Tennis News

PARIS, France – Former finalist Simona Halep made a confident start to her 2016 French Open challenge, swatting aside Nao Hibino in 45 minutes.

Three of Halep’s last four Grand Slam appearances have ended with defeat to players ranked outside the Top 50, however there was never any danger of World No.70 Hibino extending this sequence.

Halep started confidently, breaking to love in the third game thanks to a smart backhand winner. The set was soon in the bag and when she fired away a forehand to break at the start of the second, the writing appeared on the wall.

It was not long before she arrived at match point, completing a 6-2, 6-0 victory to set up a second-round meeting against Zarina Diyas.

Two years ago, on the back of a terrific clay court season Halep made it all the way to the final at Roland Garros. Despite a recent triumph in Madrid, this time around she arrived in the French capital with less fanfare, yet a favorable draw has opened up the possibility of another deep run.

“I feel more confident now playing on clay court. I had good matches in Madrid. The title is really important for me – it means a lot,” Halep said. “You know, now I feel more confident, like everyone can see that that I play aggressive, I play my game.

“Always when I go on court I feel that I can win the match. So this makes myself a little bit more positive, a little bit more stronger on court, and I just want to go to play. I’m already in the second round. I feel good, and I feel that I have the game to win matches here.”

After starting off on an informal basis last year, since January Halep has been working full-time with celebrated coach Darren Cahill. While the union did not bring overnight success, Halep appreciates the adjustments her new mentor has brought about.

“I think the most important thing that he brought to me is mental, because he tells me how to manage all the situations,” Halep said when quizzed on their relationship. “Also tactically, he tells me how to play, always when he came on court, when I called him on-court coaching, I did what he said and I won all the matches!

“So he teaches me many things about tennis and also attitude, because sometimes I have bad attitude. But, you know, it’s normal, and when the pressure is on, you cannot control everything. But I’m better. I’m stronger now. And I keep working to get better.”

SINGAPORE – Garbiñe Muguruza ended her breakout season with one last win at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global, ousting an on-fire Svetlana Kuznetsova and blitzing the Russian in the final two sets of a 3-6, 6-0, 6-1 victory.

Read how the match unfolded in the WTA Insider Live Blog.

– Muguruza wanted this win.

For a player who won their first Grand Slam and ascended to a career-high ranking of No.2 just four months ago, few eyes were on Muguruza heading into Singapore.

“I suffered a lot in the last month,” she said in her post-match press conference. “I was wondering if I’m going to qualify, if I’m not going to qualify. I really wanted to qualify.

“I had the opportunity to go to Linz to play, and then I twisted my ankle and it was drama for me.”

The drama continued at the WTA Finals; down a set to Karolina Pliskova in her first round robin match, the Spaniard roared back and got perilously close to victory, only to lose the last five games.

“It was a very tough tournament. I had a match point in my first match; then the second match [against Agnieszka Radwanska] was tough.”

Mathematically out of contention to advance into the semifinals, there was little more pressure on Muguruza than the amount she put on herself.

“I have to be honest. Going into this match, it was extremely hard for me. Minutes before I was like, ‘This is going to be is difficult one for me.’

“At the end it was about my desire of wanting to be here and competing against the best. It became a challenge for me today, to see how I was going to react.”

Losing a decisive first set to Kuznetsova, who already qualified first in their round robin group, the reigning Roland Garros winner reacted well, dropping just one more game and hitting 31 winners to end her week with a 1-2 record.

“For sure a victory like today’s is going to keep me a little bit happier. I felt I took my opportunities in this one. Well, it was too late, but I still did it!”

A season of ups and downs put extra emphasis on an ostensibly low-stakes match; from her emotional reaction on court and in press, it was clear how much the win meant to her.

A relieved @GarbiMuguruza gets a win at 2016 @WTAFinalsSG. And nice words from @AndrewKrasny. #WTAFinals pic.twitter.com/zJYNXmfJwE

— WTA (@WTA) October 28, 2016

– Fatigue finally caught up with Kuznetsova.

The Russian had already advanced into the semifinals. For the first time in two weeks, she didn’t need to win a match to keep her season alive. Kuznetsova pointed to that inherent lack of intensity as being crucial to the loss on Friday.

“I’ve done the most important job in the past matches,” she said after the match. “You definitely don’t want to lose a match. You try to fight.

“Sometimes the lack of energy just won’t let you do that.”

Still, she noted her superb level of tennis in the first set, and how it only took a few tight games in the second set to turn things towards the Spaniard.

“I want to give credit to Garbine because I think she played way better in the second and third set.

“I don’t feel exhausted like that or something. But of course, to push yourself to the limit, you got to really go hard. I just want to do it tomorrow, try to do my best.”

She’ll have her opportunity tomorrow in the semifinal, where she takes on another surprise semifinalist in Dominika Cibulkova. Trailing 3-5 in their head-to-head, Kuznetsova’s lost her last five matches with the Slovak, including a three-set thriller at the Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open.

“I do remember quite a bit of that match. I know I will try to make the changes on what I think didn’t work for me in that match.

“Of course, obviously, I’m not going to tell it now,” she added with a smile.

Garbine on the scene. @GarbiMuguruza takes a near 13 minute game. 2-0 in set 3 #WTAFinals pic.twitter.com/llIXns86bZ

— WTA (@WTA) October 28, 2016

– Muguruza is looking towards 2017.

It may be too soon for any player to sum up their season right after their last match, but Muguruza had a clear picture of what went right and wrong in 2016.

“I started the year thinking, ‘Okay, this is an important year for me. I finished well last year. Let’s try to keep doing well.’

“But the results weren’t there at the beginning, so I was like struggling. I was like, ‘Man, I’m practicing and doing everything and I am not winning matches.’ So it created a lot of frustration.

A top drop shot from @GarbiMuguruza. #WTAFinals pic.twitter.com/nxuEqkuomr

— WTA (@WTA) October 28, 2016

“I calmed down and then finally had the results, but then everything changed. All these responsibilities, all these emotions. It was hard for me to deal with this for the next tournaments. But I wouldn’t change anything, obviously.”

She’ll have to spend the off-season adjusting to what she cannot change, but after a heavily scheduled season, the former World No.2 will be looking to relax over the next few weeks.

“I didn’t really plan things because I didn’t know when I was going to finish here. Right now I’m just going to see how many days I have, see where can I go, who’s available.”

What she hopes will emerge will be the “dangerous opponent” she believes herself to be.

“I don’t really care who’s in front of me. Obviously the situation and the tournament, these can affect me, but I always think I have a chance to win.”

PARIS, France – Timea Bacsinszky produced a stunning turnaround to defeat Eugenie Bouchard, 6-4, 6-4, and book her place in the third round of the French Open.

Trailing Bouchard 4-1 in the opening set, an upset looked on the cards. However, a run of 10 straight games from the No.8 seed turned the match on its head, before a late wobble gave the scoreline a more respectable sheen.

The only other time Bacsinszky faced Bouchard came earlier this year in Indian Wells, where she was taken to three sets. And on Philippe Chatrier, Bouchard provided a reminder of the talent that saw her ranked No.5 not so long ago, barely making a mistake in the opening five games.

It was a standard that proved difficult to maintain, and when her level dropped Bacsinszky was there to pounce. At 4-4, the Swiss finally hit the front, finishing a well-worked point with an angled backhand winner.

In the next game, she showcased her creative side, a delicate drop shot helping her to set point, before a shellshocked Bouchard netted a backhand to complete the comeback.

Brimming with confidence, Bacsinszky raced through the opening five games of the second set, conjuring up winners from all over the court. To her credit, 2014 semifinalist Bouchard battled away to the bitter end, a relieved Bacsinszky eventually making her way across the line and into a third-round meeting against either Pauline Parmentier or Irina Falconi.

For Bouchard, the disappointment of an early exit was tempered by her performance against one of the WTA’s form players. “I felt like I put myself in a good position in preparation and everything,” she said. “I’ve done everything that I possibly could to be ready. I started out strong. The game plan was working and things like that.

“I think that my focus a little bit was the part that let me down, the mental part. Something I’ve been working on. I had been getting better, so it’s not always going to be good.”