SAP Stat Of The Day: Elise Mertens
In today’s SAP Stat Of The Day, Elise Mertens notched a couple of huge career milestones at the Hobart International.
In today’s SAP Stat Of The Day, Elise Mertens notched a couple of huge career milestones at the Hobart International.
Dominika Cibulkova recalls her best memories from the Australian Open.
A round-up of Tuesday’s first-round action at the Australian Open.
Liang Chen and Yang Zhouxuan take on Chan Yung-Jan and Chan Hao-Ching in the first round of the Australian Open.
MELBOURNE, Australia – Grand Slam champions abound on Day 3 of the Australian Open, with two of 2016’s three major winners – World No.1 Angelique Kerber and French Open champion Garbiñe Muguruza – hoping to advance into the third round in Melbourne. We preview all the day’s matchups right here at wtatennis.com.
Wednesday, Second Round
[13] Venus Williams (USA #17) vs Stefanie Voegele (SUI #112)
Head-to-head: Venus leads, 2-0
Key Stat: Voegele won her first Grand Slam main draw match since the 2015 Australian Open on Monday (d. Kurumi Nara)
The former World No.1 was given all she could handle in a tough first round against Kateryna Kozlova, and was feeling confident after knocking out her younger opponent in straight sets.
“Girl, I don’t know,” she joked with Sam Smith during the on-court interview. “I know how to play tennis.”
She certainly proved that after holding off the Ukrainian youngster, and will try to show more of that level against Voegele, a former World No.42 who is inching closer towards the Top 100 after over two years in the wildnerness.
Venus and Voegele will open play on Rod Laver Arena, and the American will likely look to keep rallies short as the heat could possibly become a factor should the match run long.
[1] Angelique Kerber (GER #1) vs Carina Witthoeft (GER #89)
Head-to-head: Kerber leads, 2-0
Key Stat: Kerber is trying to defend a Grand Slam title for the first time in her career.
Angelique Kerber enjoyed a strong finish to the first match in her Australian Open title defense on Monday, edging past Lesia Tsurenko, 6-2, 5-7, 6-2.
“I was trying just to going for it in the third set, just trying to play my game,” she said in her post-match press conference. “I think that was the key for the match today.”
In the second round she takes on countrywoman Carina Witthoeft, whom she played twice at Wimbledon in the last two years. Their most recent encounter featured a first-set tie-break, the only set in which Witthoeft won more than one game.
Either way, Kerber won’t be taking too much into their next match.
“It’s the second round. I’m not looking too much about my opponents. I think she played a good match here. I know her very well; I think it will be a good match.
“But for me it’s important to go out there playing my match again, not thinking too much about my opponent.”
[7] Garbiñe Muguruza (ESP #7) vs Samantha Crawford (USA #162)
Head-to-head: First meeting
Key Stat: Muguruza shook off injury concerns in her first-round win against Marina Erakovic
The reigning French Open champion may not be at 100%, but has nonetheless channeled those niggling injuries into a glowing start to 2017, reaching the semifinals of the Brisbane International and sweeping aside Marina Erakovic in her first match in Melbourne.
“I was happy to win the first set, and then I just felt a little bit uncomfortable,” she said of her state of mind on Margaret Court Arena. “I just thought, take some precaution because of what happened in Brisbane. I took a medical timeout and became a little bit unfocused on the court. It took me a couple of games to get into the match again.”
Once she did, she didn’t let go, winning the final five games of the match, and blamed typical first-round jitters on compounding her physical concerns.
“I think this match was definitely more mental in certain situations, so I’m pretty pleased. I had to really forget about that and try to bring the best I had there.”
Muguruza next faces young American Samantha Crawford, who burst onto the scene last year when she herself reached the semifinals in Brisbane. Her own injuries have stunted her progress since, but the 2012 US Open junior champion is a clean ballstriker when playing her best.
Around the grounds…
No.11 seed Elina Svitolina opens play on Margaret Court Arena against Julia Boserup, followed by No.8 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova’s second round match against Aussie qualifier Jaimee Fourlis.
Women’s doubles also gets underway on Wednesday, with top seeds Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic taking on Belinda Bencic and Ana Konjuh. Venus and Serena also debut as the No.15, and all four women in the hunt for No.1 are in action, including Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Elena Vesnina, with partners Lucie Safarova and Ekaterina Makarova, respectively.
World No.1 Angelique Kerber survived another second-set hiccup on her 29th birthday to overcome Carina Witthoeft in straight sets at the Australian Open.
Catch up with all of the second-round results from Day 4 of the Australian Open.
WTA Insider Senior Writer Courtney Nguyen checks in from the Foro Italico in Rome where the Internazionali BNL d’Italia is already underway. She recaps the the weekend in Madrid, where Simona Halep capped off a big week for Romanian tennis by winning her first title of the season. Hear from Halep as she discusses her surprising week and how it all came together in the Champion’s Corner.
You’ll also hear from 30-year-old Czech veteran Barbora Strycova. The World No.38 joins the podcast to discuss her career, which was nearly ended by a failed drug test in 2012. After serving a six-moth ban for negligently ingesting a banned substance, Strycova came one match away from ending her career. It’s a good thing she didn’t.
Strycova candidly opens up about her ban — the lowest moment of her career — as well as her redemptive run to the 2014 Wimbledon quarterfinals. Self-aware, honest, and funny, it’s a conversation you won’t want to miss.
Halep on being reluctant to handicap her chances at the start of the week: It’s amazing that I could win this tournament. I feel that I had everything in my hands, every match. I felt that I played my best tennis in every match and kind of deserving the title because I won it. I didn’t receive presents during the matches. Day by day I believed more that I had a chance to win it.
At the beginning of the tournament it’s normal to feel that you hesitate a little bit because it’s just the start and you don’t know actually what’s going to happen in the first round because the first round is always the toughest in the tournament. And after my months before coming here, it was tough to believe I could win it.
Halep on the rise of her fellow Romanians: I didn’t read anything since a long time ago and I’m not going to start to read again. I heard a tough story about my joke about “the Easter present” about the second set [bagel against Irina-Camelia Begu]. They make everything negative so I’m not going to read.
But in my opinion it’s a big thing that many Romanians are playing in the last matches here in this tournament – also men’s doubles – so it’s a good point point for our country and maybe it will help our juniors.
Strycova on picking tennis over figure skating: At age 12, I had to decide if I wanted to stick with figure skating, because I was pretty good at it, or tennis. I chose tennis because it was my choice, and nobody was pushing it. I was last on the ice a year ago; I can do some small jumps but you have to be careful because you can fall down and break a leg! I love that sport, and I still like to listen to my favorite music and be on the ice, doing what I used to do when I was young. It’s really relaxing.
Strycova on whether her on-court intensity dates back to her childhood: Oh my god, so much! You would see such a crazy Bara, you would not believel I am so emotional. I’m intense. I love to win and hate to lose. Back then, I was crabby. On one side, I was very positive, but also very negative. I’d throw racquets, screaming, crying. My whole career, I’ve been fighting to be positive and calmer. But I need that sometimes, I just need to know how to deal with it, and make sure it’s not hurting you.
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Watch Svetlana Kuznetsova ride a rollercoaster at Melbourne’s historic amusement park, Luna Park!
Eugenie Bouchard takes on Angelique Kerber in the second round of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia.