Tennis News

PARIS, France – Cagla Buyukakcay and Ipek Soylu made tennis history earlier this week, when they became the first two Turkish women in the Open Era to qualify for the singles main draw at a Slam. Both women accomplished the feat via qualies, with No.83 Buyukakcay, 26, becoming the first woman through and 2014 US Open girls doubles champion Soylu following suit hours later.

The celebration did not end there. With a 5-7, 7-6(2), 6-2 win over Aliaksandra Sasnovich, Buyukakcay followed up her qualies run to become the first Turkish woman to win a main draw match at a major. This success, not just for Buyukakcay but also for Turkish tennis, has been a long-time in the making.

“I was working so hard for so many years,” Buyukakcay told WTA Insider. “I was playing qualies for over five years actually.”

Back home in Turkey, Ipek Senoglu is beaming. The retired Turkish trailblazer was the first woman from her country to play qualifying at a Slam and was the first to play in the main draw of a Slam in doubles.

“It’s weird because I’m having these emotions right now that no one else in Turkey has,” Senoglu told WTA Insider via phone from Istanbul. “Because I had worked so hard to open the roads, to open this dream, and it would be like a waste of my career if someone didn’t take the flag and didn’t carry it further. And now they have actually over-passed my success. I mean, it’s a different level now; it’s in singles. So I’m really proud!”

Turkey has long been fertile ground for WTA tournaments. The TEB BNP Paribas Istanbul Cup has been a staple on the tour since 2005, and the WTA Finals had a fantastic run of three consecutive years in Istanbul  from 2011-2013.

But its players had yet to make a major impact a the upper echelons of the game. Buyukakcay, who played Fed Cup with Senoglu for years, seems to have picked up the torch. Last month she became the first Turkish woman to win a WTA singles title – on home soil nonetheless – at the Istanbul Cup. That win moved her into the Top 100 for the first time and guaranteed her a main draw slot at Wimbledon. Now with a junior Slam champion behind her, the legacy of Turkish tennis is coming together.

Both Senoglu and Buyukakcay cite the constant presence of top WTA events in Istanbul as a major inspiration. It brought the heady dreams of becoming a top-level professional back down to earth, something that was actually attainable.

“The [WTA Finals] allowed both Cagla, Ipek and anyone who is playing in the women’s tour to understand that these players are human. They have two arms, two legs – nothing they can’t have.

“I was always trying to say: ‘Hey, you can do it. Look, I made it in doubles because I didn’t have many options. I didn’t have many chances to do this, I didn’t have a coach for many of my career years, I didn’t have a sponsor for most of that time, but for me to do this it was a dream. So I was able to reach my dreams, to be the first woman to play all the Grand Slams from Turkey.”

“But it’s one thing to hear it and something else to see them live. Because when you see them live, they are hitting the same ball, they’re on the same court, same shoes – same thing, you know? It’s just about working hard, it’s just about doing it for a long time, working hard each day. And they saw that through the [WTA Finals]. I think it was a wonderful super step for them.

“And that’s great because not only they have seen it, our media has seen it, our parents have seen it, that they both can do it. It’s wonderful. I think we are getting the fruit of those [WTA Finals] right now. I think it was very very crucial.”

Buyukakcay agreed. “We didn’t have any examples in the Top 100,” she said. “Maybe the idea was too big in our minds before. Ipek had the tougher time than me because she’s older than me. When I saw [the top players in Turkey] I realized that we can do that, that we have the inspiration inside.”

Senoglu paved her way on tour by going to the United States for college, where she played collegiate tennis at Pepperdine University. Buyukakcay chose to develop her career in Turkey, in hopes of sending a message to future generations. In conversation it’s clear how much Buyukakcay wants to inspire more young Turkish women to pick up a racquet and play with ambition.

“I told myself, ‘No, I want to stay, I want to improve my tennis in Turkey,'” Cagla Buyukakcay said. “I will try my best. I didn’t have an idol in front of me. It was tough. I didn’t know how to be a professional. This was my motivation, but the idea came from my love of tennis.

“I grew up in Turkey, I work with the Turkish coaches. If you really want to improve yourself, I want to prove that we can do that. We are also humans. I have that faith inside. For the younger generation, it’s important for me that they will be believe for themselves that they can work without any excuses, because if you need excuses we can find a lot of things.

“I am 100% sure I will help the younger generation because when I started as a professional no one qualified for the Grand Slams. It was too big in our minds. If I play in the second round here I’m sure the younger ones will say, ‘Yes, Cagla did it. We can do it.’ I think it’s important to have some people from our culture, from our blood, to do it.

“My footballer friend Arda Turan, he’s playing for Barcelona now. This was a dream for us to have a Turkish footballer playing for Barcelona. He made it. He inspired me. He’s a big star in Turkey now. I’m telling myself also now if I work hard if I still want to stay in the positive side and be passionate to improve myself, there’s no reason not to do it.”

For Buyukakcay, winning the Istanbul Cup, breaking into the Top 100, playing in the main draw at a Slam: the last few weeks have been a whirlwind of emotions. But she’s careful to remind the public that it will not always be like this. Anyone familiar with tennis knows the ups and downs can give you whiplash and Buyukakcay wants Turkish fans to be in it for the long haul, not just because the emotions are high right now.

“Maybe it’s because it’s our culture and we get excited so quickly, we want the success too soon,” Buyukakcay said. “I’m doing good but it doesn’t mean I will do good all the time. This idea for them is tough. It’s new. This way we will give them knowledge about sport and how it is. Football is very popular of course, they know everything about football. But individual sports, they are starting to learn. But there is no reason our people will not succeed.”

Cagla Buyukakcay’s Parisian romp ended on Wednesday in a 6-3, 4-6, 6-1 loss to No.24 seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the second round. Next month she will hit another milestone, as the first Turkish woman to earn direct entry into a Slam and the first Turkish woman to play a main draw singles match at Wimbledon.

In the meantime, she will be waiting anxiously by her phone to hear if she will be the first Turkish woman to represent her country in tennis at the Olympics. Her ranking is unlikely to earn her direct entry but the ITF could grant her a special entry spot usually reserved for players from underrepresented regions around the world.

“Turkish people are fanatics,” Senoglu said, laughing. “That’s why right now, when Cagla won the Istanbul Cup in Turkey she became from a regular player only tennis fans know, to a celebrity in one night. That’s wonderful for Turkish tennis, that’s wonderful for Turkish athletes and wonderful for Turkish supporters in general. Now, not only Turkish tennis fans know Cagla, now regular people in Turkey know her as well. And what that’s going to increase sponsorship, that’s going to increase tournaments, it’s going to increase everything in Turkish tennis. That’s wonderful.

“I hope Cagla will make it to Olympics, because that’s the next step. And I think at this point she does deserve it. Whether it will be as direct acceptance or as a wildcard, I don’t care, but I do think it will be a wonderful thing for this region if she can make it to Olympics.”

Photos courtesy of Getty Images.

For most players, the road to Roland Garros begins as the tour turns from hardcourts of Miami to the clay courts of Charleston. For doubles partners Vitalia Diatchenko and Galina Voskoboeva, it started late last summer.

“I was still dealing with my injury and my foot was hurting so bad, and I was very depressed by that,” Voskoboeva told WTA Insider on Friday. “But then I got a text message from Vitalia, asking how I was doing, and if I want to play doubles at Roland Garros.

“I was sitting in the changing room in such a bad mood and I said, ‘Ok, let’s try!’ We were both deeply injured, but I’ve never made such an arrangement so early.

“The first time we played together was the year when I came back from my first injury in 2011, and we won a 100K Challenger in Astana. We didn’t play again until last week, when I’m coming back from another injury. I should probably play more often with Vitalia, not only after surgeries!”

Diatchenko may have secured a doubles partner nearly eight months in advance, but her own injury issues had just begun.

“I was playing with pain for a year and a half,” the 25-year-old said on Sunday. “It was getting more and more painful, until I just could not walk.”

Overcoming a three-year odyssey to repair an injured anterior cruciate ligament, the Russian rocketed up the rankings, making her Top 100 debut – peaking at No.71 – and winning her first WTA title at a 125K Series event in Taipei.

But an Achilles injury sidelined her last spring, and her haste to return after surgery saw her reinjure her leg a mere hours before she was set to play the highest-profile match of her career.

“I could feel that my injury was very serious, and so it was quite painful to play,” she said, looking back on her 2015 US Open encounter with World No.1 Serena Williams. “I was really sad what I couldn’t finish that match, really disappointed!

“In retrospect, I probably came back too early, but it was only because I wanted to play so much. It was really difficult to be off the tour for so long. A lot of people said that I could not play sports again, or that I would not back on court after so many surgeries and very serous injuries.

“I can’t explain how happy I am to have broken the rules!”

Nine months, a new coach (former WTA No.15 Elena Likhovtseva), and a second surgery later, Diatchenko made her return on a much smaller stage last week in La Marsa, a Challenger event in Tunisia.

“I met Elena at Fed Cup and I liked the way she explained tennis. Of course she has a lot of experience, being such a great player. We started working together in April, and I’ve liked the way we’re starting to practice but, of course, we have a lot of work ahead!”

She won two matches in singles before bowing out to none other than Voskoboeva, with whom she went on to win the doubles event.

“Being back on the court, I was nervous and excited at the same time; it felt crazy inside, to be honest!

“I was listening a lot to Galina, because she came back earlier this year, so I got a bit more experience.”

Herself back in Paris for the first time in three years, the veteran could certainly relate to Diatchenko, one who was also making a second major comeback.

“I can understand everything that’s happening with her now because I had the same feelings a few months before. When she makes mistakes, I understand exactly why. It’s not because she’s playing badly, but because there are some things on the court that she can’t do straight away.

“It’s not like you come to the court and remember how to do everything; you still need time.”

A comeback can’t be rushed, something Voskoboeva learned as she tried to shift too quickly into the clay court swing back in April.

“I had been practicing with Vitalia in Moscow, talking about how I like to play on clay courts and how I usually transition well from hard to clay, but I forgot the fact that the last time I was on a clay court was in Roland Garros, 2013! My muscles weren’t ready because it’s a completely different surface, and so I pulled a muscle a little bit.

“I didn’t even realize it was so bad so I went to the tournament, an ITF in Germany, where the tournament director gave me a wildcard. I arrived four days in advance and thought it would be better, but it ended up taking a week, so I had to miss that tournament.”

Taking two tournaments off to heal her overworked body reminded her of a conversation she’d had with the recently retired Flavia Pennetta a few years prior in Moscow.

Double pose with?? And my doubles partner ?
P.S. It's nice to be back playing again, again and again?? pic.twitter.com/EBe6TDE4TB

— Vitalia Diatchenko (@VDiatchenko) May 17, 2016

“You might train six hours a day and be fine, but play a match for one hour, and your whole body hurts because of the additional nerves and pressure, neither of which you can train in practice. I’ve learned so many different parts of the body because they’re all hurting!

“I know from Flavia, because when I spoke with her two years ago, she told me that the whole year she was trying to come back, her body was hurting. I just need to work harder, to stretch, exercises those inner muscles. They aren’t difficult exercises, but you have to do them every day.

“It’s already a miracle that I’m playing; it’d take another for me to suddenly start beating players who have confidence from playing a lot of matches. I can’t wait for such a miracle; I already have one! I’ll have to make it instead, step by step.” 

Fatigue from 10 matches in Tunisia likely led to Tuesday’s loss to Zhang Shuai, a match that took two days to complete after getting suspended due to darkness, but one from which the Kazakh still felt was an indication of her steady improvement after getting within two points of the opening set.

“I’m really happy when I see myself showing the game I used to play. The way I started the match with Shuai, for example, was probably the best play I’ve shown this year.

“I’m very satisfied to start seeing bright moments; maybe they don’t last as long as I’d like, but the fact that I can show this game is already a good sign. I’m on the right away, and hopefully soon I can show this game for longer periods of time – and more frequently!”

???? #tunis #itf #win #sport #tennis #galinavoskoboeva #sofibella pic.twitter.com/sN9SXIbJqV

— Galina Voskoboeva (@g_voskoboeva) May 20, 2016

For her part, Diatchenko intends to take things slowly following a first round singles loss to 2015 finalist Lucie Safarova.

“Being healthy is my main priority now. I’m not planning to play a lot, but instead to have a good quality preparation before each tournament.

“I’m planning to play some practice tournaments this summer to get back into my match rhythm and improve my ranking, so I hope I’ll be good for the US Open.”

Before she can get to Flushing, the two still have some doubles left to play. They wasted little time on Friday, racing out to a 6-1, 5-1 lead before ultimately dispatching Naomi Broady and Louisa Chirico to set up another meeting with Serena Williams, who has paired with sister Venus in search of a 14th Grand Slam doubles title.

“It’s going to be very interesting,” Voskoboeva said with a laugh. “As you could imagine, it’s such a great experience. We never played against them in doubles, and for us, it’s good to be playing at such a level.

“After we won our match and I was kind of joking with her, saying, ‘Listen, we’re almost half a team, because you have a special ranking and so do I, so it’s not a full team, it’s more like half!'”

.@g_voskoboeva arrives at the @rolandgarros players party pic.twitter.com/zFG5nqhVR8

— Jimmie48 Photography (@JJlovesTennis) May 19, 2016

The two halves may need more that 50% to outmatch the Williams sisters, but Voskoboeva and Diatchenko have already had a Roland Garros to remember.

“I took so many photos at the player’s party, and when I came back home I wanted to look at them but I thought, ‘I’ll do it in the morning, because it’s so late,'” Voskoboeva said. “I woke up in the morning, couldn’t find it. I realized, ‘Oh my god, I forgot it in the car!’

“The woman in charge of lost and found was so nice, and said, ‘Sorry, we didn’t find it today,’ and I said, ‘Oh my god, so you’ll never find it?’ She said, ‘No, no, we’ll keep trying.’

“The next day, I met her and asked if she found it. She said she didn’t, but that they found a ring that someone lost five days ago. On the third day, they found a phone that someone lost three days ago, but still no camera.

“She finally called on the fourth day to say they found it, and so this will be my favorite Roland Garros, because this is the one where they found my camera.”

Photos courtesy of Getty Images.

Having seen in action all the clothes bound to bring a new twist to Paris’ reputation as the fashion capital of the world, Marija Zivlak of Women’s Tennis Blog made a selection of the best styles and now it’s your turn to tell us your thoughts – vote for your favorite outfit right here!

The most striking collection of the tournament has definitely been adidas’ Y-3 Roland Garros collection, better known as the zebra collection, even though the designer Yohji Yamamoto’s inspiration were not the elegant African animals, but dazzle painting used for ship camouflage in World War I and World War II.

The distinctive black and white stripes bring movement and fluidity to the attire and the 2008 French Open champion Ana Ivanovic is the most graceful and elegant zebra on the loose in the adidas Roland Garros Y-3 On Court Dress which features faux red braces at back.

“I actually really like it. The cut is beautiful in the dress, and I think it looks very feminine,” the Serb said about her eye-catching outfit. “The design also supports my favourite club, Partizan Belgrade. I really like it. It was very comfortable to play in.”

Another dominant member of the zebra family is Simona Halep, rocking the printed Y-3 tank and a solid black skirt with layered jacquard mesh overlay.

Players rocking adidas have been equipped with limited-edition adizero Y-3 shoes, which blend style and performance to make players feel confident, ensuring quick, safe and comfortable movement for hours of court wear.

Eugenie Bouchard’s sleeveless polo dress is reinventing a traditional polo look and the fresh approach to the classic style is nothing short of stunning. This NikeCourt Premier Advantage Dress features a lovely mock collar with two-button placket for a personalized fit, while split hem and racerback provide ease of movement. The soft performance pique fabric brings a flowy feel, keeping players dry and comfortable.

The Canadian’s footwear of choice are these unisex Nike Air Zoom Ultrafly shoes, nicely matching the complete hyper cobalt look.

Serena Williams opted to remove the mid-back mesh panel of her NikeCourt Premier Dress, making the outfit extra edgy and no other player could pull off those side cutouts better than the World No.1.

To complete the stunning effect, Nike created these NikeCourt Flare shoes, offering supreme ankle support during explosive, agile and quick movements. The rose details adorning the swoosh are inspired by the tennis icon’s ever-blossoming career.

Venus Williams’ EleVen Geo Swirl Dress has an exceptionally flattering shape featuring a high neckline with an edgy narrow cut, contrast binding at waist and a flowing fit at the skirt. The abstract print features light orange elements, to nicely match the French Open clay.

Agnieszka Radwanska merged her ninja game with the soft feminine energy of Lotto’s limited-edition Lacy line. Technical perforated fabric with a lace effect makes this item fashionable without putting performance in the backdrop, while ruffled skirt brings the extra touch of flirtiness.

The Pole’s vigorous on-court movement is supported by new SS16 Stratosphere shoe model, the latest innovation in Lotto tennis. The speed-oriented shoe studied for high-level players ensures optimal level of cushioning, improved adaptability to different weight of athletes and maximum transpiration.

Double trouble ? time for doubles with @Gibbsyyyy pic.twitter.com/6uMDVyqzyW

— Heather Watson (@HeatherWatson92) May 26, 2016

The New Balance Tournament Dress made my April’s best dressed list, but it’s not too much to include it in the French Open fashion favorites as well, since the item, worn by Heather Watson and Nicole Gibbs in their first-round clash and then when they joined forces in doubles, is truly outstanding.

The classic navy is revived with white stripes, as well as with a subtle functional detail in the form of an “N” houndstooth burnout mesh at back. Modern thin racerback straps, clean finish neckline with mesh and NB DRY technology which efficiently wicks sweat away make this a genuinely refreshing design that stays true to sports fashion while adding just the right amount of stylish touches that rule contemporary tennis clothing trends.

A little bit of color provided by the 996v2 shoes and accessories is propelling this look to the very top of tennis fashion scene this clay-court season.

With Fila’s Jelena Jankovic out in the first round, when the weather was so cold that players wore long sleeves over their dresses, we saw pretty much nothing of Marion Bartoli’s Love Fila Tennis Dress inspired by Paris, but the brand’s Fila Spring Gingham Racerback Dress, as seen here on Irina-Camelia Begu, brought a ton of style with a classic racerback dress in gingham pattern, enhanced by the perfect peacoat navy contrast piping and pleats at bottom hem. Brigitte Bardot famously wore a pink gingham dress at her wedding, making the pattern so popular that France ran out of it. Will Fila manage to emulate the actress’ success?

ATLANTA, GA, USA – Venus Williams and Eugenie Bouchard will play an exhibition match at the BB&T Atlanta Open, an ATP 250 event, which takes place on hard court in Atlantic Station on July 22-30. The two players will take to the court in the women’s exhibition evening session on Stadium Court on Sunday, July 23.

“Atlanta has such a rich sports and tennis tradition and it’s been over 10 years since I’ve had a chance to play a match there,” said Williams. “I’m looking forward to hopefully playing in front of a big crowd that is also an enthusiastic tennis audience.”

Williams and Bouchard have played twice before with the head-to-head currently tied at 1-1. The American won their first meeting on hard court at the Toray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo in 2013 while the Canadian took victory in their most recent encounter, at the Volvo Car Open on clay at Charleston in 2014. Both matches were extended to three sets.

“It’s exciting having the great American champion Venus Williams make her first trip to Atlanta in almost 15 years. She’s an inspiration to tennis fans and players around the world,” said Tournament Director Eddie Gonzalez. “Genie Bouchard is the perfect opponent for Venus, and Atlanta tennis fans will enjoy the professional brand of women’s tennis.”

Tennis legend @Venuseswilliams to play @geniebouchard in exo at #BBTAtlantaOpen!

More: https://t.co/RgRLcMIjNT
?️ https://t.co/nf1e7dae07 pic.twitter.com/XB9DwwjPhh

— BB&T Atlanta Open (@BBTatlantaopen) March 6, 2017

BOL, Croatia – This week wtatennis.com is offering free live streaming from the inaugural Bol Open, staged on the picturesque Adriatic island of Brac.

Watch free live streaming from Bol all week right here!

Bol is the second of six WTA 125K Series events scheduled for 2016, and, despite coinciding with the second week of Roland Garros, has a few familiar faces in the draw. Heading the list of seeds are Anna Karolina Schmiedlova and Varvara Lepchenko, both of whom will be looking to get their campaign back on track after a difficult few months.

The WTA 125K Series has provided the platform that helped launch the careers of some of the brightest young talents on the tour, as Kristina Mladenovic and Elina Svitolina – the winners of the inaugural events, in Taipei and Pune – proved by establishing themselves in the Top 30.

Vying with Schmiedlova and Lepchenko this week will be a couple of gifted prospects, including Nao Hibino and Ana Konjuh, as well as more established names such as Australian Open quarterfinalist Zhang Shuai.

Watch them attempt to follow in Mladenovic’s and Svitolina’s footsteps all week here on wtatennis.com!

It’s time to vote for February’s WTA Player of the Month!

Have a look at the nominees and cast your vote before Thursday at 11:59pm ET! The winner will be announced Friday, March 10.

February 2017 WTA Player Of The Month Finalists

Kristina Mladenovic: The Frenchwoman’s star reached its highest peaks yet in February, kicking off the month with her maiden WTA title at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy. Mladenovic ended February in another final, finishining runner-up at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel. In between, she scored her first Top 5 win of the season against Karolina Pliskova at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

Karolina Pliskova: Speaking of Pliskova, the Czech powerhouse continued her winning ways, becoming the first woman to win multiple titles in 2017 at the Qatar Total Open, where she battled past Dominika Cibulkova and Carolina Pliskova and won four matches in three days.

Elina Svitolina: Svitolina built up an impressive, unbeaten, 13-match winning streak in February, winning her fifth and sixth WTA titles at the Taiwan Open and in Dubai to take home the biggest trophy of her career. The Ukrainian, 22, scored back-to-back wins over former WTA World No.1 Angelique Kerber and Caroline Wozniacki to break into the Top 10.

2017 Winners

January: Serena Williams