was denied the chance by an inspired Jelena Ostapenko in the Charleston quarterfinals.
Here are the biggest ranking movers this week after Charleston and Monterrey:
Jelena Ostapenko +16 (No.66 to No.50): 19-year-old Ostapenko reached the third final of her career – and her first final on clay – at the Volvo Car Open this week. She took down a pair of seeds along the way, knocking out No.5 Caroline Wozniacki and No.11 Mirjana Lucic-Baroni. As a result, she’s earned herself a spot back inside the WTA’s Top 50.
Daria Kasatkina +13 (No.42 to No.29): Not only did 19-year-old Kasatkina reach her first WTA singles final in Charleston, but she also went all the way and took home her maiden WTA after a commanding win over Ostapenko. Her impressive performance sends her rocketing up the rankings, landing inside the Top 30 at No.29.
Shelby Rogers +3 (No.52 to No.49): It was an emotional week for Charleston native Rogers. She entered her home tournament with just one main draw win under her belt and admitted to struggling in front of her home crowd. But all that changed this week, where she put together an inspiring run to the quarterfinals, posting back-to-back wins over top seed Madison Keys and Naomi Osaka along the way. She lands at No.49, just one spot removed from her career-high of No.48.
Carla Suárez Navarro +2 (No.25 to No.23): After spending the last few years inside the WTA’s Top 20, Suárez Navarro’s ranking took a hit when a shoulder injury forced her off the tennis courts at the start of 2017. The Spaniard missed the Australian and Middle Eastern swings, and found herself outside the Top 20 for the first time since 2013. She turned it all around in Monterrey, halting her slide down the rankings with an impressive run to the semifinals.
Click here to check out the updated WTA rankings as of April 10.
The players at the Claro Open Colsanitas enjoyed traditional Colombian cuisine and tunes from the band JOLIE at the annual players’ party.
With this week’s WTA rankings used to determine the French Open entry list, former champion Francesca Schiavone headlines the week’s biggest movers and shakers.
Hometown Heroes Hingis & Bencic Hold Court In Biel/Bienne
Children attending the Ladies Open Biel Bienne over the weekend got to get a glimpse of two of their country’s biggest WTA stars, as Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic and Martina Hingis participated in the tournament’s Kids’ Day festivities, organized by Swiss Tennis.
Check out all the best photos of Bencic and Hingis on Biel/Bienne Kids Day right here!
A Peak Behind The Scenes In Bogota
Meanwhile in Bogota, a group of kids from the Colombian children’s charity ICBF got a special treat on Kids’ Day at the Claro Open Colsanitas. They were invited to a tour of the grounds and practice courts, as well as getting the chance to meet some of the areas’ biggest tennis stars.
See more photos from their behind-the-scenes tour right here!
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Click here to see more WTA Charities activities!
No. 1 seed Peng Shuai and No.2 seed Wang Qiang advanced in straight sets and will square off for the title at the Biyuan Cup Zhangzhou.