Fun In The Sun: Mladenovic And Kasatkina Try Out Beach Footvolley
What’s the best thing to do on your downtime in Miami? Kristina Mladenovic and Daria Kasatkina headed to the beach – and tried out footvolley.
What’s the best thing to do on your downtime in Miami? Kristina Mladenovic and Daria Kasatkina headed to the beach – and tried out footvolley.
The finalists for the 2016 WTA Player Of The Year awards were announced just hours ago, but Serena Williams has already cast her vote.
Eagle-eyed Instagram users spotted the former World No.1 leaving a comment on the WTA’s Instagram page that left little doubt as to which player she thought had the best season, and it’s no surprise who she voted for.
Serena has cast her vote for @WTA Player of the Year. pic.twitter.com/9WcckWn8WK
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) October 14, 2016
Did you catch it? Here’s who Serena voted for in the 2016 WTA Player Of The Year award:
The comment comes as no surprise, as the pair’s fierce rivalry this year has played out across two Grand Slam finals, with Kerber winning her maiden major title at the Australian Open and Serena later getting her revenge at Wimbledon in her record-tying 22nd Grand Slam title.
Kerber finally unseated Serena as the WTA World No.1 in September after the German won the US Open, but Serena had foreseen her rise much earlier than that.
After her loss in the final in Melbourne back in January, an introspective Serena was asked about Kerber’s rise to World No.2, and she had this to say:
QUESTION: Pretty deserved No. 2 in the world now?
SERENA WILLIAMS: I think so. I mean, she’s had a great month. She got to the finals in Brisbane. She won here. So, yeah. I was surprised and really happy for her. I’m like, Whoa, No. 2.
What’s after 2 is 1, so I guess I better be careful (laughter).
Highlights from the Day 3 matchup at the Miami Open between Caroline Wozniacki and Varvara Lepchenko.
LINZ, Austria – No.2 seed Dominika Cibulkova edged past No.4 seed Carla Suárez Navarro in straight sets to reach the final at the Generali Ladies Linz, her fourth WTA final of the year.
Both players came into Linz with Singapore on the mind, hoping to grab a last-minute qualification spot into the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global.
With the victory Cibulkova, who currently sits ninth on the Road To Singapore leaderboard, takes a big step toward qualifying for the season-ending event; she will qualify if she wins the title, so long as Svetlana Kuznetsova doesn’t win at the Tianjin Open.
“It’s a good feeling to know that I have a chance at the Finals,” Cibulkova said. “That’s why I came here. I knew that I needed to reach the final or win the tournament to have something from it, and I just handled that so good.”
Cibulkova opened the match with a comfortable service hold, but against the tricky Spaniard things quickly became complicated. The pair went on to break each other’s serve nine consecutive times in the opening set, and Cibulkova’s lone hold proved to be decisive as she took the set 6-4.
The Slovak held her ground in the second set, attacking Suárez Navarro’s one-handed backhand with her aggressive forehands, and she broke twice to take the match 6-4, 6-3 in just under an hour and a half.
Cibulkova will face Viktorija Golubic in the final after the Swiss player received a walkover in to the final from Madison Keys. Keys withdrew from her semifinal match due to respiratory illness.
“Maybe physically it’s an advantage for her, but this match against Carla gave me special confidence,” Cibulkova said of her opponent’s day off. “I just want finish here with a good feeling and go for it, and just keep playing like today.”
Venus Wiliams takes on Beatriz Haddad Maia in the second round of the Miami Open.
Hong Kong, SAR – Caroline Wozniacki re-asserted an unwavering desire to return to the top of the women’s game, one she continues to prove by winning her 25th career WTA title at the Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open.
“You know your body, and I knew it was going to take a while for me to get back and be back at 100%,” she said after beating Kristina Mladenovic 6-1, 6-7 (4), 6-2 in the final.
The Dane has struggled with injuries this season, being forced to withdraw from the French Open and tumbing down to a low of World No.74; had she lost her three-set tussle to Taylor Townsend in Flushing, she would have been out of the Top 100.
Her fortunes quickly changed; she earned impressive wins over Svetlana Kuznetsova and Madison Keys before falling to eventual champion Angelique Kerber in what was her first Grand Slam semifinal in exactly two years.
She brought that good form into the Asian Swing, where she won a pair of titles, both here and at the Toray Pan Pacific Open.
“I never doubted that I could come back and make it here because I’ve worked too hard my whole life on my fitness to keep my body in shape. I was like, ‘It’s going to be okay, where it’s going to be a month, two months, four months.’
“I knew eventually I would be back.”
Mladenovic appeared to be struggling with an injury, requiring lengthy treatment before the start of the second set. Wozniacki conceded that the delay was an unwelcome distraction.
“Obviously it wasn’t easy mentally, because sometimes she would look like she couldn’t play then run like Speedy Gonzalez. It was definitely a mental game.”
Wozniacki is keen to earn that elusive Grand Slam title, but refuses to set herself targets for the future.
“It’s the thing I’m missing on my CV, I just work hard, that’s all I can do,” she explained.
“It’s great winning trophies, it’s what we play for. I’m very pleased with my week this week, I played some good tennis, I’m proud of how I managed to win.”
Elina Svitolina paid a visit to Miami’s colorful and artsy Wynwood Walls for a photo shoot during the Miami Open – check it out here!
CHARLESTON, SC, USA – World No.2 Angelique Kerber expertly dealt with windy conditions to breeze past qualifier Kristina Kucova, 6-2, 6-3, to reach the quarterfinals of the Volvo Car Open.
Watch highlights, interviews and more video from Charleston right here on wtatennis.com!
Kerber had been taken to the brink in her opening round match against Lara Arruabarrena, but appeared far more comfortable opening play against Kucova on Thursday, hitting 35 winners to 33 unforced errors and converting seven of her 10 break point opportunities. Still, the defending champion felt there was room for improvement heading into the last eight for the second year in a row.
“It was a really tricky match,” she told Andrew Krasny during her on-court interview. “It was really windy and it was a completely different condition than before. I played two days ago in the night session, and it was windy, cold.
“I’m really happy to win the match because she’s a tough opponent who had great matches in Charleston. I’m happy to be back here.”
Playing in her first clay court event of 2016, Kerber has good memories of this tournament, one that truly kickstarted her 2015 season and led her to begin this year with Grand Slam glory at the Australian Open. The French Open remains the only major tournament where she is yet to reach the semifinals, however, and is keen to adjust her counterpunching game to a surface as gritty as the German herself.
“I think the feeling is coming back from last year because right now I’m feeling much better on clay again,” she said in her post-match press conference. “Moving feels better; also, when I hit the balls, I’m feeling the ball. I’m feeling the Court, and of course, playing again on the great center court with all the fans.
“It’s just, again, a great feeling like what I had last year.”
Up next for Kerber will be another unseeded opponent in the winner of Irina-Camelia Begu, who saved a match point to defeat Monica Puig, 1-6, 6-2, 7-6(4). Begu and Kerber have split their previous four meetings; though the Romanian won their most recent encounter at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia, Kerber won their match last year at this very tournament – en route to winning the title.
Can't stop me now. @irina_begu saves a MP to defeat Puig 1-6, 6-2, 7-6(4). Makes 2nd QF in a row in #CHS. #VCO2016 pic.twitter.com/flJ1ltAdop
— Volvo Car Open (@VolvoCarOpen) April 8, 2016
Also reaching the quarterfinals in the top half of the draw is 18-year-old Russian Daria Kasatkina. Making her WTA debut on green clay, Kasatkina had been the model of efficiency through her first two matches, and looked on course for more of the same against American Louisa Chirico.
Bageling the wildcard in the opening set, Kasatkina was in for a far greater fight in the second, winning a titanic final game in which she saved four break points and needed six match points of her own to clinch her second career Premier quarterfinal – the first coming just three weeks ago at the BNP Paribas Open.
“I knew it wouldn’t be an easy second set, but especially – whew!” the youngster said, trying to catch her breath before continuing in her on-court interview, “at the end of the second set it was very difficult, but I’m happy right now.”
Kasatkina won her 100th career match earlier this week and is currently at a career-high ranking of No.35 – heading into what should be a great part of the season for the former French Open junior champion.
“I’m trying to play solid. I don’t want to make stupid mistakes; I’m trying to play smarter with the brain, so it helps me a lot!”
Standing between Kasatkina and the semifinals is American Sloane Stephens, who took out former junior rival Daria Gavrilova, 6-4, 6-3, during Charleston’s night match. Stephens has already won two titles in 2016, starting the season with the ASB Classic and most recently outlasting 2014 Australian Open finalist Dominika Cibulkova to win the Abierto Mexicano Telcel.
First set goes to @SloaneStephens!
Grabs the opening set over Gavrilova 6-4! #VCO2016 https://t.co/eWFW3IAUlw
— WTA (@WTA) April 8, 2016
MOSCOW, Russia – No.8 seed Daria Kasatkina gave fans at the Kremlin Cup a lot to cheer about after her straight sets victory over Belinda Bencic.
Watch live action from Moscow this week at WTA Live Powered By TennisTV!
Russian players have always thrived at the year’s last Premier-level event in Moscow, with at least one Russian reaching the semifinals or better at nine of the last 10 editions of the tournament. Kasatkina looked set to add her name to that list as she needed just 61 minutes to dispatch Bencic 6-4, 6-1.
“It was a great win, especially in front of the home fans here,” Kasatkina said after the match. “Belinda is a tough opponent, a former Top 10 player, so it’s nice to get the victory and start the week here in Moscow playing well.
“I just want to keep putting in performances like this and finish the season strongly.”
Bencic got off to a roaring start early in the match, dragging Kasatkina from alley to alley and ripping a 150 kph overhead winner to bring up the first break for a 4-2 lead in the opening set. But Kasatkina clawed her way back as the unforced errors began to fly from Bencic’s raquet, with a wild forehand drifting wide to hand the break back to the Russian and level the match.
Kasatkina reeled off seven straight games to take the opening set and go up a break in the second. A double fault from Bencic – her fifth of the match – gave Kasatkina the final break and the Russian player closed out the match 6-4, 6-1.
No.9 seed Timea Babos will join Kasatkina in the second round after she took out 2014 finalist Irina-Camelia Begu in a two-and-a-half hour battle to advance 6-2, 6-7(2), 7-5.
Also in action today, Kremlin Cup qualifying wrapped up with Lesia Tsurenko, Katerina Siniakova, Anna Blinkova and Nicole Gibbs earning main draw berths.
MIAMI, FL, USA – No.7 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova overcame a slow start and an inspired Taylor Townsend to beat the American qualifier, 6-4, 6-2, joining No.10 seed Johanna Konta, who beat Pauline Parmentier, 6-4, 6-0 in the fourth round of the Miami Open.
Townsend has long been a talented prospect, having won the 2013 Australian Open junior title and finishing runner-up to Belinda Bencic at that year’s Wimbledon Championships. Qualifying for the main draw and upsetting Roberta Vinci in her previous match, the American looked on course for another upset as she took the first break from Kuznetsova in the opening set.
“I’d never played her before, but still, to face her it’s a bit different,” she told WTA Insider after the match. “It took me time to adjust to her game. I got broken right away, and I was serving against the sun, so it was a little bit difficult.”
But Kuznetsova is in good form herself, reaching the final at last week’s BNP Paribas Open; relaxed and focused, the Russian took four straight games to reclaim the break and the opening set from Townsend, who put up quite a fight in the final game before dropping serve.
“She plays good tennis, different than other girls. I took time to adjust, changed my strategy, and in the end it worked pretty well. But she’s very talented.”
.@TaylorTownsend is still fighting! #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/mjVHUCAPvJ
— WTA (@WTA) March 26, 2017
The 2006 champion and 2016 finalist raced ahead to start the second and never looked back, despite some impressive variety from the 20-year-old.
Up next for Kuznetsova is either former No.1 Venus Williams or qualifier Patricia Maria Tig, who stunned No.22 seed and Top 20 debutante Kristina Mladenovic in the preceding round.
“It’s a great match-up, and it’s great to play Venus again, one more time. We’re both having great results, so I’m looking forward to that match.”
Absolutely INCREDIBLE get from @SvetlanaK27! ??? #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/HUGwo3qNiD
— WTA (@WTA) March 26, 2017
Earlier in the day, Konta worked through a tense opening set to roll through against Parmentier.
“I’m happy to have come through that,” Konta said after the match. “Although the scoreline doesn’t show it in the second set, I still had to work hard within every single point. I really tried hard not to take my foot off the gas and stay focused on what I wanted to achieve.”
The Frenchwoman has displayed impresisve tennis of late, and nearly beat World No.1 Angelique Kerber in Indian Wells.
.@JoKonta91 slaps away the backhand! #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/DKRY56Taqr
— WTA (@WTA) March 26, 2017
“She’s been very strong with her forehand, and her serve is actually quite a big weapon, as well. I was quite happy with how I could neutralize it and look towards having good variety on my returns. I also made it difficult for her to find her spots on the forehand; I didn’t give her too many opportunities to set up, because when she does, she can be very tough to play.”
With 19 winners to just five unforced errors to advance, it was night and day for the British No.1 on Sunday after her tough opening round win over Aliaksandra Sasnovich, which went deep into a third set.
.@JoKonta91 comes flying out of the blocks in the second! #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/Iy5BofgqVJ
— WTA (@WTA) March 26, 2017
“The bonus of getting through any match is having the opportunity to play again. I have another opportunity to get better and to perform well.
“Those stats obviously look better on paper, and that’s good to hear. There’s other moving factors in a match, but I was still very happy I was able to stick with my plan and not divert from that in any way.
“Each match puts forward different challenges, so it’s hard to compare and decide which has been my best performance. My first round was very good, for example, because I could get through a difficult situation. Today was a cleaner match, so in that sense, it was also a good performance.”
.@JoKonta91 is flying through the second set! ? #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/qLxVIX2SNl
— WTA (@WTA) March 26, 2017
Standing between Konta and a second straight quarterfinal in Miami will be the winner of No.8 seed Madison Keys and Lara Arruabarrena.
“I played Madison in Beijing last year. I think I played Lara once before, but not for many years. We all know Madison has a big game, so if I end up playing her, I’ll be expecting to play someone with a lot of weight of shot. I haven’t watched Lara play too much, but she’s been around a while and won a title at the end of last year. She’s a tough player, so either way it’ll be a tough match.”
.@JoKonta91 reaches @MiamiOpen Round of 16!
Cruises past Parmentier 6-4, 6-0! pic.twitter.com/5VqbM7wsYO
— WTA (@WTA) March 26, 2017