Kvitova Rolls Past Zhang, Into Zhuhai Final
Petra Kvitova continued her stellar second half of 2016 with a two-set win over Chinese No.1 Zhang Shuai, putting her into the final of the Huajin Securities WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai.
Petra Kvitova continued her stellar second half of 2016 with a two-set win over Chinese No.1 Zhang Shuai, putting her into the final of the Huajin Securities WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai.
Barbora Strycova, Samantha Stosur, Elina Svitolina, Elena Vesnina or Johanna Konta – who hit the shot of the tournament at the WTA Elite Trophy?
1) Caroline Wozniacki is back in action.
A right ankle injury sidelined Wozniacki for all of the clay season, and the Dane is looking to make her comeback in Nottingham. She hasn’t played a WTA match since Miami and her ranking has plunged to No.34 – can she start her comeback on grass?
2) Can Cagla Buyukakcay keep making history?
The 26-year-old Turk is one to watch at the Aegon Open Nottingham: after making Turkish history in Istanbul and Paris, Buyukakcay starts her Wimbledon tune up at Nottingham, where she’s set to meet No.3 seed Caroline Wozniacki in the first round.
3) Defending champion Ana Konjuh faces a setback.
2015 Nottingham champion Ana Konjuh looked to be in good form after her run at the WTA Bol Open 125K before a lower back injury forced her to retire in the semifinals. Will she be recovered in time for Nottingham?
4) Don’t call it a comeback for Vicky Duval…
The American Vicky Duval is entering her second tournament of 2016 at Nottingham after undergoing knee surgery following the Australian Open. She’s up against the No.2 seed Johanna Konta in the first round.
5) …Or for Laura Robson.
With a clean bill of health and back on home soil again, former British No.1 Laura Robson is looking to make the best of her protected ranking at Nottingham. First up for the wildcard? Defending champion Ana Konjuh.
6) Belinda Bencic returns to Den Bosch going for one better…
No.1 seed Belinda Bencic is hoping to improve her run to the final in ‘s-Hertogenbosch last year.
7) …And she’s not the only one.
Besides Bencic, there are two other former ‘s-Hertogenbosch finalists in the draw: Kirsten Flipkens (2013) and Jelena Jankovic (2007) are both looking for their first title at the Ricoh Open. 2014 champion CoCo Vandeweghe is back as well.
8) It’s anyone’s game in Den Bosch.
With defending champion Camila Giorgi and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova out due to injury, No.8 Belinda Bencic is the highest ranked player at the Ricoh Open. Can Bencic capitalize on the opportunity or will a new name make her mark?
9) Can Kiki Bertens keep up the momentum?
The on-fire Bertens has built up quite the winning streak: she’s won 12 of 13 matches by claiming her second WTA title at Nurnberg and reaching her first Grand Slam final at Roland Garros. But as the season turns to grass, can Bertens keep it up?
10) And see where you can watch action from Nottingham and ‘s-Hertogenbosch on TennisTV!
Serena Williams takes on Kiki Bertens in the semifinals of Roland Garros.
Minutes after her tough 7-5, 6-4 loss to Garbiñe Muguruza in the Roland Garros final, Serena Williams walked directly into her post-match press conference. She was as open and honest as she felt she could be after minimal time to process the match, the loss, and her emotions.
Q: Are you the type of person who can kind of let this match go quickly, or will you beat yourself up about it for a few days?
SERENA WILLIAMS: I don’t really know right now. I’m just — obviously it’s not something I’m like, Oh, it’s over with. It’s definitely something I want to dissect and see what I can learn from that and what can I do to get better from it. That’s the only way to keep improving.
On Wednesday, Serena turned to social media to tell the world how she really felt. “I was pissed, I have to admit,” she said in a video posted by Uninterrupted. “I thought I could’ve played better, I thought I could’ve competed better, I thought I could’ve really done everything five times better. And I didn’t, and I was so pissed that I actually abandoned my rackets in France after maybe a few smashes of the racket bag.”
VIDEO: @SerenaWilliams on French Open loss: “I'm going to take a moment to be super honest … I was really pissed.”https://t.co/qJzaGOjrJZ
— UNINTERRUPTED (@uninterrupted) June 8, 2016
Thankfully Serena’s speech did not end there. Not to worry, tennis fans. The World No.1 is already back on court preparing for her assault on Wimbledon, where she will once again be the defending champion and aim to match the Open Era record of 22 major titles.
Said Serena: “I’m out here [on court] by myself because sometimes by yourself is when the great things really happen.”
Here’s what Serena said in its entirety:
“So I’m going to take a moment to be super candid and super honest.
“After Paris, the final, which is great, you know, for everyone on this planet with the exception of me — I don’t do what everyone else does — I was really pissed, I have to admit. I thought I could’ve played better, I thought I could’ve competed better, I thought I could’ve really done everything five times better. And I didn’t, and I was so pissed that I actually abandoned my rackets in France after maybe a few smashes of the racket bag. I felt like if I was going to play that awful and that crappy, that maybe I don’t need rackets. Maybe I can just show up to a tournament, and maybe I can get to a final without playing great, and without practice.
“But obviously that doesn’t work and sometimes you have to work extra hard. So I’m out here by myself because sometimes by yourself is when the great things really happen.”
Capturing the Indian Wells-Miami “Sunshine Double” is no easy feat, but Victoria Azarenka and Bethanie Mattek-Sands made it look easy in March, taking home both titles at the BNP Paribas Open and Miami Open in singles and doubles (with CoCo Vandeweghe and Lucie Safarova), respectively. Who else made waves in the midst of the Sunshine Swing?
Azarenka’s Spring Surge
The former No.1 started 2016 ranked outside the Top 20, but Azarenka was on a mission from first ball at Indian Wells, roaring to her biggest career title and first Premier Mandatory crown since 2012.
After double bageling Magdalena Rybarikova in the last eight, she survived a topsy-turvy semifinal encounter with future US Open finalist Karolina Pliskova before stunning then-World No.1 Serena Williams, who was playing her first final in the California desert since 2001.
Azarenka says her forehand return has improved, can hit more angles, winners from that side. Other game tweaks: pic.twitter.com/k2z4vkokuV
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) March 16, 2016
“I believe I’m a stronger, faster, and a smarter player,” she told WTA Insider after the final. “I find ways to win when some other things don’t work. I’ve improved my serve a lot. I’m mentally way happier, and I have people with whom I see no limitations.”
The win brought her back into the Top 10 for the first time in nearly two years, and put her in position for the elusive Sunshine Double.
Azarenka Strikes Two In Miami
Azarenka was even more emphatic in Miami, winning her third title of the season without dropping a set in sunny Florida.
The most impressive match came against eventual Roland Garros champion Garbiñe Muguruza, whom the Belarusian narrowly eliminated in a pair of tie-breaks. Azarenka went on to avenge her Australian Open defeat to Angelique Kerber in the semifinals and dismiss surprise finalist Svetlana Kuznetsova in straight sets.
Champagne taste and caviar dreams for @vika7 @MiamiOpen. pic.twitter.com/fCH9do3e2J
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) April 2, 2016
Back in the Top 5, she appeared on course to challenge for even bigger titles as the tour turned to clay.
“It’s been a really long month and to be able to contain this determination and that intensity throughout all the matches is definitely not an easy task,” she told WTA Insider. “The last couple of days especially has been a lot of expectations and pressure from the outside to complete the Sunshine Double.
“I’m very proud that I kept myself present, kept myself really focused and focused on the job before anything else.”
Mattek-Sands Serves Double Trouble
While Azarenka dominated a compelling month of singles, Mattek-Sands was cleaning things up in doubles with two different partners across Indian Wells and Miami.
First partnering up with CoCo Vandeweghe, the Americans upset No.2 seeds Chan Yung-Jan and Chan Hao-Ching and No.3 seeds Timea Babos and Yaroslava Shvedova en route to the final, where they narrowly outlasted Julia Goerges and Karolina Pliskova, 6-4, 4-6, 10-6.
Women's doubles champs Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Lucie Safarova have a special message for their fans. #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/ZibcZlUNTN
— Miami Open (@MiamiOpen) April 3, 2016
Moving to Miami, Mattek-Sands reunited with former partner Lucie Safarova (with whom she’d captured the Australian Open and French Open last year), and ran the table to win the tournament without dropping a set, defeating Babos and Shvedova in the final.
The second half of the Sunshine Double proved ample foreshadowing for Mattek-Sands, who went on to win the US Open with Safarova and ride an 18-match winning streak into the final of the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.
Elsewhere…
A trio of veterans struck gold through the post-Aussie Indoor and Middle East Swing, with Roberta Vinci, Carla Suárez Navarro, and Sara Errani taking home titles in St. Petersburg, Doha, and Dubai, respectively. Vinci’s run in Russia helped her become the oldest Top 10 debutante in WTA history, while runner-up Belinda Bencic became the youngest since 2009 to make her Top 10 debut. Suárez Navarro earned the biggest title of her career, outlasting the charge of young hotshot Jelena Ostapenko, while Errani won a battle of veterans by knocking out Barbora Strycova in Dubai.
All photos courtesy of Getty Images.
NOTTINGHAM, England – Top seed Karolina Pliskova overcame Alison Riske in a rain-affected Aegon Open Nottingham final on Sunday to capture her fifth WTA title.
Afternoon showers pushed the start of play back a couple of hours, at one point even raising the possibility of a Monday final. When the clouds did eventually clear, Pliskova held her nerve to triumph 7-6(8), 7-5, in a fraction under two hours.
Just as she had in her quarterfinal victory over Ashleigh Barty, Pliskova was forced to come from set points down in the opening set tie-break, a feat that gave her added satisfaction.
“It feels good to win, especially after all those tie-breaks this week. All of those I was set point down, so I’m really happy that I made it and that I have the trophy in my hands,” Pliskova said. “Today there were parts of the match when I was better and parts when she was.
“I really needed my serve today and some aces got me out of some important moments. She has a great game on grass so I needed to be at my best today to get the win.”
Early on Pliskova threatened to run away with the contest, moving swiftly into a 3-1 lead. However, Riske, who went into the final on a nine-match winning streak having claimed the ITF Circuit title in Eastbourne last week, was never likely to go quietly.
Indeed, after breaking back in the sixth game she looked the more likely winner of the opening set, carving out three sets points at 4-5, then another three during a dramatic tie-break. The second set was equally frustrating for the American, who served for it at 5-4, only to see Pliskova reel off the final three games, completing her Houdini-esque escape with a wonderful crosscourt pass.
Not many better ways to seal a title! @KaPliskova hits a stunning pass to seal the #AegonOpen Nottingham title!https://t.co/ONEAghEKvq
— British Tennis (@BritishTennis) 12 June 2016
The Czech now makes the short trip west to further fine-tune her Wimbledon preparation at the Aegon Classic Birmingham. “It’s been a great week for me, I really didn’t count on having such early success on the grass so I am feeling good ahead of Wimbledon,” she added.
“I am just happy with the matches I have played, I have got some hours on the grass now and I can go to Birmingham and even if I don’t do anything there I have some matches under my belt ahead of Wimbledon.”
In the doubles final Andrea Hlavackova and Peng Shuai got the better of No.4 seeds Gabriela Dabrowski and Yang Zhaoxuan, 7-5, 3-6, 10-7.
It took her a few tries, but Peng Shuai finally got a hang of the WTA Frame Challenge. How well did she do? Well, that’s a different story…
MALLORCA, Spain – Right before they’re set to shine at the inaugural Mallorca Open – an brand new International-level grass event that kicked off this week in beautiful Santa Ponsa, Mallorca – some of the WTA’s biggest stars shined at the official player party held earlier this week.
Garbiñe Muguruza, Ana Ivanovic, Eugenie Bouchard, Jelena Jankovic and more all stepped out for the sun-soaked celebration.
See all of the best player party pictures right here on wtatennis.com, courtesy of the Mallorca Open:
BIRMINGHAM, England – Madison Keys got her grass court season up and running with a rollercoaster win over Timea Babos at the Aegon Classic Birmingham.
Watch live action from Birmingham and Mallorca this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
After threatening to run away with the contest early on, Keys was left hanging on in the end, eventually closing out a 7-6(3), 6-4 victory in an hour and 26 minutes.
Keys is an accomplished grass court player – she reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals 12 months ago and lifted the Eastbourne title in 2015 – but admitted afterwards that she is still finding her feet. “I think for the most part, I played pretty well. I think I started off really well, and then there’s definitely some bad moments in there,” Keys said.
“First match on grass is always really tough. She’s a really good player on grass, especially serving-wise. So it’s always tough to get a read returning. So overall, I was happy I was able to win, but definitely have some things to work.”
At first, though, Keys could do no wrong, coming out following a lengthy rain delay to win 12 of the first 14 points, cruising into a 5-2 lead. Babos hung doggedly onto the American’s coattails and got her reward in the ninth game, capitalizing on some loose play to break back.
Leading 3-1 in the subsequent tie-break, it was Babos’ turn to suffer a lapse of concentration, looping an inviting mid-court ball into the net. She would not win another point, sending another forehand into the net to surrender the set.
The second set followed a similar pattern, Keys starting and finishing the stronger to book her place in the second round before the rain returned.
“I think grass is one of those surfaces where when you’re playing well, you can play really well and it goes quick. But when you’re playing badly, it amplifies everything,” she added. “I think it’s important when you’re playing well to stay focused and not get ahead of yourself, and when you’re playing badly, slow things down and take a second and try to reassess.”
Also dodging the downpours to record a win was former Wimbledon junior champion Jelena Ostapenko, who saw off Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, 7-6(2), 6-1. While in the final round of qualifying, there were wins for Tsvetana Pironkova, Tamira Paszek, Christina McHale and Katerina Siniakova.