BRISBANE, Australia – The unseeded Alizé Cornet is through to the final at the Brisbane International after Garbiñe Muguruza was forced to retire due to injury.
“I was really focused on my match but I could tell [Garbiñe] was not playing like usual,” Cornet said in her post-match interview. “She was not running or hitting the ball as well as usual. But I was just trying to stay focused on what I had to do.”
The No.4 seeded Spaniard looked off from the start, her usually powerful groundstrokes lacking their bite. She struggled to hold serve in the opening game under Cornet’s all-court assault, fending off two break points.
But Muguruza was broken in her very next service game after a string of long rallies which saw her struggle to hit through the ball, and finally retired trailing Cornet 1-4, citing a right thigh injury.
.@GarbiMuguruza retires after being down 1-4.@AlizeCornet moves into the @BrisbaneTennis Final! pic.twitter.com/ydFI8tBXqA
— WTA (@WTA) January 6, 2017
“Of course, it’s not the way I wanted to get to the final but its part of the game,” Cornet explained. “We understand sometimes we have some physical issues. Tennis is more and more tough on the body.
“But well, it’s good for me because I will have a little bit of rest before the big final tomorrow.”
Aside from securing a spot into her second career Premier-level final, the win guarantees Cornet a seed at the Australian Open. The Frenchwoman’s ranking will rise as high as No.31 by virtue of reaching the final, and could go as high as No.26 should she take home the title.
Cornet awaits the winner between No.6 seed Elina Svitolina and No.3 seed Karolina Pliskova.
Lauren Davis came out on top in a battle of rising stars at the ASB Classic, where she defeated Ana Konjuh in straight sets to take home her first WTA title.
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?
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!
SYDNEY/HOBART – With one week between the WTA stars and the first major of the season, the Apia International Syndey and the Hobart International represent the final chances to prepare for the upcoming Australian Open. How will top Sydney seeds Angelique Kerber and Agnieszka Radwanska shake off early losses at the Brisbane International and Shenzhen Open, respectively? Can defending champion Svetlana Kuznetsova pull off another title run? Meanwhile, who will take advantage of the wide open field in Hobart?
1. Kerber searches for Aussie momentum. World No.1 Angelique Kerber acquitted herself well enough in her first tournament of the season, but still showed signs of rust in her quarterfinal defeat to nemesis Elina Svitolina. With another first round bye, Kerber opens against Daria Kasatkina, who was a point from defeating Garbiñe Muguruza in Brisbane, only to fall in a final set tie-break. No.6 seed Johanna Konta anchors her quarter, with Dominika Cibulkova and Kuznetsova looming as potential semifinal opponents.
2. Radwanska aims for Sydney restart. Agnieszka Radwanska started last season in imperious form, defeating Alison Riske to win the Shenzhen Open. This year, Riske turned the tables on the former World No.2, taking her out in three sets en route to the final. Seeded second in Sydney, Radwanska will play one of two qualifiers in her opening round match: Kateryna Bondarenko, or Christina McHale. A softer section could provide the court time Radwanska needs to get ready for Melbourne.
3. A Cibulkova/Bouchard rematch in sight? The reigning BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global champion has played Eugenie Bouchard four times in the last 18 months, with the young Canadian winning three of those four encounters. Bouchard looked in solid form to start the tournament against Zhang Shuai, while Cibulkova still needs to get past Laura Siegemund for them to meet in the second round.
4. Kuznetsova puts things in perspective. The defending champion kicked off her title defense in impressive style on Sunday, dispatching Irina-Camelia Begu in straight sets, but isn’t thinking too much about a second straight win in Sydney. “I’m not thinking about defending my title,” she said after the match. “The trophy is at home and nobody can take it away from me. This is another year and another opportunity to play. I always feel like I need a lot of matches at the start of the year.”
5. Mirza reunites with Strycova. A week after handing off her No.1 ranking to partner and best friend Bethanie Mattek-Sands in Brisbane, Sania Mirza heads to Sydney with new partner Barbora Strycova, with whom she played in the second half of 2016. The duo face the newly formed Andrea Hlavackova and Peng Shuai to start the week. Mirza’s former partner Martina Hingis is back with CoCo Vandeweghe; seeded No.2, they could face Mirza and Strycova in another final.
6. More reunions in Sydney. The 2010 doubles season was all about Yaroslava Shvedova and Vania King, who won back-to-back majors at Wimbledon and the US Open. King and Shvedova are back together after a long break and open against Darija Jurak and Anastasia Rodionova, who were a team to watch most of last summer.
7. Bertens headlines Hobart. Kiki Bertens is top seed at a tournament that has been hit by a rash of injury withdrawals. Still, the 2016 French Open won’t have things all her own way as she opens against the always dangerous Annika Beck, with comeback kid Galina Voskoboeva looming in the second round. Voskoboeva won her first WTA main draw match in nearly three years after sitting out nearly two full seasons due to a foot injury.
8. Shelby’s season? Shelby Rogers kicked off 2017 in style by knocking out Eugenie Bouchard and pushing Elina Svitolina to the brink in Brisbane. The American earned anothe rimpressive win on Sunday in Hobart, upsetting No.2 seed Anastasija Sevastova.
9. Safarova under the radar. Unseeded and looming in Hobart is former World No.5 Lucie Safarova, who is trying to rebuild her ranking after a season of fits and starts in 2016. Safarova opens against Viktorija Golubic and could play No.10 seed Sara Errani in the second round.
10. Spears & Niculescu seek doubles glory in Hobart. Monica Niculescu is one of the best doubles players not to have a permanent partner, but may be trying out a new partnership with fellow top seed Abigail Spears, who has been playing apart from longtime partner Raquel Atawo to start the season. The pair open against Nao Hibino and Alicja Rosolska, with No.2 seeds Kiki Bertens and Johanna Larsson anchoring the bottom half of the draw as No.2 seeds.
BOL, Croatia – A quartet of Americans shined in the Croatian sun at the Bol Open, a WTA 125K Series event staged in the coastal town of Bol, Croatia. No.2 seed Varvara Lepchenko, Anna Tatishvili, Sachia Vickery and Jennifer Brady took advantage of the famously mild Adriatic climate and all notched wins at the inaugural event.
Watch free live streaming from Bol, Croatia all week right here on wtatennis.com!
The No.2 seeded Lepchenko tamped down a late surge from Croatian wildcard Ana Vrljic on her way to a 6-1, 7-5 victory. Despite Vrljic keeping the score line more competitive in the second set, the American showed more consistency during the key points throughout the match – Lepchenko converted on all five of the break chances she created, compared to Vrljic’s two of seven.
Earlier in the day, Anna Tatishvili survived a two-hour-and-forty-minute battle against Paula Kania to advance 6-4, 6-7(4), 7-5. Her countrywomen Sachia Vickery and Jennifer Brady had a more straightforward road to the second round, advancing past both of their opponents in straight sets. Vickery posted a 6-2, 7-5 win against Croatian wildcard Tena Lukas while Brady scored the upset of the day over No.8 seed Patricia Maria Tig.
Ipek Soylu – who made Turkish tennis history at the French Open when she became one of two players to compete in the main draw of a Grand Slam for the first time – was back to her winning ways in Bol against Israel’s Julia Glushko. Soylu weathered a second-set shutout to come back with a 6-3, 0-6, 6-1 win.
Also through to the second round are Stefanie Voegele, who defeated Andreaa Mitu 6-3, 6-2; Ivana Jorovic, who defeated qualifier Isabella Shiniakova 7-5, 6-2; and Bulgarian qualifier Elitza Kostova, who defeated qualifier Ekaterina Alexandrova 6-1, 7-6(4).
Tomorrow the No.1 seed Anna Karolina Schmiedlova and Croatian favorite Ana Konjuh highlight Day 3 action as they take the court in their Bol openers.
World No.5 Dominika Cibulkova was in clinical form against Laura Siegemund, dropping just two games en route to the second round of the Apia International Sydney.
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