Beijing: Konta Interview
An interview with Johanna Konta after her win in the semifinals of the China Open.
An interview with Johanna Konta after her win in the semifinals of the China Open.
Elina Svitolina paid a visit to Miami’s colorful and artsy Wynwood Walls for a photo shoot during the Miami Open – check it out here!
An interview with Victoria Azarenka after her win in the quarterfinals of the Miami Open.
MIAMI, FL, USA – No.7 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova overcame a slow start and an inspired Taylor Townsend to beat the American qualifier, 6-4, 6-2, joining No.10 seed Johanna Konta, who beat Pauline Parmentier, 6-4, 6-0 in the fourth round of the Miami Open.
Townsend has long been a talented prospect, having won the 2013 Australian Open junior title and finishing runner-up to Belinda Bencic at that year’s Wimbledon Championships. Qualifying for the main draw and upsetting Roberta Vinci in her previous match, the American looked on course for another upset as she took the first break from Kuznetsova in the opening set.
“I’d never played her before, but still, to face her it’s a bit different,” she told WTA Insider after the match. “It took me time to adjust to her game. I got broken right away, and I was serving against the sun, so it was a little bit difficult.”
But Kuznetsova is in good form herself, reaching the final at last week’s BNP Paribas Open; relaxed and focused, the Russian took four straight games to reclaim the break and the opening set from Townsend, who put up quite a fight in the final game before dropping serve.
“She plays good tennis, different than other girls. I took time to adjust, changed my strategy, and in the end it worked pretty well. But she’s very talented.”
.@TaylorTownsend is still fighting! #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/mjVHUCAPvJ
— WTA (@WTA) March 26, 2017
The 2006 champion and 2016 finalist raced ahead to start the second and never looked back, despite some impressive variety from the 20-year-old.
Up next for Kuznetsova is either former No.1 Venus Williams or qualifier Patricia Maria Tig, who stunned No.22 seed and Top 20 debutante Kristina Mladenovic in the preceding round.
“It’s a great match-up, and it’s great to play Venus again, one more time. We’re both having great results, so I’m looking forward to that match.”
Absolutely INCREDIBLE get from @SvetlanaK27! ??? #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/HUGwo3qNiD
— WTA (@WTA) March 26, 2017
Earlier in the day, Konta worked through a tense opening set to roll through against Parmentier.
“I’m happy to have come through that,” Konta said after the match. “Although the scoreline doesn’t show it in the second set, I still had to work hard within every single point. I really tried hard not to take my foot off the gas and stay focused on what I wanted to achieve.”
The Frenchwoman has displayed impresisve tennis of late, and nearly beat World No.1 Angelique Kerber in Indian Wells.
.@JoKonta91 slaps away the backhand! #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/DKRY56Taqr
— WTA (@WTA) March 26, 2017
“She’s been very strong with her forehand, and her serve is actually quite a big weapon, as well. I was quite happy with how I could neutralize it and look towards having good variety on my returns. I also made it difficult for her to find her spots on the forehand; I didn’t give her too many opportunities to set up, because when she does, she can be very tough to play.”
With 19 winners to just five unforced errors to advance, it was night and day for the British No.1 on Sunday after her tough opening round win over Aliaksandra Sasnovich, which went deep into a third set.
.@JoKonta91 comes flying out of the blocks in the second! #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/Iy5BofgqVJ
— WTA (@WTA) March 26, 2017
“The bonus of getting through any match is having the opportunity to play again. I have another opportunity to get better and to perform well.
“Those stats obviously look better on paper, and that’s good to hear. There’s other moving factors in a match, but I was still very happy I was able to stick with my plan and not divert from that in any way.
“Each match puts forward different challenges, so it’s hard to compare and decide which has been my best performance. My first round was very good, for example, because I could get through a difficult situation. Today was a cleaner match, so in that sense, it was also a good performance.”
.@JoKonta91 is flying through the second set! ? #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/qLxVIX2SNl
— WTA (@WTA) March 26, 2017
Standing between Konta and a second straight quarterfinal in Miami will be the winner of No.8 seed Madison Keys and Lara Arruabarrena.
“I played Madison in Beijing last year. I think I played Lara once before, but not for many years. We all know Madison has a big game, so if I end up playing her, I’ll be expecting to play someone with a lot of weight of shot. I haven’t watched Lara play too much, but she’s been around a while and won a title at the end of last year. She’s a tough player, so either way it’ll be a tough match.”
.@JoKonta91 reaches @MiamiOpen Round of 16!
Cruises past Parmentier 6-4, 6-0! pic.twitter.com/5VqbM7wsYO
— WTA (@WTA) March 26, 2017
David Kane, Point: If Victoria Azarenka becomes the third woman in WTA history to achieve the Indian Wells-Miami “Sunshine” Double, the two-time Australian Open champion will have shown her ability to succeed on two ends of the competitive spectrum. Her run to the BNP Paribas Open title saw Azarenka shine as the underdog, battling through a grueling three-setter with Karolina Pliskova in the semis to stun heavy favorite and World No.1 Serena Williams in the championship match.
By contrast, her fortnight in Miami has allowed her to play the alpha, likes of which we’ve rarely seen since her 26-match winning streak in 2012. Up against tricky opposition in Johanna Konta and Angelique Kerber – the woman who halted her initial early-season momentum en route to the Australian Open title – Azarenka has been largely unbothered, taking less than eight hours to win five matches in straight sets.
“I really didn’t wait for her to give me anything,” she said after beating Kerber. “I really went out there and took my opportunities, which was missing in Australia, where I wasn’t aggressive enough. I know we got broken both a lot of times, but my serve was really strong when it needed. That also made a difference.”
Svetlana Kuznetsova stands between Azarenka and the Sunshine Double; a deadlocked head-to-head dating back to 2007 belies the Belarusian’s recent dominance in their rivalry, winning four of their last five encounters. Their two Miami matches went the distance, with Azarenka’s 6-3, 2-6, 7-5 semifinal victory serving as the springboard to her career breakthrough and the first of her two Miami titles in 2009.
“She’s a very talented and diverse player. I know she has had her up and downs in her career, but she knows how to handle big stages. She is a two-time Grand Slam champion, so it speaks a lot.
“Seeing her coming back into her form, I know she’s always been a dangerous player, so for me it’s going to be really fun challenge to see also where we both are in a different timing of our career since we last played.”
Indeed, their last match was at the 2013 Australian Open, when Azarenka was on top of the world and on her way to defending her maiden major title. Both have had their share of ups and downs, but the Belarusian can handle a big stage as well – if not better – than the 2006 champion.
“It’s going to be really fun. It’s tough, but the final can be unpredictable and is the type of the match where you give it all.”
Courtney Nguyen, Counterpoint: Svetlana Kuznetsova has an uncanny knack for spoiling a coronation. To win her first major she stunned Elena Dementieva as a 19-year-old to win the 2004 US Open. Five years later she upended No.1 Dinara Safina in the 2009 French Open final to win her second major. This year at the Miami Open she ended eight-time champion Serena Williams’ 20-match win-streak at Crandon Park and on Saturday she has a chance to win her biggest title since 2009, re-enter the Top 10 for the first time in nearly six years, and stop Azarenka from completing the Sunshine Double.
If the 30-year-old Russian can pull it off we might as well christen her the Sunshine Stopper. When she won the Miami Open a decade ago in 2006, she did so by defeating Maria Sharapova in the final, preventing her compatriot from winning both Indian Wells and Miami that year.
Of course, 2006 was a long time ago in, what feels like, a galaxy far, far away. In the 10 years that have ticked by we’ve seen the incredibly talented but impossibly inconsistent Kuznetsova show up when we least expect it and go on a walkabout when we’ve penciled her through. This year she won her second tournament of the year at the Apia International Sydney at the height of the Australian summer. She then failed to win back-to-back matches until Miami. This is the whiplash-inducing career of Svetlana Kuznetsova in a nutshell.
Yet when she gets herself into the business end of tournaments, Kuznetsova has been more reliable than not. She has won her last two finals. Another fun stat cutting Kuznetsova’s way? The two biggest tournaments of the season so far have been won by the women who knocked Serena out of the tournament, as Kuznetsova did here.
But setting aside statistics and symmetry, Kuznetsova goes into Saturday’s final as the underdog and that’s a good thing. The pressure is firmly on Azarenka’s shoulders. Given her incredible start to the season and the quality players she’s beaten to build her 21-1 record, she’s expected to win on Saturday. That should allow Kuznetsova to play without pressure or expectations. And that’s the emotional climate she needs to play her best tennis.
“I didn’t feel going in that good shape going to the US swing,” the Russian said after her semifinal. “I was not feeling confident at all. After I had a loss in Indian Wells I tried to work a lot and training every morning a lot just to get confidence back, get my fitness.
“I’m doing better. I appreciate, and I am blessed I have my body to play so many years and to win against good players, top players. It’s great when things come together. Either way, it’s not the end of the world, but it’s a great week. I’m really pleased and happy the way I fight through all these tournaments and weeks and players.”
Listen to more thoughts from Kane and Nguyen on the Miami Open final in the latest WTA Insider Podcast:
All photos courtesy of Getty Images.
MIAMI, FL, USA – No.3 seed Simona Halep barreled into the fourth round of the Miami Open, conquering Estonian qualifier Anett Kontaveit, 6-3, 6-0.
“I think I played my best match of the year,” Halep told WTA Insider after the match. “I was confident, and knew what I had to do: push and make her run. I hit some winners, which was very good for me. I was moving well, so I think everything went pretty well for me tonight.”
The Romanian has been plagued by knee issues throughout the 2017 season, forced to pull out of the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy and the Middle East Swing to heal the injury.
.@Simona_Halep is in unstoppable form! #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/TKoMqmEWZt
— WTA (@WTA) March 27, 2017
Coming into Miami, the former French Open finalist had yet to win back-to-back matches this year, but struck down that stat in decisive fashion on Sunday night, rolling past Kontaveit in 55 minutes.
“I felt good when I came to site, and was sure that it was going to come together because I work every day. At one point, it has to come.
“I felt the best that I have this year. I can move without pain or anything, and I’m confident, which is the most important thing.”
Kontaveit is a talented youngster in her own right, a former junior Slam finalist who knocked out No.32 seed Ekaterina Makarova en route to the third round, but had no answers to her opponent’s unstoppable form, her 17 winnes undone by 24 errors in total.
“My first match here was close,” she said of her opener against Naomi Osaka. “I had some trouble in the first match. After that, I saw that I could resist and stay strong. Today, everything was flowing. I didn’t plan anything, and I won’t plan anything else. I just want to go there and give my best.”
Incredibly aggressive under the lights, Halep struck 19 winners to just 13 unforced errors and broke serve five times to book a round of 16 match-up with 2011 US Open champion Samantha Stosur.
“It’s going to be a tough match, for sure. I know how I have to play, because she’s very dangerous. Her forehand is strong, and so is her serve. I’m here to do my job, and to try to win because that’s what I want.
“Nothing special. I just expect a tough one and I’ll go there to fight.”
Rampant @Simona_Halep secures last spot in @MiamiOpen Round of 16!
Breezes past Kontaveit 6-3, 6-0! pic.twitter.com/caRwhYhzSj
— WTA (@WTA) March 27, 2017
Halep and Stosur last played at Roland Garros 10 months ago, when the Aussie won on a wet and rainy day in Paris, locking up their head-to-head at four wins apiece.
The former World No.2 has won their last four hardcourt matches, though two of those three required a third set. But Halep might have a secret weapon.
“Something is waiting for me already, a Nutella crepe. I’ve eaten one every day, and maybe that’s why I’m winning!”
“I played my best tennis this year” -@Simona_Halep #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/HNTVf8WywX
— WTA (@WTA) March 27, 2017
KEY INFORMATION:
Tournament Level: Premier
Prize Money: $753,000
Draw Size: 56 main draw (8 byes)/32 qualifying
Qualifying Dates: Saturday, April 2 – Sunday, April 3
First Day of Main Draw: Monday, April 4
Singles Final: Sunday, April 10, NB 1.00pm EDT
Doubles Final: Sunday, April, 10.30am EDT
MUST FOLLOW SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS:
@WTA
@WTA_Insider – WTA Insider, Senior Writer Courtney Nguyen
@VolvoCarOpen – official tournament handle
Get involved in conversations with the official hashtags, #VCO2016 and #WTA.
TOURNAMENT NOTES:
· Angelique Kerber returns as top seed to defend her title.
· There have been three different champions in the past three years in Charleston. There are four returning champions in the field this year – Kerber (2016), Andrea Petkovic (2014), Samantha Stosur (2010) and Sabine Lisicki (2009).
· For the complete draw click here.
WILDCARDS:
Frances Altick (USA), Louisa Chirico (USA), Shelby Rogers (USA)
WITHDRAWALS:
Jelena Jankovic (right shoulder), Petra Cetkovska (right thigh)
Check out Venus Williams’ shot of the day at the Miami Open.
Walking along the cobblestone streets of Charleston, South Carolina often makes visitors feel like they’ve entered another century. Add that to the beautiful parks, open-air markets, and some of the best food in the United States and you will quickly understand why Charleston is one of the most visited cities in the United States.
With help from our guest contributor and former Volvo Car Open champion Samantha Stosur, this edition of the WTA Travel Guide lets you know where to stay, where to eat and what to do on your next trip to Charleston.
WATCH THE MATCHES
Just outside of downtown Charleston lies the charming Davis Island, home to the Family Circle Tennis Center and the 2016 Volvo Car Open. A WTA event since 1973, the Volvo Car Open boasts one of the most impressive former champions list of any tournament on tour, with previous winners including Chris Evert, Steffi Graf, Serena Williams, and Angelique Kerber.
The 2016 Volvo Car Open runs April 2 – April 10, with qualifying on April 2 & 3 and main draw running from April 4 – 10. Matches start at 10 AM each day, with night sessions each night at 7 PM starting on April 5. For tickets, click here.
If you can’t make it to the matches this year, you’re in luck because the Volvo Car Open is proud to be able to provide live streaming from all outer courts and practice courts throughout the week through Stre.am.com. Click here to watch.
Known for the family-friendly environment, fan engagement initiatives, and cozy atmosphere that lets fans get up-close and personal with their favorite players, the Volvo Car Open is one of the players’ favorite stops during the season. For a list of all of the activities happening throughout the week of the tournament, check out the Fan Guide and the events page.
WHERE TO STAY
Settled in the heart of downtown Charleston, the Belmond Charleston Place is the perfect place to stay during your trip. With 435 guest rooms and suites, the Belmond Charleston Place combines historic charm with modern amenities, such as the award-winning Charleston Grill, rooftop pool, and spa. The central location makes it ideal for walking to restaurants, sights and nightlife.
WHERE TO EAT
Charleston boasts some of the best restaurants in the country and offers something delicious for everyone. While nearly impossible to choose the best, here are a couple of the WTA Travel Guide’s favorites:
For good ‘ole fashioned Southern hospitality and one of the best steaks you’ll ever have, head to Halls Chophouse. Family-owned and operated, Halls Chophouse is listed as Trip Advisor’s #5 best restaurant in the United States and each member of the staff makes sure each guest feel as welcome and special as possible.
Head to Basil for refined Thai food in a more trendy setting. Grab a table or sit up at the bar in front of the open kitchen to watch the chefs at work making specialties like Pad Thai or Basil Duck.
WHAT TO DO
The beautiful weather in Charleston lends itself to plenty of outdoor activities and exploring the city by foot. Named Charleston’s most visited attraction, and one of the oldest public markets in the United States, the Charleston City Market features 300 vendors selling everything from artwork to home goods to local cuisine. The market is open Monday to Sunday 9:30 AM – 6:00 PM. Also, stop by the market after dinner on Friday and Saturday from 6:30 PM – 10:30 PM for the night market.
If you’re looking for the perfect picnic spot or to see beautiful historic fountains, head over to Waterfront Park. Featuring floral displays, a great lawn area and plenty of sunshine, Waterfront Park is the ideal way to spend an afternoon.
SAMANTHA STOSUR’S FAVORITE SPOTS
Our guest contributor, Samantha Stosur, knows a thing or two about Charleston. After winning the title in 2010, Stosur has been a constant in the player field and ranks Charleston as one of her favorite stops on tour.
The city itself is one of my favorite cities in the States so I love to come back each year. The hospitality of the South really makes you feel welcome and makes me want to see as much of the city as possible and go to as many places as I can while I’m there.
The tournament is always so well supported. Crowds are great and they get into any of the matches – whether it’s qualifying singles, doubles or the main draw.
Make sure to eat at as many restaurants as possible. I love the food in Charleston, there are so many great places to pick from. My favorite restaurant is FIG. I’ve eaten there many times over the years and always love it. Andrew behind the bar makes a mean cocktail too so enjoy trying a creation from him. Unfortunately I have to wait until the end of the tournament to have a cocktail!
Also I enjoy the horse carriage tours. I’ve done it a few times and each time I hear something new about the city. It’s a great way to get around and explore.
I’d love to make it to Charleston at another time of the year to visit for a holiday.
Highlights from the Miami Open match between World No.1 Angelique Kerber and Risa Osaki.