Charleston: Monica Puig's Shot Of The Day
Check out Monica Puig’s shot of the day at the Volvo Car Open!
Check out Monica Puig’s shot of the day at the Volvo Car Open!
MELBOURNE, Australia – World No. 4 Agnieszka Radwanska booked her spot in the Australian Open semifinals for the second time, winning over Carla Suárez Navarro 6-1, 6-3 in the first match of the day on Rod Laver Arena.
The match was billed as a meeting of two of the more cerebral players on tour – both rely on craftiness and shot variety to win in an era dominated by big hitters. The pair had faced each other before, with Radwanska winning three of the four encounters but Suárez Navarro – who was looking for a spot in her first Grand Slam semifinal – won their most recent match.
“We had really tough matches in the past,” Suárez Navarro stated in the previous round’s post-match press conference. “I know it will be tough for me. I know that because of her style, you have to run a lot, you have to think every point what to do.”
Suárez Navarro and Radwanska had fought through tough and emotional fourth round matches, where both had to come back from a set down to advance. But at the quarterfinal stage, their matchup was much more straight forward.
Radwanska took the lead from the start, breaking Suárez Navarro’s serve in the first game then winning the next five out of six to close out the set, 6-1. The Spaniard gave more of a pushback in the second set; she broke Radwanska’s serve twice and hung tight at 3-3. But from then it was all Radwanska, who won the next three games and the match at 6-3.
Suárez Navarro found herself unable to keep pace with Radwanska’s all court game – she hit 45 unforced errors while Radwanska, who is typically stingy with the errors, hit just 13.
The Polish No.4 seed has now won 22 of her last 23 matches and is through to the semifinals, where she’s set to face the winner of the blockbuster quarterfinal match between Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams. She trails both players in their head-to-head, 0-8 to Williams and 2-13 to Sharapova, so she’s approaching Thursday’s match by not letting the pressure weigh her down.
“Right now I don’t really have anything to lose,” Radwanska told Rennae Stubbs after the match. “It doesn’t matter who I’m going to play against.
“I’m going to have a good rest and hope I can play my best tennis. Otherwise I’m going to be in big trouble.”
What did the top seeds have to say on Day 1 of the Western & Southern Open? Check out some of their best quotes from the All-Access Hour from Cincinnati…
Svetlana Kuznetsova
On her pre-season goals and strategy:
Before the start of the year, I was thinking if I couldn’t do better, or at least how I think I should do, I don’t know what would come next. So I wanted to give this year everything I could. I didn’t have a fitness coach for preparation, but I did it myself and for the first time, I won a tournament in the first three weeks of the season in Sydney. I felt better mentally because maybe sometimes you start to figure out how your brain and mentality works. You find keys to yourself.
On forming the right team:
I don’t think I’m special, but it’s hard to find the right people to be your coach or physio because it’s like life; to find a boyfriend, you need time. You need to find someone you like, who you understand and understand you. A lot of times, a person comes onto your team and tries to change everything. But I’m 31, I’m not 16 anymore; everyone has to listen and adjust. Maybe our styles will clash, and so it’s very hard for me to say, I’m going to get a new person. With Carlos, it took us two-three years, but now we know each other. He knows how I am in the morning. I’m really happy with this new fitness coach I got a few weeks ago, but I want to be careful about forming the right team.
On growing up with professional athletes for parents:
It was very tough, but at the same time, I had an education most kids don’t. I’ve analyzed how a lot of kids grow up and I’ve asked why they’re not as professional or have the same desire or why we don’t have such great athletes coming up. It’s because when they grow up, they go to normal school and see normal kids living normal lives. Our lives are not normal, so these kids ask themselves at 13-14, ‘Why would I practice five hours when I can party and have fun?’ I grew up in my father’s club, and it was like a combination of college and the army where you stay there full time. You’re not allowed to go home or go out to the club. I was with guys who were training, and I enjoyed getting up at seven in the morning to run with them. It wasn’t hard because I got used to it and had no doubts.
Dominika Cibulkova
On taking time off to heal from injuries and post-wedding fatigue:
I needed a break from everything. I was a little bit injured during the Olympics, so I took some time off. But now I feel I’m ready to be back on the court again. At the Rogers Cup, it was a combination of a heel injury I had and just being really tired from everything, and I realized I needed some time off; I’d played too much. I took a whole week completely off; I had some holidays, and then I trained for a week and a half. Hopefully I can have a good result here, because I’ve only won one match here in the last six years.
On changing her scheduling strategy for the US summer hardcourts.
It’s not like I’ve been in America for a whole month already and have three more tournaments to play. I’m just focusing on Cincinnati and the US Open; it’s different when you’re able to go back home and come back feeling like, ‘I want to be here and play this tournament!’ I had a really good week of training and feeling better with my fitness; this year I played so many matches that I didn’t have time for fitness. For my game, that’s really important, so hopefully it’ll help me.
Roberta Vinci
On her goals for the season:
Last year I had an incredible year, but I’m not thinking about retirement right now. I just want to play through the end of the season, trying to play good. I have a lot of points to defend but I don’t want to think about that, just enjoy every day here and the next few tournaments. I started well at the beginning of the year, but this is a tough part of the season with the ranking and everything. But it’s normal. It’s tennis, you can win, or you can lose. I’ll try my best here, New Haven, New York, and China.
On the US Open:
I’m so happy to play again in New York. But it probably won’t be the same like last year, a lot of pressure, for sure. It’s a special tournament for me. I don’t know; we will see. It’ll be my first time in this situation. I know I have a lot of points to defend; it’s on my mind, that’s it. I’ll try not to think about it, but I know I’ll be nervous.
Garbiñe Muguruza
On the Olympics:
I have to say, I thought I was going to an incredible experience, but after I got there, it was like a regular tournament. But I had a lot of fun because it was still different than the WTA; I spent time in the Village with all the Spanish players. I was looking at all the athletes trying to guess what they did. I went to the Opening Ceremonies and I was doubting whether I should go because I had a match the next day. But I knew I’d regret not going. It was like a Carnival, so it was very fun.
On transitioning back to the WTA tour:
I was happy to live the experience in Rio, and I’m happy to be back. Coming here, I’m motivated to have a great tournament because I haven’t played a lot of matches. I’m looking forward to it.
On Monica Puig:
It’s an incredible achievement. When I played against her, I’d never seen her play at such a high level. When I ended the match, I thought it was tough for me, but she played very well and deserved to win the gold, the way she played.
Agnieszka Radwanska
On her flight to Cincinnati and the Olympics:
It couldn’t be worse than to Rio. I tried to book a private plane, but it was too tough to do that. I was talking to other players about a private jet. I should be gold for every airline after all the miles I flew!
On positives from the Olympics:
It was still exciting to see so many sports and athletes together at the same time, fighting for the gold. I was there for a pretty short time, but I got to see some of the Games.
On rebounding from recent results:
I had a better start to the year. First of all, I didn’t do as good as I wanted to on grass. Rio was not my thing. I just hope I can get back to my game here, next week, and the US Open. I want to do better and have more chances to make it to Singapore.
Simona Halep
On missing the Olympic tennis event:
I was very disappointed that I had to decide not to go there, but it was much better for my health. It’s not easy for me to travel a lot and eat in different places, but it was definitely a great Olympics in Romania because they made the men’s doubles final. I’m disappointed, but I’ll prepare myself for Tokyo! We can say Olympic tennis is not like gymnastics, but there you go to play for your country and winning a medal means a lot for any athlete. I played once already in London and I enjoyed the feeling of being there and the Opening Ceremonies.
On watching Olympic sports and Monica Puig’s Gold Medal run:
I watched everything. In gymnastics, Simone [Biles] is whoah, incredible. I also watched Phelps. I know everything now. I watched the tennis final and Monica Puig played so well; she was there to win. I saw what she was saying on Twitter – I’m more into Twitter lately – how she was very motivated and confident. It was only shocking because of the ranking, but she plays well.
On moving to a warmer training base:
Nothing is for sure, but I think I’m at a level where I have to change some things to be more professional. I have to go somewhere warmer that’s better for tennis. I think I’ll go in December because it’s cold in Romania, and I get cold all the time!
On how she feels she is perceived in Romania:
They don’t realize because they don’t see me. They don’t know how hard I work every day, or how I’m practicing and playing matches even when I don’t feel good. They just see the matches and think all I do is go shopping, which I do sometimes, but not that often!
On inspiring young children to play tennis:
I’ve heard many kids have gone into tennis because of me. I think this is a good thing in our country; it’s a small country. I think it’s better for kids because these days they’re always with the tablets and phones. I have kids in my family who are two years old who already have a phone. So I give them a racquet instead of a phone!
Watch former Wimbledon semifinalist Tsvetana Pironkova attempt a game of Aussie Rules football with the help of Brandon Jack and the Sydney Swans.
Simona Halep addressed the media before the start of the Western & Southern Open. The No.3 seed is on a 10 match winning streak after back to back titles in Bucharest and Montréal.
Garbiñe Muguruza, the No.4 seed, is looking to get back to her winning ways after her maiden Grand Slam title at Roland Garros.
Meanwhile, Madrid Open semifinalist Louisa Chirico fielded questions at the Western & Southern Open’s High School Day.
She was joined by ATP player Taylor Fritz and they handed out signed tennis balls to all the fans.
Belinda Bencic was popular at Kids Day, signing autographs for young fans. She’s hoping to make a deep run here in Cincinnati, her first tournament back from injury since Wimbledon.
Karolina Pliskova also made sure to leave young fans happy with some signed tennis balls.
But it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows in Cincinnati. Clouds rolled in on Monday and the inclement weather stopped play for a couple of hours in the afternoon.
Once the sky cleared, Cincy’s tireless ballkids were out in full force to make sure the courts were dry and ready for play.
They got a sweet reward for their hard work, in the form of a visit from No.9 seed Carla Suárez Navarro.
One lucky ball girl even won a hat autographed by Suárez Navarro, too!
Not to be outdone, Halep took over the tournament’s autograph booth and doled out signed card after card.
With 15 of the WTA’s Top 20 all vying for the title at the Western & Southern Open, there’s sure to be a lot more action in store at the last big event before the US Open!
Shelby Rogers takes on Naomi Osaka at the Volvo Car Open.
CINCINNATI, OH, USA – Barbora Strycova maintained her composure to defeat Eugenie Bouchard in their rain-affected first-round encounter at the Western & Southern Open.
Watch live action from Cincinnati this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
A match scheduled second on the order of play eventually finished under the floodlights, Strycova making light of several interruptions from the weather to complete a 6-4, 6-0 victory.
“I’m not sure how I stayed focused through all of it. I think the first set was the deciding point – I was holding serve all the time and then I broke her at 3-3. I believed in myself and I’m happy that I did it,” Strycova said in her on-court interview.
Despite defeating Bouchard handily in Rome earlier in the season, there was no danger of complacency on Strycova’s part; the Canadian is a different proposition on hard as proved by impressively qualifying for the main draw.
And she started their rematch confidently enough, firing a forehand into the corner to carve out the first break point. Strycova, though, managed to repel this early danger and was soon presented with a chance of her own. Bouchard fired wide and it proved a costly error as the Czech hung onto this slender advantage to take the set.
As the clouds began to gather menacingly overhead, Strycova hurtled towards the finishing line, playing the tidier tennis to open a 5-0 lead in the second set. Another lengthy downpour halted her progress temporarily before returning to rattle off the final four points of the match.
“I felt good today and Eugenie is such a good player that you always have to stay focused,” Strycova, who finished with 15 winners and 19 unforced errors, said. “That’s what I did today and I think that was the key.”
Strycova turned 30 earlier this year but is arguably playing the best tennis of her career; finals in Dubai and Birmingham have helped propelled her back into the Top 20, while in doubles she teamed up with Lucie Safarova to win Olympic bronze.
In the next round she will play another of the tour’s elder stateswomen, former US Open champion and No.14 seed Samantha Stosur.
“The older I get I feel AWESOME!” — Barbora Strycova after she’s read off her Fed Cup Champ/Bronze Medalist/Career-high ranking resume.
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) 17 August 2016
Three tournaments into a comeback from wrist surgery, Madison Keys isn’t one to back down from a challenge.
Keys took a tough three-set loss to fellow American and Charleston native Shelby Rogers on Wednesday at the Volvo Car Open and, as has become her post-match ritual, began exposing a series of abusive tweets she received from cyberbullies on her official Twitter account.
“I can take criticism,” she writes in one response. “Telling me to go die is taking it too far.”
.@Madison_Keys takes a stand against cyber bullying in tennis
Tune in Sat. at 12 PM ET to watch the full feature during Tennis Channel Live pic.twitter.com/Kr04vRedSI
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) April 5, 2017
The American often uses her signature mix of emojis and sarcasm to disempower the insults hurled her way, but Keys isn’t just doing this for herself. A FearlesslyGIRL Ambassador, Keys aims to take a global stand against cyberbullying, shining a light on something that fellow athletes often suffer through in silence.
“I’ve taken a stance where we can have different opinions,” Keys said this week in Charleston’s All-Access Hour, “but as long as we can talk respectfully and we can have a conversation that doesn’t turn into an argument, I think that’s a big thing that I’m trying to do.
“The world has gotten very negative in very different ways and especially on social media, when you click on something, the comments are individually very negative.
“I think trying to bring more positivity to the world is very important.”
Read more from Keys below and check out the trailer for her Tennis Channel special airing Saturday, April 8 at noon ET.
Interesting stuff from @Madison_Keys at AAH @VolvoCarOpen on her non-tennis goals this year, related to @FearlesslyGirl and social media. pic.twitter.com/bfNC5cEthU
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) April 4, 2017
Jelena Ostapenko takes on Caroline Wozniacki in the quarterfinals of the Volvo Car Open.
CHARLESTON, SC, USA – The unseeded Jelena Ostapenko put together a dominating performance to oust 2011 champion Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets and move into the Volvo Car Open semifinals.
At 19 years old and ranked No.66, Charleston-debutante Ostapenko was the youngest and lowest-ranked player left in the draw. But she backed up her results to reach the second Premier-level semifinal of her career with the 6-2, 6-4 victory.
“It feels amazing to be in the semis here,” Ostapenko told press after the match. “First time I’m in Charleston, and today was a tough match because Caroline is such a great player.
“I just tried, and I think it was not bad.”
Ostapenko closes out the first set 6-2! #VolvoCarOpen pic.twitter.com/yi3oTfBt3f
— WTA (@WTA) 7 de abril de 2017
Ostapenko was dictating from the start against the former World No.1, fearlessly changing the direction of the ball and firing off winners from every angle. After an edgy few opening games as both players acclimated to the tricky, windy conditions, it was the Latvian who kicked into gear, breaking three times to reel off six games in a row and snatch up the opening set and start the second with a break to the good.
Wozniacki earned the break straight back with some rock-solid returning, but found herself down again a couple of games later as Ostapenko outpaced her to bring up a 3-2 lead. Wozniacki saved three match points as the teenager served for the match – she was even a point away from making it 5-5 – but Ostapenko wouldn’t be denied. She kept up the pressure and broke through Wozniacki’s defense, booking her spot into the Charleston semifinals after an hour and twenty-six minutes.
“I just knew before the match that I have to stay aggressive all the time and still be consistent,” Ostapenko explained. “And I tried not to step back, just to be like play in the court all the shots.And I think that’s helped me today.”
What an upset!
Ostapenko races past Wozniacki 6-2, 6-4 to book the last @VolvoCarOpen Semifinal spot! pic.twitter.com/Q4aOgbbi3w
— WTA (@WTA) 8 de abril de 2017
Despite winning just 51% of her first serve points, the Latvian backed it up by firing 40 winners against Wozniacki’s 14, outweighing her 26 unforced errors to Wozniacki’s six. And the Dane will surely rue her missed opportunities – she only converted one of the five break chances she created, while Ostapenko converted four of eight.
“I really tried my best out there,” Wozniacki reflected in post-match press. “I was trying to grind everything down. I tried to change the pace when I had the opportunity, but I mean if she played like this every day, then she would be No.1 in the world.
“She really played well. She went for her shots. Everything was going in. She was hitting the lines. Everything that could go her way today was going her way.
“All I could do today was try my best, try my hardest to fight and try and get somewhat of a grip on it, but you know, it is what it is sometimes.”
The loss also denies Wozniacki a return to the upper echelon of the WTA rankings – she needed to reach at least the Charleston semifinals to guarantee herself a spot inside the Top 10.