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Schiavone, Rogers Reach Rio Final

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil – Former World No.4 and 2010 French Open champion Francesca Schiavone reached her first WTA final since 2013 with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Petra Martic.

Playing in her first WTA semifinal in nearly 18 months (2014, Hong Kong), Schiavone put down four aces and won 84% of points behind her first serve against Martic, herself a former World No.42 who one made the second week of Roland Garros back in 2012.

It had been a difficult start to 2016 for Schiavone, who missed out on a 62nd consecutive Grand Slam main draw appearance when she fell in the second round of qualifying at the Australian Open.

“When I chose Rio, I chose it mainly because it was clay,” Schiavone said in her post-match press conference. “I remembered the conditions here being very difficult, so I trained as much as is possible for me to prepare myself on clay to be ready for the heat and the effort.

“Obviously when you come here, you try to prepare as much as you can, but you don’t think ‘I’m going there to win it,’ no, no. It’s a wonderful surprise; it’s been a long time since I’ve had this big a result, so I’m taking it as it comes.”

Schiavone next plays resurgent American Shelby Rogers. Playing her first WTA main draw since the Coupe Banque Nationale last fall, Rogers ended the excellent adventure of Sorana Cirstea, a former World No.21 who had amassed a 12-1 record heading into the semifinal by reaching back-to-back finals at two Challenger tournaments in Brazil.

“It feels amazing. I’ve had a really great week, played some good matches,” Rogers said in her post-match press conference. “I got a little momentum at the beginning, but this year has been good so far; I’ve already played a lot of matches, so that’s been a big help.

“Winning this many matches in a row and playing very well is definitely a confidence-builder, but I’ve also had to fight through some tough moments in those matches. Those are where I really get confidence from, so hopefully I can carry that into tomorrow and through the rest of the year.”

Rogers won, 6-4, 6-4, and will be playing Schiavone for the first time in what will be her second career WTA final (Schiavone’s 18th).

“Rogers is a player I don’t know very well,” Schiavone said. “But it’s going to be interesting. A final is really a 50-50 chance.”

In doubles, Veronica Cepede Royg and María Irigoyen captured the doubles final with a 6-1, 7-6(5) win over Tara Moore and Conny Perrin. For Paraguay’s Cepede Royg, the Rio Open is her first WTA title of any king, while Irigoyen won her only previous WTA title back in 2014, playing doubles in Rio with Irina-Camelia Begu.

“I want to thank my partner for the amazing week we had here in Rio,” Cepede Royg said after the match. “I’m really happy for winning my first WTA title in Rio.:

“This is such an enchanting place and the city is beautiful,” Irigoyen added. “I love coming here, people are really receptive and it was a special week.”

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News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Andy Murray believes fellow Brit Johanna Konta can capitalise on Serena Williams’ absence and become World No.1.

The 23-time Grand Slam winner confirmed on Wednesday that she and fiancé Alexis Ohanian are expecting their first child and will not return until 2018.

Murray, the World No.1 in the men’s game late last year feels his compatriot can replicate his achievements over the coming year, having reached the Top 10 and narrowly missed out on qualification for the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global in 2016.

“It’s been pretty much 18 months where she’s played at a level where she’s in the top seven or eight players in the world,” he said in The Guardian. 

“She was close to getting to Singapore last year and she’s in with a good shot of doing it this year.

“I’m sure for all of the women, with Serena out, it’s going to be tough to predict. If she steps up her game there’s no reason why she can’t get close to the top.”

Konta has enjoyed an excellent start to 2017, having won the Apia Sydney International in January before claiming the biggest title of her career at the Miami Open earlier this month.

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CNN Open Court: Hingis' Olympic Dream

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Martina Hingis’ list of accomplishments on the tennis court is as long as it is impressive.

With five Grand Slam titles in singles, a further 16 in doubles and a combined total of 250 weeks at the top of the rankings, there is not much of note left to achieve on the career checklist.

However, ask the Swiss Miss and she will admit there is one glaring omission: an Olympic medal.

Her sole Games experience came at Atlanta in 1996, when a 15th-seeded Hingis, still a few months shy of her 16th birthday, slipped to a second-round defeat to Ai Sugiyama.

Since coming out of retirement for a second time in 2013, Hingis has enjoyed great success, adding six trophies to her major collection, three alongside India’s Sania Mirza, at Wimbledon and the US and Australian Opens.

For one week this summer, though, Hingis and Mirza will park their all-conquering partnership. Among the frontrunners to pair up with Hingis in Rio will be Belinda Bencic, who partnered Hingis to victory in the decisive rubber of Switzerland’s recent Fed Cup win over Germany. 

Hingis will also appear in the mixed doubles, and to help achieve her Olympic goal she has enlisted the help of another all-time great, Roger Federer – a dream team that was among the subjects touched on by CNN’s Open Court.

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Stephens Downs Osaka In Acapulco

Stephens Downs Osaka In Acapulco

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

ACAPULCO, Mexico – No.2 seeded Sloane Stephens booked her spot in the semifinals at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel with a commanding win over Naomi Osaka, 6-3, 7-5.

Watch live action from Doha & Acapulco this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!

It had been a dream week for Osaka in the Mexican paradise of Acapulco – the Japanese wildcard made her first ever WTA quarterfinal and in the last round ousted Mariana Duque-Mariño in straight sets after saving a set point in the second.

But lying in wait in the quarterfinal was big-hitting American Sloane Stephens, who already knew what to expect from the 18-year-old.

“I was playing a girl who is younger than me who’s been playing really well lately,” Stephens said. “I knew it was going to be tough going into it.”

Stephens got the first break of the tense first set at 4-3. Osaka almost hung on fiercely in the five-minute game, running around her backhand to blast her huge forehands and saving two break points, but to no avail. Stephens grabbed the next two games to close out the set at 6-3.

Osaka grabbed the first break of the final set, but Stephens broke back in reply, keeping them level until she broke Osaka at 5-3. The Japanese edged her way back after a nervy game from Stephens while she was serving for the match at 5-4 – Stephens was broken at love after a double fault on break point. She righted the ship when it counted, though, and broke for the match at 7-5.

With her title in Auckland earlier this year and a semifinal appearance here in Acapulco, this has been Stephens’ best start to the season since 2013.

“It’s only February, so there’s a lot of tennis to be played this year,” the American said. “I’m happy that I’ve had such a good start so I’m just trying to keep the momentum going.”

Yanina Wickmayer

Awaiting Stephens in the next round is No.8 seed Yanina Wickmayer, who is into her first WTA semifinal of the year after a straight sets win over Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, 6-3, 7-6(3).

Though Yanina Wickmayer leads their head to head 2-1, the record hides just how their encounters have been – all of their previous matches have gone to three sets. This time, Pavlyuchenkova looked like she had an edge; she hasn’t lost a set here in Acapulco and was into her third quarterfinal of the year while Wickmayer had to come back from a set down in each of her previous matches.

The Belgian player is into her first WTA semifinal of the year and her first since winning the Tokyo International in 2015.

On the other side of the draw, Dominika Cibulkova faced her first big test at Acapulco against No.7 seed Johanna Larsson.

Cibulkova has had a smooth ride to the quarterfinals so far – she won her first round match in a 6-0, 6-0 beatdown and received a walkover in the last match as a result of Victoria Azarenka’s withdrawal. But it turned out to be a blessing in disguise for the Slovakian player.

“It helped me today to be more ready because yesterday I had the day off,” Cibulkova said.

“Today was really tough physically – I had the first match of the day and it was really humid and hot. So yeah, I think it really helped me to have yesterday off.”

Cibulkova was in trouble early on, still adjusting to the tough conditions and dropping the first set 6-3. It was just a matter of time before the former Top 10 Slovak got going, upping her serves and finding the lines with her booking groundstrokes to take the second 6-2. Larsson handed Cibulkova match point while she was serving to stay in the match at 5-3, then helped her seal the match burying a return into the net, 3-6, 6-2, 6-3.

Up next Cibulkova is set to face Christina McHale in a rematch of the 2014 Acapulco final. The unseeded American defeated Mirjana Lucic-Baroni 6-4, 6-7(6), 6-2.

“It’s going to be a really tough match,” Cibulkova said. “We are already in the semifinals and we’re all feeling the heat. The more ready player is going to win tomorrow.”

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Vote: February's Player Of The Month

Vote: February's Player Of The Month

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

It’s time to vote for February’s WTA Player of the Month!

Have a look at the nominees and cast your vote before Thursday at 11:59pm ET! The winner will be announced Friday, March 4.

February 2016 WTA Player Of The Month Finalists

Roberta Vinci: The 33-year-old Italian continued her career renaissance in February, all capped off when she became the oldest woman to make her Top 10 debut following a title run at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy. No.2 seed in St. Petersburg, Vinci earned back-to-back wins over former No.1 Ana Ivanovic and top seeded Belinda Bencic, who recently became the youngest new member of the Top 10 in six years. A finalist at last year’s US Open, Vinci played some spectacular tennis through the Middle Eastern Swing, as well, narrowly losing a classic to World No.3 Agnieszka Radwanska in Doha.

Sara Errani: Not to be outdone, Errani displayed vintage form through the Middle East Swing, winning the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships over Barbora Strycova in the final. Playing doubles with Carla Suárez Navarro, Errani also excelled on the doubles court, reaching the semis in Dubai and the final at the Qatar Total Open, losing to sisters Chan Hao-Ching and Chan Yung-Jan. Her run in Dubai brought her back into the Top 20 and her highest ranking since last August at No.17.

Carla Suárez Navarro: The Spaniard ended the Middle East Swing with a bang – and a win in Doha – defeating 18-year-old Jelena Ostapenko, 1-6, 6-4, 6-4 in the final. Along with her solid doubles results, Suárez Navarro dropped just two games against Radwanska in the semifinals, and rocketed up to a career-high ranking of No.6. The veteran declared a Top 5 ranking to be her goal in 2016, and has nearly accomplished that feat in two months following a strong start to the season that also saw her reach the quarterfinals of the Australian Open. 

February WTA Player Of The Month

2016 Winners

January: Angelique Kerber

How it works:

Finalists are selected by wtatennis.com
Winner is then determined by a fan vote on wtatennis.com

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