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USANA & The WTA's Eastbourne Aces

USANA & The WTA's Eastbourne Aces

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

The 2016 Aces For Humanity campaign was launched by USANA and the WTA at the BNP Paribas Open and continued in Eastbourne at the Aegon International, where every ace hit by a WTA player at Premier-level events translates into a donation to the USANA True Health Foundation, whose mission is to provide the most critical human necessities to those who are suffering or in need around the world.

For every ace hit by any player the WTA donates $5, and for every ace hit by a USANA Brand Ambassador, it’s $10.

USANA Brand Ambassadors Eugenie Bouchard, Samantha Stosur, Kristina Mladenovic, Madison Keys, Monica Puig, Sloane Stephens, Zheng Saisai, Alizé Cornet and Caroline Wozniacki hit 58 of the 315 aces at Eastbourne – raising a grand total of $1,865 throughout the week. Mladenovic hit the most with 23 aces.

Read more about the campaign here and see below to find out who’s hit the most aces so far!

 Eastbourne

Eastbourne


#AcesForHumanity Fan Giveaway

It’s simple: before each WTA Premier tournament guess how many total aces will be hit.
Next up is the Bank of the West Classic in Stanford. Last year there was a total of 156 aces hit. It’s now your turn, take your best guess of how many will be hit this year.

How To Enter:
• Follow @WTA and @USANAFoundation on Twitter and before each WTA Premier tournament tweet the number of aces you predict will be hit during the whole tournament (Singles, Main Draw)
• Include the hashtag #AcesForHumanity
• Eastbourne deadline is July 19 at 11:59pm ET
• The winner will be announced June 25th

Aces For Humanity is a joint WTA and USANA initiative that benefits the USANA True Health Foundation, which provides critical human necessities to those in suffering or in need around the globe.

For full rules on how to enter, click here.

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Serena's Friday Fiesta

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

World No.1 Serena Williams got to celebrate reaching the third round of Wimbledon with a little help from a fan, who traded a taco t-shirt for the top seed’s cracked racquet.

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Serena Moves Past Pavlyuchenkova

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Top seed Serena Williams moved one step closer to defending her title after battling past Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova to reach her tenth Wimbledon semifinal.

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Serena At Wimbledon: Still I Rise

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

LONDON, Great Britain – In the aftermath of World No.1 Serena Williams’ record-tying 22nd Grand Slam title – earned by defeating previous sole record holder Stefanie Graf’s compatriot Angelique Kerber, 7-5, 6-3, on Centre Court at Wimbledon – BBC Sport aired a montage featuring the top seed reciting “Still I Rise,” a poem by legendary American poet, Maya Angelou:

Serena has paid homage to Angelou in the past, ending her Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year Speech with an excerpt of “Still I Rise,” which was also included in the final scene of her Epix documentary, “Serena.”

Click here to read Angelou’s iconic poem, and check out the BBC Sport video above and on Facebook!

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Watson Wins Wimbledon Mixed Title

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Heather Watson becomes the first British woman to win a Wimbledon title of any kind in almost two decades by capturing a mixed doubles crown alongside Henri Kontinen.

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Spotted: Serena & Venus Hit Stanford

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

STANFORD, CA, USA – World No.1 Serena Williams might not be in the draw at the Bank Of The West Classic, but she’s never too far away from the action. Eagle-eyed fans who turned up to top seed Venus Williams’ practice session got a treat as she was joined on court by her younger sister.

Venus started out the day the way she normally does at a new tournament: hitting the practice courts. The No.1 seed hit a few balls as she warmed up on center court ahead of her opening match tomorrow.

But who was there on the sidelines, keeping a close eye on her older sister’s practice session and dance break?

After a quick warmup of her own, Serena decided to join in on the action and hit the tennis court herself as the Williams sisters tuned up their doubles.

You can watch every minute of Venus and Serena’s impromptu training session in Stanford right here. Check out the full live stream courtesy of Stanford and Tennis On Facebook:

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Cibulkova Survives In Stanford

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

STANFORD, CA, USA – No.2 seed Dominika Cibulkova was among the last of the big names to kick off her Stanford campaign, but survived a late surge in the first set from Urszula Radwanska to advance into the last eight at the Bank of the West Classic, 7-6(3), 6-3.

Watch live action from Stanford this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!

Cibulkova was playing her first match since reaching the quarterfinals of Wimbledon – where she upset former finalist and Agnieszka Radwanska, Urszula’s elder sister, en route – and marrying her longtime fiance during finals weekend.

“I have to admit, I was just on the other side of the planet a few days ago and I’m playing on a different surface, so it’s very very tough,” she said after the match. 

The Slovak showed few signs of that rust from the outset as she raced ahead 5-2 in the opening set, but Radwanska, a former Top 30 player, undid the deficit with speedy efficiency to force a tie-break. Speaking with Andrew Krasny during her on-court interview, Cibulkova took the momentum shifts in stride.

“But tennis life is tough because you’re here one day, there the next and you have to adapt. But I was trying my best even though I wasn’t feeling great on the court today. But I was mentally tough and I made it through.”

Taking another 5-2 lead – this time in the tie-break – Cibulkova made no mistake and took the first set in a little over an hour. The second set appears more straightforward, but the pair twice exchanged breaks before the former World No.10 was able to close out the match.

“At the right time, I was focused and I didn’t panic though I lost a few games I should have won. My forehand was working and I knew I had to go for that, and I had to play smart today because I knew she was playing really well.”

Set to play Misaki Doi in the next round, Cibulkova is just one match away from returning to the Top 10 for the first time since early 2015, just before she took time off to treat a lingering Achilles injury.

Alison Riske captured another complicated three-setter in Stanford, dismissing qualifier Ana Bogdan, 3-6, 6-2, 6-4. Looking to reach her first-ever WTA quarterfinal, the Romanian saved five match points before Riske clinched a spot in in the last eight for a second straight year.

Catherine Bellis backed up her win over Jelena Ostapenko with a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 win over Sachia Vickery to make her own debut in a WTA quarterfinal. The American first burst onto the scene in 2014 when she upset Cibulkova to reach the second round as a 15-year-old, later reaching the third round of Miami, where she played Serena Williams for the first time. Thursday’s win earned her a primetime showdown with top seed Venus Williams.

“I just had to focus really hard on my game plan for the entire match,” Bellis told press after her win. “We’ve played each other so many times; we actually played one another last week. We practice together all the time too, so we know each other’s games pretty well. I had to focus on me, my tennis, and playing my game. That’s what really got me through.

“It’s not going to be easy [playing Venus], but I don’t think anything is impossible. Obviously, it’ll be such an honor playing one of the best players of all time, and she’s done so much in her career and still doing amazing things. It’s going to be fun, and I’m very excited.”

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