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News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Fed Cup stalwarts Barbora Strycova and Karolina Pliskova clinched an unassailable 3-1 lead for defending champs Czech Republic over Spain.

Here’s a full run down of the World Group I ties as they unfolded on Day 2:

Czech Republic 3-1 Spain

Pliskova kicked off the first reverse singles rubber against Garbiñe Muguruza after both emerged victorious in their opening matches on Saturday.

Playing at home in Ostrava, Pliskova had plenty of reason to feel confident after winning four of her last five matches over the reigning French Open champion.

After an hour on court, the Czech powerhouse put down the hammer on Muguruza, winning almost twice as many points and breaking serve five times for a 6-2, 6-2 win.

“My tennis was much better than it was yesterday so I enjoyed it more today,” said last year’s US Open runner-up. “I think she [Muguruza] doesn’t like a fast game because she likes to dictate.

“I was serving well and you cannot do much about it if someone is serving well.”

Next up was Strycova, who played a critical role in clinching the Czech team’s third straight Fed Cup title over France. Up against Lara Arruabarrena, the veteran smacked a whopping 33 winners to just 21 unforced errors to assure victory with a 6-4, 7-5 triumph.

“This one was very tough for me,” Strycova said after the match. “I was leading 5-2 and two match points; I felt like I wasn’t doing anything wrong, but I couldn’t take the extra step. I tried some different things at the end and it worked!”

“I’m very glad that we got through,” remarked Czech captain Petr Pala. “Even in the first match the score looked quite easy but it was quite tight in the beginning and Karolina put in a great performance and showed she is a great Fed Cup player.

“The second match was tighter. Barbora was using the crowd and the crowd helped us a lot. It wasn’t an easy decision for us to play her today because normally she would play doubles.”

Standing between the Czechs and a fourth straight final will be either the USA or Germany.

Switzerland 3-1 France

Timea Bacsinszky turned the tables on St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy champion Kristina Mladenovic to help lead Switzerland into a second straight Fed Cup semifinal.

Bacsinszky recovered from a tumble to keep Mladenovic from a second straight win over the weekend with an impressive 7-6(4), 4-6, 7-5 win to make the Swiss team anything but neutral.

“I looked really unlucky this week with the medical timeouts, but I fell and injured my knee,” she said after the match. “That took me away from tennis for three months last year and so I needed an extra check. In the moment, it’s tough becuase you care about your health, see the whole year and don’t want to be injured. But I’m ok.

Leading 5-2 in the final set, Mladenovic quickly leveled the decider but the Olympic Silver medalist closed the door in front of her home fans.

“I was just telling myself how privileged I am to play a match like this, and wasn’t focused on who was going to win. I’m just so lucky to be playing tennis in front of my country, carrying the Swiss flag.

“It could have gone either way because she played so well at the end. But we both deserved to win because it was such high quality.”

In the critical fourth rubber, Belinda Bencic dismissed substitute Pauline Parmentier, 6-3, 6-4, to book an encounter against surprise semifinalists, Belarus.

Belarus 4-1 Netherlands

In a battle of underdogs teams, Belarus roared through the final three rubbers of the tie oust the Netherlands for an emphatic win in Minsk.

After Kiki Bertens helped level the tie on Saturday, Aliaksandra Sasnovich stunned the 2016 French Open semifinalist, 6-3, 6-4 to turn the tie on its head.

Armed with the momentum, Belarus played Aryna Sabalenka, a 19-year-old playing in just her second Fed Cup tie – and only her second singles rubber. Recovering from her loss to Bertens, Sabalenka dispatched Michaella Krajicek, 7-6(5), 6-4 to clinch her country’s first semifinal in Fed Cup history.

More to come…

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This Week: Doha

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

Preview the action at the Qatar Total Open in Doha, where 470 ranking points are at stake for the winner.

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CNN Open Court: Kerber's Fitness

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

In less than a week, reigning Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber will take to the courts at Flushing Meadows to begin her bid for her second Grand Slam title of the year. Also at play? A chance to become WTA World No.1.

The 28-year-old is having the best year of her career, and she admits that she owes much of her late renaissance to her improved fitness.

“Right now I’m one of the fittest players in the world,” Kerber told CNN. “It’s strange, but it helps you really reach your goals at the end.”

CNN Open Court went inside the gym with Kerber to discuss how she gets Grand Slam fit, just in time for the final Slam of the year.

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WTAi Podcast: Representing Rio

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

On this episode, WTA Insider Senior Writer Courtney Nguyen recaps last week’s action at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy and Taiwan Open, where two veterans put their stamp on a week that was supposed to be all about the youth. You’ll hear from St. Petersburg champion Roberta Vinci, who crashed Belinda Bencic’s Top 10 debut party, beating the teenager in straight sets to win her first title since 2013.

We’ll also preview the upcoming week’s tournaments at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships and the Rio Open. Brazil’s No.1 Teliana Pereira joins the podcast to discuss the current state of Brazilian tennis. Currently ranked No.43, Pereira became the first Brazlian woman to win a WTA title in 27 years last year when she won the Claro Open in Bogota, and picked up her second title later in they year on home soil in Florianopolis.

Pereira opens up about the unique experience of being a Brazilian tennis player, what it’s like playing in the immense shadow of Gustavo Kuerten, and her Rio Olympic hopes, which are still clouded in uncertainty.

Subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or any podcast app of your choice. Follow WTA Insider at @WTA_Insider.

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Svitolina, Larsson Book New Haven Clash

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

NEW HAVEN, CT, USA – Lucky loser Johanna Larsson is through to her first WTA Premier-level semifinal at the Connecticut Open after a big upset over No.2 seed Roberta Vinci. She sets up a battle against No.10 seed Elina Svitolina, who powered past Elena Vesnina in straight sets.

Watch live action from New Haven this week on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!

At this tournament last year Larsson fell in the qualifying rounds, but today she got her revenge against the same player who ousted her, defeating Vinci, 7-6(9), 6-1.

“Last year I had a tough loss against her in the finals of qualifying,” Larsson recalled after the match. “And I actually remember I was serving for the set in that match as well. I was in the same position today, and I messed it up a little bit, but I was lucky to win today in the tiebreak.”

Larsson was a point away from comfortably taking the opening set 6-4; she had just broken Vinci’s serve with a pair of aggressive forehand returns, and brought up two set points on serve in the next game. But Vinci rallied to break back and keep them level, sending the set into a tiebreaker. The momentum swung back and forth between the two – both of them held set points during the tiebreaker – but Larsson’s dogged defense eventually forced the critical error from Vinci.

The Swede took flight in the second set, breaking Vinci four times to reel off five consecutive games against the Italian, taking the match and a spot in her first Connecticut Open semifinal on her main draw debut.

After the match Vinci, who looked considerably more sluggish in the second set, admitted that a lingering injury played a role in the defeat.

“I’m injured a little bit. I have a little bit of pain of my tendon on left foot,” Vinci explained in press. “On the second set, I was not tired. But I thinking always about my pain, and I lost. But now I have two or three days off before New York to try to recover and stay better for the US Open.”

Larsson’s opponent in the semifinal will be No.10 seed Svitolina, who had all the answers against Vesnina and cruised to a 6-3, 6-1 victory.

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News | WTA Tennis English

  • Posted: Jan 01, 1970

DUBAI, UAE – Kristyna Pliskova is quickly rising out from under the shadow of twin sister and World No.3 Karolina as the Czech lefty scored a big upset at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, dispatching No.16 seed Roberta Vinci, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3.

“All week I felt pretty bad in practice, so I’m happy I made it through this match,” she said after the match. “It wasn’t easy at all.”

As Karolina was reaching her maiden Grand Slam final at last summer’s US Open, Kristyna was making a breakthrough of her own at the WTA 125K Series event in Dalian, following that up with her first career title at the Tashkent Open. Ranked just shy of her career-high of No.55, Pliskova earned a comeback victory over Vinci, a runner-up in Flushing back in 2015.

“It’s much slower on the Center Court and the balls aren’t flying that much. Plus, she’s a tricky opponent.”

Vinci appeared in control as she served for the match in the second set, but Pliskova broke back and rode the momentum into a decisive three-set victory after just under two hours on court. With a serve as big – if not bigger – than her sister’s, the 24-year-old struck nine aces throughout and maintained an impressive 82% winning percentage behind her first serve, losing just two points in the decider.

“I was trying to fight all match, but sometimes you have a few bad games. She was solid, serving well. I resolved to be more aggressive and that’s when she started making a few more mistakes.”

Up next for Pliskova is a potentially tough challenge in either ASB Classic champion Lauren Davis or lucky loser (and Taiwan Open semifinalist) Mandy Minella.

“I’m happy to still be in the tournament and to fight for another win.”

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