Tennis News

ISTANBUL, Turkey – Cagla Buyukakcay delighted the Turkish fans at the TEB BNP Paribas Istanbul Cup, roaring out to a big lead and treating the crowd to a tense ending with a 6-0, 7-5 victory over Stefanie Voegele.

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Buyukakcay turned heads earlier in the year with a run to the third round of the Qatar Total Open – upsetting Lucie Safarova en route – but has been even more impressive at home in Istanbul, running through four matches without losing a set to become the first Turkish woman to reach a WTA singles final.

“I was very nervous in the beginning,” she admitted after the match. “I was trying to focus on the point all the time; it was hard not to think about the future in the second, when I was 6-0, 2-0 up.”

Completely in charge through the opening eight games, Voegele – a former Volvo Car Open semifinalist in 2013 – found her way back to level in the second set, getting within one game of tying things up in the tenth game.

“I knew my opponent could come back at any time, but it’s normal that I lost a little bit of concentration. It’s tough to finish a match and I was starting to feel really tight, but also I was making some unforced errors. But I would be brave again and I’d tell myself, ‘Play your best and try. If it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work.’ It’s better to say this than ask, ‘Why didn’t I go for it?’ after the match.

“That’s why I was positive when I was 5-4 down, I was like, ‘Play your game, play aggressively like you did before.’ That worked well for me.”

Maintaining an incredibly high first serve percentage, Buyukakcay only missed three first serves through the one hour and 23 minute match, winning 63% of her first serve points and converting six of 11 break point chances on return.

“I hadn’t noticed, but I was told I was serving over 90%; that must have happened for the first time in my career!”

The top-ranked Turkish star was already the first from her country to reach a WTA semifinal, and Saturday’s victory allowed her to go one better, and assure herself of a Top 100 debut.

What a moment for #Buyukakcay! Makes the final at home! 6-0 7-5 over #Voegele @istanbul_cup pic.twitter.com/BgdJlEZGdL

— TennisTV (@TennisTV) April 23, 2016

“It was very important for me to break the Top 100 this match; that’s why I was very emotional at the end. I’ve been working for it for the first time, and I’ll be the first woman in Turkish tennis to be Top 100. It’s a huge thing for me.

“I saw the Turkish flags around me, and I’m reminding myself all the time that it’s perfect to be here, and it’s working.”

Hoping to inspire other young women from her home country, Buyukakcay discussed her active role as President of the Athlete’s Commission through the Turkish Olympic Committee.

“I’m very happy about it because we have to encourage kids to be involved with sports. My role is to help them for their Olympic dreams and to have a good bridge between the athletes and the Olympic Committee, and what we can do together in the future.

“It’s an important role for me to be a good athlete, because when I was young I didn’t have any role models in tennis. That’s why my dreams were very far for me; I didn’t have anyone to look up to. But because of me, they can dream that they also can reach a WTA final. We could never dream about it before in Turkish tennis.”

Standing between the hometown favorite and a maiden WTA title will be Danka Kovinic, who overcame a topsy-turvy second semifinal to see past Katreryna Kozlova, 7-5, 6-4. In doubles, Buyukakcay’s compatriot Ipek Soylu continued the banner week for Turkish tennis as she and partner Andreea Mitu reached the final when Nao Hibino’s right shoulder injury forced she and Kurumi Nara to withdraw from the semifinals.

Kovinic is also in the doubles final, having won her semifinal with fellow No.3 seed Xenia Knoll on Friday, and withstood a spirited challenge from Kozlova to reach the singles final on Saturday.

“The conditions are completely different on this court than on Court 1,” she said after the match. “It´s a bit faster but I like it more because there is no wind.

“I am really happy that I finished in two sets. It has been a tough week for me coming from Fed Cup but I am really happy with my result here because I am a step closer to making it for Rio, to play for my country. I hope that tomorrow is a good match. I know Cagla very well. We are close friends and we played in Charleston a few weeks ago.

“I expect a crazy crowd tomorrow, but I like it when the stadium is full even if they are against me and I like that people come to watch and to support us.”

ZHUHAI, China – Top seeds Petra Kvitova and Johanna Konta are making their debuts at the Huajin Securities WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai as group-stage action continues at the season-ending event. We preview all the singles action right here.

Wednesday

Camellia Group
[13/Alt] Timea Babos (HUN #25) vs [6] Timea Bacsinszky (SUI #18)
Head-to-head: Bacsinszky leads 2-0
Stat: Babos owns a 4-14 record against the Top 20.

After being stunned 6-1, 6-1 by Zhang Shuai in her first match at Zhuhai, Timea Bacsinszky is looking to get back on track against an unexpected opponent, singles alternate Timea Babos. Babos is set to make her debut appearance in Zhuhai after No.2 seed Carla Suárez Navarro saw herself forced to withdraw from the tournament and Bacsinszky will have to put their friendship aside – as well as their bond over a shared first name – in order to stay perfect against an opponent she’s never lost against.

“With Timea Babos, we do speak Hungarian together. Well, we’re friends, and we know each other quite well. It’s going to be a tough one definitely,” Bacsinszky explained in her post-match press conference. “We played twice against each other but it was only on clay. You know, here the surface is quite different. I mean, you have to be aggressive as well.So probably it’s going to be something totally different.”

Azalea Group
[1] Johanna Konta (GBR #10) vs [8] Samantha Stosur (AUS #20)
Head-to-head: First meeting
Stat: Konta has a 5-4 record against Aussies.

The Ashes is normally a fixture in cricket, but today it hits Zhuhai as Britain’s No.1 takes on Australia’s No.1 for the first time. Johanna Konta, the WTA’s Most Improved Player of the year, is making her Zhuhai debut as the No.1 seed and riding on the back of career-best accomplishments that she achieved during the Asian Swing. After reaching her first Premier Mandatory final at the China Open and shortly afterwards rising to her highest ranking of No.9, the Brit seems right at home in China.

“What can I say? I like China!” she joked with WTA Insider. “We get treated very well here; every hotel is always really beautiful, as is every venue. They really put a lot of effort into the immediate things that surround us as tennis players, the things we experience at every event. They definitely make us feel quite comfortable.”

It’s been quite the opposite story for her first opponent in Zhuhai, Sam Stosur. The Australian has looked decidedly uncomfortable in Asia, posting back-to-back first round exits at Wuhan, Beijing and Hong Kong. But with a new coach on board, Stosur feels the pieces are clicking together, and she’s not phased about drawing the tournament’s top seed. “Jo has been constantly playing and had a great year,” Stosur acknowledged. “[It’s] going to be a difficult first match, but I’m ready to go. It’s a good test to test yourself against I guess the highest-ranked player here.”

Peony Group
[3] Petra Kvitova (CZE #13) vs [5] Roberta Vinci (ITA #17)
Head-to-head: Tied at 3-3
Stat: Vinci holds a 3-5 record against the Top 20.

Petra Kvitova takes the court in her debut appearance at Zhuhai with all the wind behind her sails; she turned her season around during the Asian Swing, winning her first title of the year in Wuhan and going on to reach the quarterfinals of Beijing and the final at Luxembourg. Her first opponent at the WTA Elite Trophy will be the always-tricky Roberta Vinci, who is looking for a victory to keep her semifinal hopes alive after suffering a disappointing straight sets defeat against Barbora Strycova. She faces a familiar opponent in Kvitova, who she’ll be playing for a seventh time, and she already knows what the game plan entails.

“Just my game: play aggressive,” Vinci explained in her post-match press conference. “Petra is an unbelievable player; left-handed. Have to be aggressive. A lot of slice of course. I have to play a good game tomorrow to win against Petra.”