Tennis News

MELBOURNE, Australia – Six-time Australian Open champion Serena Williams breezed into the second week Down Under, defeating countrywoman Nicole Gibbs, 6-1, 6-3.

“I feel like I have been able to do pretty good,” she said in her post-match press conference. “I have been doing the things I have been doing in practice, and hopefully I can build up on this.

“That’s all I want to do.”

On RLA now #Serena fighting for a place in the 4R #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/HMb4sxOs5r

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 21, 2017

While Serena was celebrating her 19th anniversary of the first time she played on Rod Laver Arena (1998, against sister Venus), Gibbs was not only making her debut on Melbourne’s biggest court, but she was also in the midst of a career-best result Down Under – knocking out No.25 seed Timea Babos and Irina Falconi earlier this week.

The former World No.1 came into Saturday’s match well-tested with wins over a pair of former Top 10 players in Belinda Bencic and Lucie Safarova, and was in imperious form from start to finish.

“I was so pumped up going against my first two opponents, but I think that helped me out today. She started out really, really well, with a lot of energy.”

Hitting 17 winners and four aces during the 63 minute match, Serena came to net 13 times, winning 12 of those points. Though she was broken in her first attempt serving for the match, the experienced American booked her spot in the next round shortly thereafter, reaching the second week in her last nine appearances in Australia.

Looming in the next round is No.16 seed, Czech veteran Barbora Strycova.

“I have seen her play a lot. She’s always playing. Venus has played her a few times. I saw her play in Sydney. She’s super fit. She has a good game. She’s very aggressive, so that would be nice to play.

“I don’t have anything to prove in this tournament here. Just, you know, doing the best I can.

“Obviously I’m here for one reason. But at the end of the day, this is all bonus for me and I look forward to playing her. I’m ready for her.”

The 2016 Fed Cup heroine won a string of points in the second set of her match against No.21 seed Caroline Garcia, recovering from a 5-3 deficit to win, 6-2, 7-5.

“I won like 16 points from losing 3-5, 15-40,” Strycova said in her post-match press conference. “I didn’t even count and my coach told me so. I was kind of in a zone, so I was very happy about my performance.

“If it’s Serena, I’m looking forward to that match. That’s why you train. That’s why you work hard, to play these matches on these stages and against the best one.”

The 4R awaits @serenawilliams at the #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/1kOSJ3t2lF

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 21, 2017

After beating Garcia, Strycova played an interesting guessing game up in the Twitter Blue Room, guessing the identity of several tennis-themed stuffed animals:

.@BaraStrycova joins us in the Twitter Blue Room #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/oCew6EvCkP

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 21, 2017

MELBOURNE, Australia – The second week continues at the Australian Open. On Day 8, can No.2 seed Serena Williams and No.5 seed Karolina Pliskova book two of the four remaining spots in the quarterfinals?

We preview all the day’s biggest matchups right here on wtatennis.com.

Monday, Fourth Round

[2] Serena Williams (USA #2) vs [16] Barbora Strycova (CZE #16)
Head-to-head: Serena leads, 2-0
Key Stat: Neither Serena nor Strycova have dropped a set en route to the second week.

Serena Williams saw her hopes of reclaiming World No.1 brighten when defending champion Angelique Kerber went out at the hands of CoCo Vandeweghe on Sunday. But before she can think of returning to the top of the WTA rankings, she’ll have to get past a fiery veteran in Barbora Strycova, who is in the fourth round of the Australian Open for a second straight year.

Strycova roared back from a 5-3 deficit in the second set, and will be looking to pull of the biggest upset of her career in her first encounter with the 22-time Grand Slam champion since 2012.

Serena has already dispatched former Top 10 players Belinda Bencic and Lucie Safarova along the way; can she continue to improve as Grand Slam No.23 draws closer?

[5] Karolina Pliskova (CZE #5) vs [22] Daria Gavrilova (AUS #26)
Head-to-head: Pliskova leads, 2-0
Key Stat: Pliskova is aiming for her second straight (and second career) Grand Slam quarterfinal.

Brisbane International champion Karolina Pliskova remains undefeated for the season, and takes on another young hopeful in Daria Gavrilova. The Aussie reached the fourth round Down Under for the second year in a row, winning a three-set thriller of her own against Timea Bacsinszky.

Pliskova showed few signs of vulnerability in her first two rounds, but found herself on the brink of defeat against Latvian youngster Jelena Ostapenko, who served for the match in the final set. Fresh off an early pick for best match of 2017, the No.5 seed is back in the second week of a major tournament and will look to widen her head-to-head advantage against Gavrilova, against whom she’s never dropped a set.

The 22-year-old has tended to save her best tennis for her adopted home soil; can she stun Pliskova and earn a career-best Grand Slam result?

Around the Grounds…

No.9 seed Johanna Konta renews her rivalry with No.30 seed Ekaterina Makarova, who pushed the Brit to an 8-6 final set at this very tournament one year ago. A battle of underdogs completes the fourth round line-up as qualifier Jennifer Brady takes on ageless wonder Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, who earned her best-ever result at the Australian Open at 34 years old.

The doubles tounament also continues in Melbourne, with No.2 seeds Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Lucie Safarova taking on Apia International Sydney champs Timea Babos and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, while top seeds Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic face No.13 seeds Katarina Srebotnik and Zheng Saisai in the third round.

MELBOURNE, Australia – The clock hasn’t struck midnight on Mirjana Lucic-Baroni yet; in fact, the night may have only just begun for the 34-year-old Croat, who stunned No.5 seed Karolina Pliskova at the Australian Open, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4, to reach her first Grand Slam semifinal in 18 years.

Lucic-Baroni was 17 years old when she blasted past the likes of Monica Seles and Nathalie Tauziat to push Stefanie Graf to three sets at the All England Club in 1999, but has had to overcome much since then, sidelined due to personal and financial issues for much of the ensuing decade.

She started from scratch and was back in the Top 100 by 2010, earning big wins over Simona Halep at two of three consecutive major tournaments in 2014 and 2015. Still, the upper echelons of the game that had once seemed assured eluded her until she arrived in Melbourne last week, blasting past No.3 seed Agnieszka Radwanska after winning her first Australian Open main draw match since 1998.

In Pliskova, she played a younger version of herself, whose big serve and groundstrokes helped her start the season by winning the Brisbane International and earn a career-high ranking of No.5 in the world.

None of that mattered on Wednesday, as Lucic-Baroni recovered from an early deficit to roar thorugh the opening set hitting 12 winners and dropping just four points behind her first serve.

Pliskova appeared on the brink of elimination as she fell behind a break to start the second set, but pulled off a comeback reminiscent of her match against Jelena Ostapaneko in the third round to level the match and take necessary momentum into the decider.

Mirjana #LucicBaroni is through to the SF #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/ywsCOXuXpz

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 25, 2017

Lucic-Baroni proved undaunted, however, and despite a medical timeout after the seventh game, she emerged stronger than ever to win 12 of the final 13 points of the match to book her second major semifinal after an hour and 47 minutes on the court.

By match’s end, the veteran hit a spellbinding nine aces and 45 winners to 35 unforced errors, finishing with a positive differential for the third time in five matches – a testament to just how cleanly the big-hitter has been playing in Melbourne.

Standing between Lucic-Baroni and a maiden Grand Slam final is either No.9 seed Johanna Konta or 22-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams.

“This has truly made my life…it has made it okay.” #LucicBaroni #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/SeE9ePoqOo

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 25, 2017

More to come…

LONDON, England – Five-time champion Venus Williams got her Wimbledon challenge underway with a hard-fought win over Donna Vekic on the opening Monday.

In a high-quality encounter, Williams held her nerve at the conclusion of both sets to run out a 7-6(3), 6-4 victory.

“The first round is never easy and she played amazing tennis today,” Williams said. “I expect players to feel free and go for it when they play me. In the first set there were some hairy moments but I guess that’s when experience sets in and I had the chance to win the important points.”

Vekic has endured a season to forget, failing to win a WTA main draw match since February. However, if she was short on confidence it did not show against Williams, trading on even terms with the World No.8 for much of their two hours on court.

She had her chances, too, particularly during an opening set, which she served for at 6-5. Perhaps undermined by memories of her recent run, the Croatian saw two sets points slip before Williams pinched it on the tie-break. The second set was just as closely contested, but once again it was the American that finished stronger, a forehand winner bringing her the solitary break in the ninth game.

Williams, who turned 36 a couple of weeks ago and is seeded No.8, is competing at a Grand Slam for a record-equaling 71st time, but still enjoys pitting herself against the new guard: “You got to enjoy the battle because that’s what it is every time you step on the court. You never know what will happen.”

Age is just a number…@Venuseswilliams kicks off her 19th #Wimbledon with a 7-6, 6-4 win over Donna Vekic ? https://t.co/86VTT9bcSG

— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) 27 June 2016

One member of the next generation expected to go far this fortnight is No.9 seed Madison Keys. A champion at both Birmingham and Eastbourne over the past few years, Keys is no stranger to success on grass, and displayed her nous to overpower Laura Siegemund, 6-3, 6-1.

The next challenge will be 2013 semifinalist Kirsten Flipkens, after she brushed aside Nicole Gibbs, 6-3, 6-1. Elsewhere, there were contrasting fortunes for another former semifinalist, Ana Ivanovic, who was bundled out by qualifier Ekaterina Alexandrova.

A few days on from squeaking past World No.446 Harriet Dart in the final round of qualifying, Alexandrova elevated her game to another level, surviving a late wobble to triumph, 6-2, 7-5.

MELBOURNE, Australia – For the first time in eight years, there will be two Williamses in a major final. One was expected. The other wasn’t even sure she’d be able to get past the first round.

The first time Serena Williams and Venus Williams faced off on tour was here, in Melbourne in the second round of the 1998 Australian Open. That was 19 years ago. Venus won that day, 7-6(4), 6-1, but that match would kickstart a 27-match rivalry that would define both of their careers. On Saturday they will face off for the first time since the 2015 US Open quarterfinals, and it’s a match that few ever thought they’d see again in a major final.

“This probably is the moment of our careers so far,” Serena said, after her 50 minute win over Mirjana Lucic-Baroni in the semifinals. “For me, I can definitely say for me. I never lost hope of us being able to play each other in a final.”

Serena has now made seven finals in her last 10 majors, and she’s a win away from breaking Stefanie Graf’s record of 22 major titles and returning to No.1. The World No.2 has not dropped a set all tournament and has navigated a difficult draw with ease. Gone are the signs of stress and anxiety that seemed to plague her at the Slams the last year.

“I think just going through that made me this way now, to be honest,” Serena said of her new relaxed attitude. “I think sometimes when you’re stressed out, you have to go through those moments. Everything creates a better you.”

“This opponent is your sister and she's super awesome so it's wonderful.” -#Venus on #Serena#AORadio #AusOpenhttps://t.co/czVY4Irm1c

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 26, 2017

So while Serena’s presence in Saturday’s final was to be expected – she is, after all, a six-time champion at Melbourne Park – big sister Venus has been the surprise. Earlier in the tournament, the seven-time major champion admitted that she was anxious before the start of the Australian Open given injury concerns. In her first tournament of the season at the ASB Classic, she was forced to withdraw after the first round due to right arm pain.

“I mean, honestly, all the signs didn’t look that way in Auckland,” Venus said of her successful run. “Of course, I dreamed of it because I definitely worked hard in the off-season. It was not a great start, I’ll just say that.

“But still I know I can play. You just have to try to figure it out if you can get it to line up all at the same time. That’s why you get out and you try. As long as you continue to try, you have an opportunity. That’s why I’m here.”

To make her first Australian Open final in 14 years, Venus had to dig deep to fend off the overwhelming firepower from CoCo Vandeweghe. In blasting winner after winner in the first set, the younger American was able to bully Venus around the court with her heavy hitting. Venus couldn’t stand toe-to-toe, power for power. And so she adjusted. She dug in. And used her brain and her speed to unwind Vandeweghe, who was playing in the biggest match of her young career.

“I would love more than anything to see her across the net from me on Saturday.” #Venus on possibly facing #Serena in the final #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/LBgBcTPqBq

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 26, 2017

“It felt very weird because I never do that,” Venus said, referring to her defense. “Also, at the same time, I’m versatile. I can adjust. I can do what I need to do to win a match. I feel comfortable when I’m uncomfortable at the same time. Even if I’m in a position where I don’t want to be at, it’s not going to throw me off.

“I want to dictate, but the way she was playing, it was almost impossible to do so. So it was just about trying to control the point in whichever way that was. If that meant that defensively I controlled the point, or I was able to get a little offense, whatever it was. I mean, just be the one winning the point at the end somehow.”

.@Venuseswilliams is through to the women's final #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/3Jdo8Zlag9

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 26, 2017

Indeed, after trying to outblast Vandeweghe in the first set, Venus began to go for less on her shots, using width and depth to get Vandeweghe uncomfortable. She cleaned up her errors. And most importantly, she had her best serving day of the tournament. Venus smartly handcuffed Vandeweghe with well-timed body-serves, and after seeing her second serve attacked in the first set, she decided to step it up.

“In the first set I served more conservatively,” Venus said. “In the second, I just decided I was going to go for more. It was just really a mentality at that point. I know she’s looking for a second serve. It’s important to try not to give your opponent what they want.

“As the match went longer, the bigger I went on the second. Thankfully I was comfortable doing that and executing it and just going in. It worked.”

In the end, the match was far more tense than the 6-7(3), 6-2, 6-3 scoreline might indicate. Vandeweghe earned 13 break points but was only able to convert once.

Venus’ reaction on match point will go down as one of the most memorable, joyous, and redempting displays for the ages. One can only imagine what was flashing in her mind as the reality set in, that she was, for the first time since she was diagnosed with Sjögren’s syndrome, back into a major final.

.@Venuseswilliams is through to the women's final #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/3Jdo8Zlag9

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 26, 2017

“I think why people love sport so much, is because you see everything in a line,” Venus said. “In that moment there is no do-over, there’s no retake, there is no voice-over. It’s triumph and disaster witnessed in real-time. This is why people live and die for sport, because you can’t fake it. You can’t. It’s either you do it or you don’t.

“People relate to the champion. They also relate to the person also who didn’t win because we all have those moments in our life.”

Venus’s ebullient celebration could serve as a Rohrschach test for any tennis fan. Do you see the 36-year-old champion, a woman who burst on the scene as a teenager over 20 years ago, showing her tenacity and quality to make a Slam final almost 20 years after making her first at the 1997 US Open?

Or do you see the player who fell out of the Top 100 after being diagnosed with an auto-immune disorder in 2011, who had every right to walk away from the game to pursue her other worldly pursuits, but battled back up to the top of the game by, seemingly, sheer force of will?

“For us both to be in the final is the biggest dream come true for us.” #Serena on playing #Venus in the final #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/C8aSHSsxE0

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 26, 2017

“I was always stressed out and worried if she would be okay and be able to play,” Serena said. “I would see her practice, she’d practice so well, do so well. I always felt like when she lost, I was almost surprised, kind of like, How did you lose, because you’re doing so well.

“At the same time I was like, Wow, it’s amazing that you’re even out here. I just really feel fortunate to have been there for the highs and the lows and everything.”

Serena is the favorite heading into the final. As Venus said, her younger sister doesn’t have many weaknesses to her game. While the match-up may look awkward from the outside — No.23 and the No.1 ranking on the line and you have to go through…your own sister? — Serena and Venus shrug it off. They’ve gone through this dance too many times to be distracted by the emotional resonance of their matches, whatever the stakes may be.

SERENA.

VENUS.

THE DREAM.#ausopen pic.twitter.com/zWfxtgxvzn

— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 26, 2017

“After everything that Venus has been through with her illness and stuff, I just can’t help but feel like it’s a win-win situation for me,” Serena said. “I was there for the whole time. We lived together. I know what she went through. It’s the one time that I really genuinely feel like no matter what happens, I can’t lose, she can’t lose. It’s going to be a great situation.”

For Venus, it’s just about the tennis. “When I’m playing on the court with her, I think I’m playing, like, the best competitor in the game,” Venus said. “I don’t think I’m chump change either. I can compete against any odds. No matter what, I get out there and I compete.

“So it’s like two players who really, really can compete, then also they can play tennis. Then, okay, won’t be an easy match. It’s like I know that it won’t be easy. You have to control yourself, then you also have to hopefully put your opponent in a box. This opponent is your sister, and she’s super awesome.

“It’s wonderful.”

Defending champion Serena Williams leads the charge as the top half of the draw takes to the grass on Day 2. We preview a busy slate at SW19 here on wtatennis.com, courtesy of contributor Chris Oddo.

Tuesday

First Round

[1] Serena Williams (USA #1) vs. [Q] Amra Sadikovic (SUI #148)
Head-to-head: First Meeting
Key Stat: Williams is the last women to have won Wimbledon after saving a match point (2009).

Having failed to come away with the title in each of the last three majors, Serena Williams has dusted herself off and is ready to pursue Grand Slam glory at one of her favorite stomping grounds. Her first test will be against Swiss qualifier Amra Sadikovic, a 27-year-old who has only played six tour-level matches in her career. After briefly retiring from tennis, the Swiss has recently returned to the tour with a renewed sense of purpose. Williams, on the other hand, is hoping to log more matches than six this Wimbledon fortnight. The six-time champion owns a 79-10 lifetime record at SW19 and despite the fact that she’s bidding for a historical 22nd major title for the fourth time, the 34-year-old refuses to be bothered by externalities. “Honestly, I don’t feel any pressure,” Williams told assembled press on Sunday during her champion’s press conference. “I feel good and confident.” Williams arrived in London on Monday to give herself plenty of time to get reacquainted with the grass that she has prowled so efficiently since she made her first Wimbledon appearance in 1998. Despite having made the trek 17 times now, Williams says it’s always special. “It’s a unique experience,” she said. “You know, it’s just that one time a year you just get to get on this amazing, beautiful surface. It feels really good.”

Pick: Williams in two

[13] Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS #14) vs. Caroline Wozniacki (Den #45)
Head-to-head: Wozniacki leads 6-5
Key Stat: A three-time Wimbledon quarterfinalist, Kuznetsova has not reached that far at the All England Club since 2007.

Two longtime rivals will meet for the 12th time and the first at Wimbledon on Tuesday when Caroline Wozniacki and Svetlana Kuznetsova lock horns in a highly enticing first-rounder. They are six years apart in age, and 31 spots separate them in the rankings, but in truth there isn’t a whole lot that divides these two, talent-wise. Wozniacki has slipped in the rankings due to an ankle injury that forced her out for two months this spring, but the Dane has put three events under her belt and is feeling much better about her form after a productive three weeks on the grass. “I feel like I’m getting closer to where I want to be,” she told the WTA Insider Podcast at Eastbourne, where she won two matches before falling in a tight three-setter to Monica Puig. Kuznetsova has had her moments in 2016, most notable her upset of world No.1 Serena Williams in Miami, but the Russian has lost her only match on grass to date in 2016.

Pick: Wozniacki in three

[10] Petra Kvitova (CZE #10) vs. Sorana Cirstea (ROU #85)
Head-to-head: Kvitova leads, 4-2
Key Stat: Two-time champion Petra Kvitova is one of three former Wimbledon champions in the draw.

Typically a grass juggernaut, Petra Kvitova encountered some turbulence on her favorite surface this summer when she was knocked out of Birmingham and Eastbourne in the round of 16. But the 2011 and 2014 champion has more than proven herself at Wimbledon, where she owns a 29-6 lifetime record and has produced some of her most electrifying tennis. That means it will take an exceptional effort from Romania’s Sorana Cirstea to challenge the Czech on Tuesday in a place where Kvitova has always been at her menacing best. In their lone Wimbledon meeting Kvitova eased past Cirstea in straight sets, but the world No.85 does own two victories over Kvitova and has undergone a bit of a revival of late, producing her best tennis since her breakout season in 2013 in the last six months.

Pick: Kvitova in two.

[7] Belinda Bencic (SUI #13) vs. Tsvetana Pironkova (BUL #71)
Head-to-head: Bencic leads, 2-0
Key Stat: Pironkova is playing in her 43rd consecutive major at Wimbledon. It is the third-longest active streak behind Ana Ivanovic (47) and Jelena Jankovic (51).

Belinda Bencic loves playing on grass and excels on the surface; Tsvetana Pironkova loves playing on grass and also excels on the surface. What’s not to love about this highly anticipated first-round matchup between two talented players who win with touch and placement rather than power? Bencic defeated Pironkova in the first round at SW19 last year, and she will come in as the favorite on paper, but the Swiss has yet to find her top physical form after missing two months due to a back injury. After a semifinal in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Bencic had to pull out of her first match at Birmingham with an injury before being defeated in her first match at Eastbourne by Elena Vesnina. Pironkova has two deep Wimbledon runs under her belt (semifinals in 2010, quarterfinals in 2011) and will surely be hungry to gain revenge on Bencic on Tuesday.

Pick: Pironkova in three

Around the Grounds: Third seed and 2012 runner-up Agnieszka Radwanska will begin her 11th Wimbledon campaign with a first-round battle with Kateryna Kozlova of the Ukraine, who is making her Wimbledon debut. Great Britain’s Johanna Konta defeated Monica Puig in a third-set tiebreaker last year at Nottingham. They’ll meet again in the first round on Tuesday with Konta looking to win for the first time in four tries at Wimbledon.

By the Numbers:

137 – Svetlana Kuznetsova’s win total at the Grand Slam level, which is fourth-most among active players.

31-5 – Caroline Wozniacki’s record in first round matches at majors. The Dane has not dropped a first-rounder since 2012 Wimbledon.