Tennis News

THE WINNERS

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.

“I was just trying to enjoy the atmosphere, the fans and to play here again in the finals,” Kerber said. “So, I was trying to relax a little bit but also in the same moment to be focused. It helped me yesterday, so I was trying and hoping that it will help me today as well!”

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.

Read the full story and watch highlights here.

Meanwhile, unseeded Cagla Buyukakcay’s fairytale week at the TEP BNP Paribas Istanbul Cup came to a thrilling conclusion when the hometown favorite recovered from a set down to defeat No.5 seed Danka Kovinic, 3-6, 6-2, 6-3.

Set to crack the Top 100 for the first time in her career, Buyukakcay was making history with every win this week in Istanbul, becoming the first Turkish woman to reach a WTA semifinal, then a final, and against Kovinic, the first Turkish WTA titlist in history.

“It’s an incredible week for me to win the title at home, to break into the Top 100 with this tournament, to play against someone with my crowd,” she said after the match. “This is a tournament I’ve been playing since 2005, when I was 15, and I saw the best players at this tournament when I was young. So I dreamed of winning the title since then; it’s very special for me.”

Read the full story here.

GAME, SET, MATCH: WTA Insider

Game: Angelique Kerber turns the page.

Kerber’s successful title defense at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix capped off a five-week run of play that saw her put her post Australian Open malaise behind her and re-assert herself as a force on clay. After two opening round losses after winning her maiden Slam, the German has now made the semifinals or better at her last three events. Her Stuttgart title builds her lead at No.1 on the Road to Singapore, nearly 500 points clear of No.2 Victoria Azarenka.

Kerber is the first to admit clay has never been her favorite. But that began to change last year when her titles in Charleston and Stuttgart kickstarted what has been a career-best 12 months. Kerber has yet to maintain her success in the early part of the clay season through to Paris. She has made the quarterfinals just once at the French Open and in the last two years she has won just one match combined in Madrid and Rome. So long as she’s healthy and stays aggressive from the baseline, there’s no reason Kerber can’t be a force on the red dirt.

 Hear from Stuttgart champion Kerber in this week’s WTA Insider Champion’s Corner.

Set: Cagla Buyukakcay historic on home soil.

Home court advantage doesn’t always ring true in tennis. Playing at home can be paralyzing given the pressure to perform. But this week saw both singles champions win their home tournaments, with No.118 Cagla Buyukakcay becoming the first Turkish woman to win a WTA title. The 26-year-old was 0-7 at the Istanbul Cup before last week but she made good on her wildcard to snag five wins en route to the title. The win vaults her into the Top 100 for the first time at a career-high No.82.

@roberta_vinci Robyyyy???Thank you sooo much❤️❤️ trying to follow your foot steps??????Always classy!!????

— Çağla Büyükakçay (@CaglaBuyukakcay) April 24, 2016

@TimeaOfficial Timiii thank youu so much❤️❤️???? I love that team spirit??? love to your lovely team!! good luck in Rabat??????

— Çağla Büyükakçay (@CaglaBuyukakcay) April 24, 2016

Quick look at the new Road to Singapore rankings and how about that @CaglaBuyukakcay: pic.twitter.com/MziDD5uoe4

— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) April 25, 2016

The best day of my life! One of my dreams came true, won WTA title at home??? pic.twitter.com/vX9EZyO3ED

— Çağla Büyükakçay (@CaglaBuyukakcay) April 24, 2016

Match: Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic stop SanTina.

The French duo is riding an eight-match win streak after winning their second consecutive title, edging out No.1s Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza 2-6, 6-1, 10-6 to win the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix. Garcia and Mladenovic have been flying since the tour turned to clay, winning their first title at the Volvo Car Open, winning the decisive doubles in France’s 3-2 win over the Netherlands at Fed Cup, and now beating the game’s best in Stuttgart.

As for Hingis/Mirza, the duo have not won a title since having their 41-match win streak snapped by Daria Kasatkina and Elena Vesnina at the Qatar Total Open.

Hingis and Mirza are now in the midst of a four tournament title drought. Time to panic? Not really. The pair went five tournaments without a title last year, mostly on their worst surface of clay. They went on to win Wimbledon, the US Open, and the WTA Finals.

RANKING MOVERS:
Notable singles ranking movers for the week of April 25, 2016.

Cagla Buyukakcay (TUR), +36 (No.118 to 82): Turkey’s Buyukakcay owns this week’s biggest ranking jump after her fairytale run at the TEP BNP Paribas Istanbul Cup ended with the hometown favorite becoming her country’s first WTA titlist. She now sits at a career-high No.82.

Laura Siegemund (GER), +29 (No.71 to 42): Another Cinderella story unfolded at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, which saw Siegemund upset player after player to reach her first WTA final and vault to a career-high No.42.

Danka Kovinic (MNE), +13 (No.60 to 47): Kovinic also posts a career-high ranking this week after reaching her second WTA final at Istanbul.

Petra Kvitova (CZE), +1 (No.7 to 6): Kvitova’s run to the Stuttgart semifinals causes the only Top 10 shuffle of the week, leapfrogging Simona Halep to reach the No.6 spot.

UPCOMING TOURNAMENTS

GP SAR La Princesse Lalla Meryem
Rabat, Morocco
International | $226,750 | Clay, Outdoor
Monday, April 25 – Saturday, April 30, 2016

J&T Banka Prague Open
Prague, Czech Republic
International | $226,750 | Clay, Outdoor
Monday, April 25 – Saturday, April 30, 2016

Angelique Kerber’s glorious homecoming in Stuttgart provided an emphatic answer to any lingering questions over her ability to wear the mantle of Grand Slam champion. 

And strong showings on the clay over the coming weeks, at two of the calendar’s most prestigious stop offs, will further underline her status among the game’s elite, not to mention her championship credentials for the campaign’s second major, Roland Garros.

On the face of it, Kerber’s counterpunching game is ideally suited to clay, but surprisingly it was not until last April that she first lifted a WTA title on the surface. This triumph in Charleston was swiftly followed by another in Stuttgart, and her defense of this title rightly pushes her to the forefront of the contenders for the other major honors.

Up first is the Premier Mandatory Mutua Madrid Open. Staged at the Caja Mágica, the event’s recent honor roll is a Who’s Who of the game’s elite, with Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova and Petra Kvitova leading the way.

Yet it is another name that arguably starts as favorite. While Kerber sits pretty atop the Road To Singapore leaderboard, Victoria Azarenka can lay claim to being the season’s most consistent performer.

The Belarusian, a WTA Finales ever-present between 2009 and 2013, looks well set to  secure her return after a trophy-laden couple of months. Titles in Brisbane, Indian Wells and Miami have sent Azarenka shooting up the leaderboard, trailing Kerber now by fewer than 500 points.

With 1,000 up for grabs in Madrid, and a further 900 at the following week’s Internazionali BNL d’Italia, in Rome, there is ample opportunity for the early pacesetters to forge further ahead or get sucked back into the pack.

Among those eager to reel them in is Agnieszka Radwanska. By her own admission the Pole has never taken to clay, although a semifinal run in Stuttgart suggests that her fortunes on the surface may be about to change.

One player who is no stranger to success at this time of year is reigning Roland Garros champion Serena Williams. By her own very high standards, it has been a slightly disappointing start to the year for WIlliams, and her bid for silverware in the Spanish and Italian capitals is sure to be one of the more captivating storylines.

Click here to see the full Road To Singapore leaderboard standings heading into Madrid.

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…

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.”

WTA Insider Senior Writer Courtney Nguyen recaps the emotional weekends in Stuttgart and Istanbul, which saw Angelique Kerber successfully defend her title at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, beating surprise finalist Laura Siegemund in the first All-German final ever in Stuttgart. Over in Istanbul it was Cagla Buyukakcay who lifted the trophy at the Istanbul Cup to become the first woman from Turkey to win a WTA Title.

Hear from Kerber and Siegemund as they discuss their successful weeks in Stuttgart and what they expect for the rest of the clay season.

Kerber on transitioning to clay courts: Yes that’s for sure. A few years ago clay was not my favorite surface. But right now I had a great clay court season last year and now, I played well in Charleston and here to win on clay, it gives me confidence that my game is also good for the clay court. That’s why I’m looking forward to Madrid, Rome and of course Paris, where I can play good tennis and play well there.

On adjusting to the increased media attention: I’m trying to enjoy it. It’s nice to do something different. To get to know new people, to see something different, not always my day is practice. I can change a little bit my day plan. So I try to enjoy it. So it’s both of it. I enjoy it but I’m also getting used to it.

Siegemund on what she’s changed to her preparation: I always say it’s not one thing that I can name; it would be too easy to say that. I’ve changed a lot of things over the last years. You probably know I took my time off at the end of 2012 and through 2013; I was studying and really done with tennis, and I never thought I’d be back at this point. It just helped me gain a new perspective on professional sports in general. That was one thing that was important for me. I also earned a coaching license and I learned things there that I used for my own training. I changed things in my physical training, my nutrition. When I decided to stop, I felt the freedom to try new things, and I found things that really work for me and I think the combination of changes is what’s bringing the success now.

Siegemund on enjoying her victories: We took the time to celebrate each success I’ve had this year. It’s one of the things I really want to take time for, because that’s what you work for. If you have success, you should take a moment, enjoy it and then move on to the next task. For me, it’s maybe not as surprising as it is for other people, but things are starting to come together for me.

Siegemund on her new perspective: It’s not that I press a button and everything’s fine; you can never have that. So, there are moments when I really get tight and really want to win. But I manage much better now than before the break to play freely and to just enjoy the moment – whatever it brings, win or lose – and enjoy the game.

Siegemund on being the No.4 German and the Olympics: I wasn’t seeing myself on that list; I was always hoping for doubles, that I’d have a chance. But the criteria is so high, and the German criteria made it as if there was no way for me unless I won four Grand Slams in half a year – which is not possible! I have to admit that the Olympic Games would be a huge dream; I would feel very honored. I played the student’s Olympics during my time off in 2013; it was such an amazing experience, and so knowing the student’s Olympics, I would love to go to the Rio Olympics. I really have to have some more good results and really try to focus on that and keep the way I play up to really make it.  

Subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or on any podcast app of your choice and reviews are always helpful, so if you like what you’ve heard so far, leave us one. You can also get new episode alerts by following us on Twitter @WTA_Insider.

MADRID, Spain – America’s Sloane Stephens won her first Premier Mandatory match of 2016 at the Mutua Madrid Open, recovering from a set down to defeat Brazilian No.1 Teliana Pereira, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2.

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

“It was a good match,” she said after the win. “She has a difficult game style, so she’s tough to play against. But I was happy to start playing better to get the win.”

Stephens has been one of the most impressive players of the season – capturing three titles in Auckland, Acapulco, and Charleston – but had stumbled in the opening hurdles of the Australian Open, BNP Paribas Open, and Miami Open. That dubious pattern was in danger of repeating for the 2013 Australian Open semifinalist, who dropped six straight games to lose the opening set from a double break advantage.

Undaunted, the American raced ahead by another double break in the second, and though Pereira clawed one back, Stephens duly served out the see-sawing second set, eventually engineering the win in just over two hours.

“I was just trying to make more balls than she was and just run around a lot,” she said with a laugh. “I needed to be really patient.”

Ranked just outside the Top 20, Stephens has gone on to win the title at every tournament in which she has won a match, but should face equally stiff opposition in the second round, as she next plays the winner of qualifier Patricia Maria Tig and Daria Kasatkina. The young Russian played Stephens in the quarterfinals of the Volvo Car Open, where she held a match point before falling in three sets.

“I still really haven’t fully adjusted to the time difference, so I’m ok. It’s like a 3 o’clock match for me right now!”

Earlier in the evening, French star Alizé Cornet outlasted a stirring challenge from Spain’s own Paula Badosa Gibert, who won the opening set before succumbing to a bilateral leg cramp early in the third, 2-6, 6-2, 2-2, ret. Born in Manhattan, Badosa Gibert moved back to Spain at the age of seven and won last year’s junior French Open title. For Cornet, the victory marks her first win on red clay this season, an important start towards defending the fourth round points she earned at Roland Garros nearly 12 months ago.

Of the other two seeds in action on Saturday, No.12 seed Elina Svitolina battled back to defeat Yanina Wickmayer, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4. No.15 seed Sara Errani wasn’t able to pull off the same Houdini act against the always dangerous Camila Giorgi, losing, 7-5, 7-5, to her countrywoman in one hour and 37 minutes. Ekaterina Makarova reunited with former doubles partner Elena Vesnina for the first time since Wimbledon, and put down a comprehensive 6-3, 6-4 singles win over Annika Beck; Christina McHale was equally emphatic over Anna-Lena Friedsam, 6-0, 6-4.

In doubles, No.5 seeds Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic won a 10th straight match in their first round over Anna-Lena Groenefeld and CoCo Vandeweghe, winning, 6-4, 7-5. Including their decisive Fed Cup win over the Netherlands, Garcia and Mladenovic haven’t lost a match since Miami, taking home titles in Charleston and Stuttgart – where they took out top seeds and Co-No.1s Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza – in back to back weeks. No.7 seeds Carla Suárez Navarro and Garbiñe Muguruza thrilled the home crowd with a 6-4, 7-6(4) win over Gabriela Dabrowski and Anastasia Rodionova, while Xu Yi-Fan and Zheng Saisai were three games into their first rounder with Kasatkina and Laura Siegemund when the Stuttgart runner-up was forced to retire due to dizziness.

After reaching her first Grand Slam semifinal at the Australian Open, American CoCo Vandeweghe stopped by SportsNation to tell all about her breakout run in Melbourne.

Chatting with a round table that includes ESPN tennis analyst LZ Granderson, Vandeweghe discussed how she deals with mid-match frustrations – typically with a crack of a racquet – and how her on-court coordination doesn’t always translate off the court.

Plus, who inspired the 25-year-old to do the dab after defeating World No.1 Angelique Kerber Down Under?

Check out the full video right here on wtatennis.com!