Playing in her first competitive match in 13 months, Ajla Tomljanovic stunned No.6 seed Eugenie Bouchard in straight sets to move into the second round at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel.
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Magda Linette says she was surprised when fourth seed Peng Shuai was forced to retire from their third-round match at the Alya Malaysian Open – but she is now ready for her next opponent.
“You are always surprised when someone retires, you’re never ready for that,” the Polish player told reporters after the match. “You just need to be focused on your own game and just try to play your own tennis. I’m glad I stayed focused.”
The 25-year-old said she noticed Peng struggling with her serve before the fourth seed admitted she could not continue, 5-2 down with just 28 minutes of the match gone.
.@MagdaLinette is in control of the first set! #alyawtamalaysianopen pic.twitter.com/5TWC2jE0Hf
— WTA (@WTA) March 2, 2017
Nevertheless, Linette was satisfied with her performance.
“I was aggressive, that was the plan, to play my own game, and I realised that most of the time,” she said. “I’m pretty happy. It was short. It’s tough to judge, but I’m happy.”
Next up for the World No.93 is Duan Ying-Ying, one of only two seeds remaining in the draw, but Linette says that no quarterfinal match would be a straightforward one.
“Everyone plays good,” she said. “Qualifiers beat the third seed and second seed. So it’s not easier now, those players are good. Even the wildcard I played two days ago was a tough one, so obviously there are no easy players, it’s even tougher because the girls are so motivated to play. I’m lucky, I’m very happy and looking forward to tomorrow.”
Lesia Tsurenko takes on Mirjana Lucic-Baroni in the semifinals of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel.
Lesia Tsurenko has Saturday’s shot of the day at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel.
Irina-Camelia Begu takes on Victoria Azarenka in the second round of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia.
Kristina Mladenovic has announced that she and Caroline Garcia have ended their doubles partnership.
An interview with Garbiñe Muguruza after her win in the third round of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia.
Kristina Mladenovic, Caroline Wozniacki, Karolina Pliskova, Angelique Kerber, Daria Kasatkina – who will win February’s WTA Shot Of The Month presented by Cambridge Global Payments? Vote now!
Kristina Mladenovic was one of the best players yet to win a WTA title. The French star had already taken home major titles in women’s and mixed doubles, but success on the singles court eluded her – that is, until she arrived at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy.
Mladenovic roared through the draw in Russia, ousting Australian Open finalist Venus Williams and defending champion Roberta Vinci en route to the final, where she hit a stunning 62 winners to survive an inspired Yulia Putintseva in what will likely go down as one of the best matches of the season.
“I feel just amazing,” she told WTA Insider in her Champions Corner interview. “That was my first title. I lost three finals before that, always playing well but had a better opponent. It’s also a Premier event, so it’s even more special.
“The wait was definitely worth it and if you asked me whether to change the past or something I would probably not because this tournament as a first title is absolutely insane. I’m not saying that because I won it, but I think the atmosphere, the show, the organization, it’s just an amazing event. It’s probably the best WTA event during the season, really. They’re treating us so well and everything is super nice. So to hold this trophy here and have it as my first title, for sure it’s going to stay forever in my best memories heart for my career and maybe more.”
Her breakthrough month continued at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, where she stunned good friend and reigning Qatar Total Open winner Karolina Pliskova in the opening round, and ended on another high after reaching the final of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel.
“I’m really a hard worker. I guess all the players are on tour. It’s no secret that to achieve such a high level and get the results, you have to. I’m just very positive, working very hard every day, and having this fighting spirit it helps me to go through these tough moments.”
Looking to build on her career-high ranking of No.26, Mladenovic is your Breakthrough Player of the Month!
Final Results for February’s WTA Breakthrough Performance Of The Month
1. Kristina Mladenovic (56%)
2. Elina Svitolina (26%)
3. Ashleigh Barty (12%)
4. CiCi Bellis (6%)
2017 Breakthrough Performance Of The Month Winners
January: CoCo Vandeweghe
How it works:
Finalists are selected by wtatennis.com
Winner is then determined by a fan vote on wtatennis.com
With the BNP Paribas Open underway in Indian Wells, players have been busy sharing their thoughts on social media – with Lucie Safarova and Bethanie Mattek-Sands leading the way.