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Kerber, Serena Lead WTA Stars' Ivanovic Salute On Twitter

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Former World No.1 and 2008 French Open champion Ana Ivanovic took the tennis world by surprise when she announced on Facebook Live that she would be retiring from the sport, effective immediately.

“It hasn’t been an overnight decision,” she explained in an exclusive with WTA Insider. “It’s been on my mind for a little bit but I tried to also follow my heart because for me, it’s proven to be the best way.

“I really felt now it’s time to just give back. Coming from Serbia, everything that I’ve been through in my life and my career, so far my parents and my brother with me, they made it all possible. I feel very fortunate and so I want to give back and maybe help others be as fortunate as I was.”

What followed was an outpouring of well wishes from her friends and colleagues who’ve been with her throughout her 13-year career. From WTA founder Billie Jean King, to 2016’s World No.1s Angelique Kerber and Serena Williams, to rising stars like Belinda Bencic and Daria Gavrilova, it was clear Ivanovic was as much beloved by her fellow players as the fans saying #ThankYouAna.

Check out what her fellow WTA stars had to say about the Serb on Twitter:

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Brisbane: Everything You Need To Know

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

KEY INFORMATION:
Tournament Level: Premier
Prize Money: $1,000,000
Draw Size: 30 main draw/32 qualifying
Main Draw Ceremony: Friday, December 30- 12 pm AEST
Qualifying Dates: Friday, December 30 – Sunday, January 1
First Day of Main Draw: Sunday, January 1
Singles Final: Saturday, January 7- 7 pm AEST
Doubles Final: Saturday, January 7- following singles

MUST-FOLLOW SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS:
@WTA
@WTA_Insider – WTA Insider, Senior Writer Courtney Nguyen
@BrisbaneTennis – official tournament handle

WHERE TO WATCH:
Click here to select your country and find broadcast details for the Brisbane International.

TOURNAMENT NOTES:
– There have been six different champions crowned at Brisbane since its first staging in 2009: Victoria Azarenka (2009, 2016), Kim Clijsters (2010), Petra Kvitova (2011), Kaia Kanepi (2012), Serena Williams (2013, 2014) and Maria Sharapova (2015).
– With defending champion Victoria Azarenka away from the completion after giving birth to a baby boy and with no former champions in the draw, a new champion will lift the Brisbane trophy this year.
– One to watch: Entering the tournament as a wildcard, Australian Ashleigh Barty returned to tennis in 2016 after a stint in cricket as an all-rounder for the Brisbane Heat. Her return has been highlighted by a quarterfinal run at Nottingham, and she’s also been granted a wildcard into the upcoming Australian Open.

PLAYER FIELD:
Click here for complete singles and doubles draws.

The Brisbane International serves as the only Premier event of the first week of the season and the field is packed with five of the Elite Eight from the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global. A finalist last year, Angelique Kerber leads the field along with Singapore champion Dominika Cibulkova, Karolina Pliskova, Garbiñe Muguruza, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Elina Svitolina, and Elena Vesnina.

Also in Brisbane is Roberta Vinci, who recently announced her intention to play through another season, as well as the Gold Coast’s own Samantha Stosur, Olympic Gold Medalist Monica Puig, China’s top-ranked player Zhang Shuai and Eugenie Bouchard.

WILDCARDS:
Ashleigh Barty (AUS), Donna Vekic (CRO)

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Insider Debates: Who Will Win Miami

Insider Debates: Who Will Win Miami

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

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.

Victoria Azarenka

“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.

Svetlana Kuznetsova

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.

Svetlana Kuznetsova

“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.

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Where To Watch: Charleston

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

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)

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