Tennis News

On Thursday Time Magazine released the Time 100, its annual list of 100 most influential people in the world. Among global leaders and icons like the IMF’s Christine Lagarde, Oscar winner Leonardo DiCaprio, and more, is doubles co-No.1 Sania Mirza.

Mirza, the only tennis player on the list, made history in 2015 when she became the first Indian woman to achieve a No.1 ranking in tennis, win a Grand Slam and claim a second WTA Finals title. With her massively successful doubles partnership with Martina Hingis, she has not just produced spectacular tennis, she’s inspired a generation of Indians.

Her Time 100 tribute written by Sachin Tendulkar, one of the greatest cricketers of all time:

“The Mirzas probably knew what the future held for their daughter,” Tendulkar wrote. “Her name, Sania, means brilliant.”

STUTTGART, Germany – Angelique Kerber continued the defense of her Porsche Tennis Grand Prix title with a straight set victory over Carla Suárez Navarro in Friday’s quarterfinals.

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Since lifting her maiden major at this January’s Australian Open, Kerber has taken some time to get used to life with a target on her back. But following a couple of early exits, the German appears to have found her stride on clay, all the more impressive given the difficulty several of her peers have encountered at the Porsche Arena.

Against Suárez Navarro, one of the game’s most surefooted clay courters, she was particularly impressive, flying out of the traps, then overcoming a late wobble to close out a 6-2, 6-4 victory.

“I think it was a good match from me, a good performance,” Kerber said. “I know how Carla is playing and she is one of the best players on clay. I was trying to go for it, trying to play aggressive tennis. I knew this is the only way to beat her today and I think I did a great job.”

Although Kerber held the edge in previous matches with the Spaniard, she had lost their only tussle on the dirt. This came two years in Stuttgart and provided a source of inspiration during the rematch: “I knew that she beat me here two, three years ago. So, I was trying to take revenge! And I think it was a good match today.”

Taking the initiative from the off, a smart volley and a trademark passing shot saw Kerber break immediately for a 2-0 lead. She bookended the set with a second break, then took total control of the match with a rasping forehand drive to open up a 4-2 lead in the second.

The procession was momentarily halted when the Spaniard broke back in the ninth game, only for Kerber to batten down the hatches once more to wrap up victory the following game.

“But at the end of the second set it was still close and I know that against her I must play until the last ball because she is always tough and she’s fighting as well. So, I went out trying to take my revenge and play good tennis and beat her here,” Kerber added.

In the last four Kerber faces Petra Kvitova, who won a see-saw encounter with Garbiñe Muguruza, 6-1, 3-6, 6-0.

STUTTGART, Germany – Reigning Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber won her second title of the season at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, dispatching qualifier and countrywoman Laura Siegemund, the tournament’s Cinderella story, 6-4, 6-0.

Watch live action from Stuttgart & Istanbul this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!

Siegemund had played inspired tennis throughout the week, taking out three Top 10 players – including top seed and World No.2 Angieszka Radwanska – and showed few signs of stopping from the outset of Sunday’s final, twice moving ahead by a break in the opening set.

But Kerber has only lost one completed match since Indian Wells (Miami Open, Azarenka) and continued to press her opponent, who was playing in her first WTA singles final, into increasingly more grueling rallies – exposing her fatigue from eight matches in nine days and a left hip issue for which she took a medical timeout early in the second set.

Though Siegemund finished the match with more winners (22 to 16), Kerber played her counterpunching style to perfection, hitting just nine unforced errors in 80 minutes to win the final 10 games of the match.

It was nonetheless a stellar week for the 28-year-old veteran, who will bound up nearly 30 spots to a career-high ranking of No.42; more importantly, she leapfrogs four of her compatriots to become the No.4 German woman on the WTA rankings – putting her in pole position to round out the national team who can be sent to the upcoming Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

Kerber remains at No.3, but her title in Stuttgart was not only her first career title defense, but the win makes her the fastest player to back up a maiden Grand Slam title since Petra Kvitova, who won the Generali Ladies Linz three months after capturing her first Wimbledon title in 2011.

The doubles final took place less than an hour later, featuring Top 2 seeds, Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza against Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic.

Vroom, Vroom ??@AngeliqueKerber enjoys a ride in her new @Porsche! #PTGP https://t.co/BspFDdO9QX

— WTA (@WTA) April 24, 2016

More to come…

PRAGUE, Czech Republic – Lucie Safarova returned to winning ways by battling past Mariana Duque-Mariño at the J&T Banka Prague Open on Tuesday afternoon.

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Since returning from the bacterial infection that blighted the end of her 2015 campaign and forced her to skip the Australian Open, Safarova has found wins hard to come by. In fact, the Czech had fallen at the first hurdle at all five tournaments since making her comeback.

When she dropped the opening set to Duque-Mariño, another disappointment looked on the cards. However, perhaps buoyed by the home crowd, the No.2 seed fought back to complete a 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 victory in a fraction over two hours.

“I’m so happy because this is my first win this year in singles and obviously it means a lot,” Safarova said. “I was trying to be positive after coming back from this long sickness, but obviously it’s about the wins. That’s why I was so excited.”

Having dropped the first set, Safarova began her comeback midway through the second, a sliding drop shot in response to a net cord bringing the decisive break. She carried this momentum into the decider, breaking once more when Duque-Mariño sent a tired backhand long. The Colombian had her chances to get back into the contest, seeing several chances to draw level slip by in the sixth game as a relieved Safarova held on.

“I fought so hard and it wasn’t easy – I lost the first set but came back well in the second and played really well in the third,” Safarova added. “I hope to continue to play well here because the crowd was fantastic. It’s so nice to play in front of your home crowd and hopefully I can continue to do so for some more matches.” 

Fellow Czech Lucie Hradecka is next up after she saw off doubles partner Andrea Hlavackova, 6-4, 6-1.

Victories for Barbora Krejcikova, Barbora Strycova and 2015 champion Karolina Pliskova provided further cheer for the locals on another chilly day. Pliskova began the defense of her title with a straightforward 6-, 6-3 win over Stefanie Voegele, while Strycova saw off Olga Govortsova, 6-3, 7-5, and lucky loser Krejcikova made the most of her second chance by upsetting No.7 seed Dominika Cibulkova, 6-2, 6-2.

PRAGUE, Czech Republic – Lucie Safarova’s clay court revival at the J&T Banka Prague Open gathered further momentum on Thursday with a straight set win over Hsieh Su-Wei.

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Going into her home tournament, Safarova had not registered a win all season, but after unraveling Hsieh’s unorthodox game in two tight sets she now has three in as many days.

In a topsy-turvy encounter, Safarova failed to serve out the opening set at 5-4, before coming within a few points of losing it two games later. In the tie-break, it was the Czech that held her nerve, taking it when Hsieh miscued a backhand into the tramlines.

Hsieh continued to pose problems in the second set, but once again it was Safarova that came out on top at the crucial moments, returning from a late rain delay to reach the semifinals 

Safarova’s 7-6(3), 7-5 victory followed on from an even more impressive performance from her compatriot and next opponent, Karolina Pliskova. Eager to minimize her time exposed to the elements on another chilly day in the Czech capital, defending champion Pliskova blew away Camila Giorgi, 6-2, 6-1, in just 51 minutes.

Pliskova and Safarova met only last week in Stuttgart, the former coming through a third set shootout, to add to victories over her Fed Cup teammate the previous year in Antwerp and Dubai.

Following her showing in Stuttgart and her run this week Safarova is feeling positive heading into the rematch. “I was on the way back already in Stuttgart, where I had a great match, and I was hoping the results would come. I’m happy and excited that it’s going this well.

“It was a tough match today; she’s always a very tricky player, defending the court very well and I’m very excited to be through to the semis.”

PRAGUE, Czech Republic – No.2 seed Lucie Safarova threw down 14 aces to edge past No.4 seed Samantha Stosur, winning the battle of former French Open finalists, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4, to capture the J&T Banka Prague Open title.

Watch live action from Prague & Rabat this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!

Heading into the International-level event in Prague, Safarova hadn’t won a singles match all year. In fact, she hadn’t even won a set until last week in Stuttgart, still struggling to find her form since returning from the bacterial infection that sidelined her at the end of 2015 and forced her to skip the Australian Open.

But last year’s French Open finalist peaked just at the right time, powered by her adoring home crowd to recover from a one-set deficit for her first title of the year.

“I had quite a few tough matches here so I feel pretty tired,” Safarova said after the match. “But my health is holding up which is the best news for me after such a long time of struggling.

“Each match here I was playing better and better, and by semis and finals I felt like my old self.”

Safarova went down an early break in her first service game, Stosur threading a pinpoint accurate backhand down the line to bring up the first break chance of the match. The Australian’s heavy shots were giving Safarova plenty of trouble throughout the opening set, going up a 4-1 lead. Despite pushing back during the later stages of the set, Safarova wasn’t able to pressure the Stosur serve and find a chance to break back, dropping the first set.

The Czech mounted her comeback in the second set, aided by Stosur’s service struggles: the Australian hit four double faults in the one game to hand Safarova the first break. She also unleashed her own powerful serves: 12 of the 14 aces struck by Safarova came in the final two sets. Despite hitting a rare double fault on set point – one of two the whole match – Safarova closed out the second set to level the score.

Safarova got the break in the seventh game of the final set, going up 4-3 as the tide – and the vocal crowd – turned firmly in her favor.

A pair of aces sealed the match and the Prague title, which is Safarova’s seventh WTA title, and her first one on clay courts since Oeiras in 2005.

“I’m so happy because support during the week was amazing,” Safarova said. “To finally get some wins under my belt feels great. And a seventh title? Wow!”

Prague is quickly becoming a stronghold for Czech players: they’ve now seen their second Czech champion in as many years, with Karolina Pliskova having won last year’s inaugural staging.

For Stosur, who was also playing in her first final of the year in Prague, the experience brings nothing but positives.

“I’m really happy with the week that I’ve had,” the Australian said. “I played some really good tennis and some hard fought matches, and it’s really good for my tennis all around.

“Lucie was too good today – we’ve had some close matches and today was pretty similar to that. All credit to her and congratulations, she had the win today.”

It will be a quick turnaround for both finalists going from Prague straight to Madrid: the Mutua Madrid Open starts today and Stosur is slated to play her opening match on Sunday.

“It’s gonna be a late night tonight, and I know Lucie and I are on the same flight,” Stosur said. “We’ll both be in the same boat but that’s the way it goes sometimes.

“It’s not ideal preparation, but to be in a final – you’d take that any day.”

Congrats @LucieSafarova!

Lift that #PragueOpen trophy ? https://t.co/GQfRaEL1RQ

— WTA (@WTA) April 30, 2016

MADRID, Spain – 2014 Mutua Madrid Open finalist Simona Halep got her outdoor clay court campaign off to a flying start on Court Manolo Santana; opening the night session on Sunday, the Romanian eased past Japan’s Misaki Doi, 6-0, 6-3, to reach the second round.

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“It was a good match, a good start for me,” she said after the match. “The first set was fast; I had a good start because I was confident, and practicing very well the last few days here. In the second set, she started to hit faster, and I was hitting flatter than I was at the start of the match. That was good for her.

“I had to make it more of a clay court game, and that’s why I won.

Halep was suffering from the lingering effects of an ankle injury and breathing problems in a stunning loss to Laura Siegemund just two weeks ago in Stuttgart, but exhibited none of those health concerns in Madrid, racing through the first eight games of the match, hitting five aces and 19 winners in the match.

A dangerous floater, Misaki Doi came closest to preventing Angelique Kerber’s Australian Open run back in January – having held a match point on the German in their first round encounter – and leveled the second set by winning three games in a row after falling behind a break. Halep’s coach Darren Cahill took to the court to advise his charge, who brushed off the string of games to win the final four of the match to reach the second round.

Converting six of eight break point opportunities, Halep maintained an impressive 66% first serve percentage and won all four of her points at net.

Awaiting the former World No.2 in the second round will be Italy’s Karin Knapp. Knapp has spent much of the season dealing with a right knee injury, played some emphatic tennis to defeat rising Russian Margarita Gasparyan, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2.

“I have great memories from two years ago, so the game is ok here. It was a bit cold, but it’s always cold here in the evenings. It was ok, I was playing good and it was a good day for me.”

In just twenty-two minutes, @Simona_Halep drops a bagel on Doi 6-0! #MMOpen https://t.co/kXbyMNb3JZ

— WTA (@WTA) May 1, 2016

Sunshine Double winner and former No.1 Victoria Azarenka maintained an unbeaten streak that now stretches to 15 matches (including Fed Cup) with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Laura Robson. A former No.1 in Great Britain, Robson has been off the court for much of the last two and a half years, and had entered Madrid’s main draw with a protected ranking.

Nonetheless, she kept things close against the two-time Australian Open champion – particularly in the first set, where she maintained even footing until the crucial ninth game, in which the Belarusian broke serve to run away with the match. Azarenka’s next opponent will be Frenchwoman Alizé Cornet; though she trails 4-0 in their head-to-head, the last three matches have gone three sets.

Porsche Tennis Grand Prix finalist Laura Siegemund had retired from her doubles match on Saturday citing dizziness, but pushed through another impressive singles result on Sunday, dispatching 2015 Madrid runner-up and No.9 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova, 6-0, 3-6, 6-3. A qualifier in Madrid, Siegemund is currently the No.4 German; should she hold onto that position, she is a likely candidate to qualify for the Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. She will next play fellow qualifier Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, who won a second straight match over Kristina Mladenovic, having narrowly taken out the young French star in a third set tie-break in Charleston. Mladenovic’s countrywoman and doubles partner Caroline Garcia reached the second round when Australian Open semifinalist Johanna Konta was forced to retire in the second set of their first round, citing an upper respiratory illness.

Earlier in the day, 2008 French Open champion Ana Ivanovic captured a thrilling three-set win over qualifier Katerina Siniakova; the No.14 seed emerged victorious out of a titanic final game to win, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4. No.11 seed and J&T Banka Prague Open champion Lucie Safarova enjoyed a seamless win over American CoCo Vandeweghe, while Romanian wildcard and former World No.21 Sorana Cirstea continued her charge back up the rankings with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Jelena Jankovic.

25th win of 2016! ?@Vika7 Azarenka tops Robson 6-4, 6-2 in @MutuaMadridOpen first round! pic.twitter.com/J2DhcNZ0V0

— WTA (@WTA) May 1, 2016