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Indian Wells 2015 SF Results: Serena Williams Withdraws, Jankovic Rallies

Indian Wells 2015 SF Results: Serena Williams Withdraws, Jankovic Rallies

  • Posted: Mar 22, 2015

Serena

The semi-final round of the Indian Wells event brought with it some surprising twists and turns, which eventually led to a Sunday final that few anticipated.

Serena Williams walked out on court ahead of her semi-final match to announce her withdrawal from the tournament with a knee injury. Scheduled to play Simona Halep, she opted to err on the side of caution and not take part in the match. Halep was disappointed not to play the No. 1 but is excited about the new challenge of facing Jankovic once again.

“I was on the practice court and everything was going well, but literally the last two minutes I went for a serve and felt a super sharp pain in my knee,” Williams explained to reporters in her press conference. “It was like, ‘Okay,’ and I served again. I felt it again. I just came off, and it hasn’t been the same since. I have done everything. I have just pretty much done everything from taping to research.

“I even did an injection. I’ve never done an injection before. If this were any other event I probably wouldn’t have considered it. But I wanted to give 200%. It just wasn’t meant to be this year.”

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In the earlier semi-final, Jelena Jankovic rallied from a set down and twice overcame a break in the second set to defeat Sabine Lisicki in three sets and reach her first final in over a year.

Halep and Jankovic will meet in the final of the tournament on Sunday.

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Roger Federer vs Milos Raonic Preview and Prediction – Indian Wells 2015 SF

Roger Federer vs Milos Raonic Preview and Prediction – Indian Wells 2015 SF

  • Posted: Mar 21, 2015

Federer Indian Wells

While many were hoping that Rafael Nadal would reach the semi-final and set up classic match-up against his long-time rival, we will instead be offered an intriguing meeting between Roger Federer and Milos Raonic to determine who will advance to the tournament final. This marks the tenth time that these two competitors will cross paths on the professional tour, with Federer leading the head to head series 8-1.

You can watch the match Live Here: Federer vs Raonic Live Stream

In one of his best performances of the season, Roger Federer produced a dominant display of inspired tennis to thrash Tomas Berdych 6-4, 6-0 in the quarter-final stage of the tournament. While the first set was a competitive one, Federer pounded on every opportunity in the second set, while Berdych faltered and added to his growing unforced errors count. In the second set alone, Federer struck 21 winners and won 88% of his first service points to close out the match in 68 minutes.

“I think I really played well off the baseline,” said Federer. “Because I was serving well and moving well, so maybe there is not going to be that many chances for him on the return as it is. But at least he could have stayed with me longer, and as the match goes on maybe he would have also found his groove better.

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Federer will come up against the No. 1 Canadian, who earned an inspired victory over world No. 3 Rafael Nadal to advance to his semi-final showdown. After dropping the opening set, Raonic went toe-to-toe with Nadal in the second set and beat him 12-10 in the tiebreak to force a decider. There, he broke in the decisive eleventh game to secure the win.

“At the moments when I was playing those match points, it didn’t really feel like match points,” said Raonic. “It was just like another point that I was trying to get through… [I was] just sort of going through the paces at that moment of what do I need to do now, not really signifying it as a match point.”

While Federer leads the overall head-to-head series 9-1, Raonic will be riding an immense wave of confidence after toppling world No. 3 Rafael Nadal. It will be interesting to see if he can summon the evergy to complete another potential three-setter and set up a final against another member of the Big Four. Therefore, given Federer’s energy conservation over the past few days, he will likely have the advantage against the Canadian on Saturday.

Prediction: Roger Federer in Three Sets

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Novak Djokovic vs Andy Murray Preview and Prediction – Indian Wells 2015 SF

Novak Djokovic vs Andy Murray Preview and Prediction – Indian Wells 2015 SF

  • Posted: Mar 21, 2015

djokovic murray

Following their rollercoaster clash in the Australian Open final two months ago, world No. 1 Novak Djokovic will meet his longtime friend and professional adversary Andy Murray for the 25th time on the professional tour. While the head-to-head series used to be a close affair, Djokovic jumped to a 16-8 head to head lead by winning their last five consecutive meetings – four in 2014 and one to secure yet another Aussie Open title last January.

Follow the SF match Live Here: Djokovic vs Murray Live Streaming

The world No. 1 and top seed at the 2015 edition of the Indian Wells Masters 1000 event did not need to play a single point on Thursday evening, as he received a walkover into the semi-final when his opponent, Bernard Tomic, withdrew from the event with a back issue.

Not only did Murray cruise into the semi-final round at Indian Wells, he did so in memorable fashion by snagging himself a slice of British History. According to the ATP World Tour, Murray’s 6-3, 6-4 victory over the Spaniard means he overtook Tim Henman’s British Open Era match win record of 496 victories.

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“I thought I played a good match,” Murray said. “Every time he came to net, I made it very difficult for him. I passed very well, and that was important because it meant that he spent more time at the back of the court. When we were in the baseline rallies, I felt like I was able to dictate a lot of those points. Passing shots were important today.”

While Murray has not defeated Djokovic since he lifted the historic Wimbledon title back in 2013, he remains a competitive hopeful against the Serbian star. Given that Murray spent the vast majority of 2014 recovering from his back surgery, he is yet to find his peak form; once he does, we may consider him once again a viable threat to the reigning kingpin on the ATP World Tour.

Prediction: Novak Djokovic in Three Sets

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Rafael Nadal vs Milos Raonic Preview and Prediction – Indian Wells 2015 QF

Rafael Nadal vs Milos Raonic Preview and Prediction – Indian Wells 2015 QF

  • Posted: Mar 20, 2015

Milos Raonic

An intriguing quarter-final will be featured on Friday afternoon in the American desert, as world No. 3 Rafael Nadal meets Milos Raonic for a sixth time on the ATP World Tour. Nadal leads the head-to-head 5-0 and will be looking to add another victory en route to the final four at Indian Wells.

You can watch the match Live Here: Nadal vs Raonic Live Streaming

Seeded third at the first Masters 1000 event of the season, Nadal earned a comfortable straight sets victory over France’s Gilles Simon to advance to the quarter-final round of the tournament. Nadal’s only hiccup in the match came when he attempted to serve out the contest up 5-2; he allowed Simon to win the next two games before he secured the win.

“Today I think I played a solid match against a tough opponent like Simon that is not easy to play tactically,” Nadal said. “Tactically I think I played a very positive match. In general, I played solid. Only two bad games with my serve, I played bad.”

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The Spaniard will now come up against Raonic, who needed a little over an hour to beat another Spaniard in Tommy Robredo to breeze into the final eight. He won the match 6-3, 6-2.

“He’s an opponent that you don’t want to play against because you play under a lot of pressure, every point,” Nadal said of his next opponent. “What happened today with my serve twice cannot happen the next day if I want to have any chance… So it will be a very tough match. I know I need to be at my 100 per cent to have any chance.”

This marks the sixth time that Nadal and Raonic will meet on the professional tour, with Nadal holding an impenetrable 5-0 record against the Canadian. The last two times they met was in the Miam Masters quarter-final last year and in the final of the Rogers Cup in 2013, the most recent of which being the first time that Nadal dropped a set against the Canadian. While this may be another three-set encounter, the Spaniard should advance to the semi-final in the end.

Prediction: Rafael Nadal in Three Sets

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Serena Williams vs Simona Halep Prediction – Indian Wells 2015 SF

Serena Williams vs Simona Halep Prediction – Indian Wells 2015 SF

  • Posted: Mar 20, 2015

Serena Williams

An enthralling semi-final clash is set to take place in the semi-final round of the Indian Wells event on Friday, as world No. 1 Serena Williams and world No. 3 Simona Halep cross paths once again to determine who will advance to the final. Williams leads the head-to-head series 4-1.

You can watch the SF match Live Here: Williams vs Halep Live Streaming

The tournament’s top seed snapped Timea Bacsinszky’s remarkable 15-match win streak on Wednesday evening when she defeated her 7-5, 6-3 to advance to the semi-final round at Indian Wells. Williams was down 1-3 early in the match but rebounded brilliantly to close out the contest with 23 winners.

“She was on a winning streak, so I was like, ‘I hope I win tonight, because she hasn’t lost in a really long time!’” Williams said on court. “But she has a great future. She’s already making a future now.”

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In one of her most impressive showings of determination this season, the world No. 3 rallied from a set down to claw her way to victory against Spain’s Carla Suarez Navarro. After dropping the 51-minute opening set, Halep rebounded to lose just two games in the following two set and closed out the match 5-7, 6-1, 6-1.

“She was opening the court pretty well with the angles, and it’s really tough to play and hit the balls from wide in the court, so I knew I had to start playing more aggressively and hit more into the court,” Halep explained in her on-court interview after the match. “I just tried to relax my body and my mind, fight for every point and play my best. And I’m happy to be in the semifinals here again.

“I’m looking forward to maybe playing the No.1 in the world again now!”

This marks the sixth time that Williams and Halep will meet on the professional tour, and the first time this season. It is safe to say that Williams will be on high alert against Halep, as she will likely remember the devastating loss in the round robin stage of the WTA finals. Given that the American has looked better so far this week, the edge should go to Serena ahead of the Friday encounter.

Prediction: Serena Williams in Three Sets

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Grand Slam Champions Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci to End Partnership

Grand Slam Champions Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci to End Partnership

  • Posted: Mar 20, 2015

Errani Vinci

One of the great double pairings of the last decade have decided to put an end to their storied partnership, as Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci officially announced the news on Thursday afternoon.

The Italian duo, who won five Grand Slam doubles titles together, announced the news in a joint statement.

Dear all,
After living a wonderful journey for the past several years, which has given us the chance to reach amazing results, we release the following note to inform you about our decision to end our doubles partnership.
We invested lots of energy, both mental and physical, to achieve our goals, which we are very proud of, therefore we now feel the need to rest and catch our breath.
It’s our common purpose to start new individual career paths and set brand new goals to try to reach, also for you to enjoy and take pride in.
As still the World No.1 doubles pair and grateful for the time we had together, we would love to thank our fans from all over the world for the continued support you have been giving us throughout these years, it has been an honor and a privilege for us to represent our Country…
Sara & Robi

The pair won their first two Grand Slam titles at the French and US Open back in 2012 and completed the career slam by winning the Australian Open at the start of 2014 before their crowning jewel at the Wimbledon Championships.

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Their victory is a magnificent one, as Errani and Vinci are just the fifth pair in tennis history to accomplish the career slam, and the first since Venus and Serena Williams did so in 2001. They join Australians Margaret Court and Lesley Turner Bowrey, American duo Kathy Jordan and Anne Smith, Martina Navratilova and Pam Shriver, and Gigi Fernandez and Natasha Zvereva.

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Novak Djokovic vs Bernard Tomic Preview – Indian Wells 2015 QF

Novak Djokovic vs Bernard Tomic Preview – Indian Wells 2015 QF

  • Posted: Mar 19, 2015

Novak Djokovic

Following impressive showings on both ends, one of the four quarter-final matches at the 2015 edition of the Indian Wells Masters 1000 event will feature world No. 1 Novak Djokovic and Australia’s Bernard Tomic in their first meeting in almost three years. Djokovic remains undefeated in the head-to-head series with a 3-0 record.

You can watch the QF match Live Here: Djokovic vs Tomic Live Streaming

Faced with the tall task (literally) of beating American No. 1 John Isner at one of his favourite events, the top seed was able to do so without much of a fuss. The Serbian star earned the victory in straight sets, in a match that saw one break in the opening set and a tiebreak in the second to decide the match. Eventually, the content closed out 6-4, 7-6(5), with Djokovic strolling into the final eight.

“Throughout the match it was very difficult to break him, but I played a great game at 3-all in the first set and that gave me the first set,” said Djokovic. “And after that it was anybody’s game really. The second set went over 60 minutes. We were both very tight towards the end, and just very fortunate to go through it.”

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The Serb will now come up against the resurgent Bernard Tomic, who defeated his fellow countryman Thanasi Kokkinakis in a match that went the distance. He withstood 10 aces from the 18-year-old and saved eight break points to close out the match 6-4, 4-6, 6-4.

“He’s getting mentally more confident, more comfortable on the court,” said Djokovic. “He starts to believe even more. Perhaps also the success of Kokkinakis and [Nick] Kyrgios motivated him to really get serious and work, and the talent is there, the touch is there, he’s got a game. It’s going to be a tricky match for me.”

This marks the fourth time that Djokovic and Tomic will cross paths on the professional tour, with the Serb leading the series with an unblemished 3-0 record. While Tomic is playing some of the best tennis he has in recent memory, he simply does not have the tool t challenge an in-form Djokovic on hard court.

Prediction: Novak Djokovic in Straight Sets

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Roger Federer vs Tomas Berdych Preview – Indian Wells 2015 QF

Roger Federer vs Tomas Berdych Preview – Indian Wells 2015 QF

  • Posted: Mar 19, 2015

Federer US Open

Roger Federer is through to the quarter-final round of the Indian Wells Masters 1000 event, where he will meet Czech No. 1 Tomas Berdych for a spot in the final four of the tournament. Of their 18 previous contests, Federer holds a 12-6 Head to Head lead over Berdych.

You can watch the match Live Here: Federer vs Berdych Live Streaming

In an impressive milestone achievement at the American desert event, 17-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer earned his 50th win at the Indian Wells tournament when he defeated local talent Jack Sock on Wednesday evening. Federer struck eight aces, won 86% of his first service points and face no break points en route to the 69-minute victory.

In a battle between the two top Czech players on the tour, world No. 9 Tomas Berdych and Lukas Rosol met in the fourth round on Wednesday in a match that went a total of three sets before a winner was determined. In the end, Berdych won the match 6-2, 4-6, 6-4, to oust his fellow countryman and advance to the following stage of the tournament.

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“We have played on many occasions over many years,” said Federer. “I don’t know when we played the very first time, but I have seen his game evolve, seen how he established himself in the Top 10.

“I think he does very well, and probably also with a new team now he feels eager to try out new things and maybe gives him extra energy. So I think it’s going to be an interesting matchup for him having a new team in the back.”

The two competitors have previously met on 18 different occasions on the professional circuit, with Federer winning 12 of those matches dating back to his first victory at the Athens Olypmics in 2004. Given that Federer has only improved over the course of this season, he will likely be able to secure the victory, even if he needs a deciding set to do so.

Prediction: Roger Federer in Three Sets

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Andy Murray vs Feliciano Lopez Preview – Indian Wells 2015 QF

Andy Murray vs Feliciano Lopez Preview – Indian Wells 2015 QF

  • Posted: Mar 19, 2015

Andy Murray

British No. 1 Andy Murray is through to his fourth ATP World Tour quarter-final of the season, where he will meets Spain’s Feliciano Lopez for the tenth time on the professional tour The British No. 1 remains undefeated with a 9-0 record in the head-to-head series.

Follow the QF match Live Here: Murray vs Lopez Live Streaming

On Wednesday afternoon, Andy Murray opened up play on Stadium 2 against Adrian Mannarino, whom he defeated in straight sets to advance to the following stage of the Indian Wells Masters 1000 event. He defeated the Frenchman 6-3, 6-3 to give himself a 1-0 lead in their head-to-head series.

“I thought I played well,” Murray said afterward. “It was a tricky match. He’s played well this year. He’s had a few good tournaments. He’s a tough guy to play against. Very unorthodox style. He has a very, very good backhand cross court. Hits it very low over the net, very flat. He can rush you, take your time away.”

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In one of the bigger upsets of the day, Kei Nishikori failed to reach the quarter-final round at Indian Wells when he fell to Spain’s Feliciano Lopez in straight sets. The 6-4, 7-6(2) win was Lopez’s first Top 10 win of the season and sets him up for his tenth meeting against Murray.

“Against Lopez, I’ve got a good record against him, but he’s always a tough opponent because of the way that he plays and the way that he serves,” Murray explained. “He’s also still improving. He’s been playing the best tennis of his career these last 18 months or so, and obviously had a great win today against Nishikori. I think these conditions here are good for him. It helps his serve a lot, so it will be a tricky match.”

Murray will look to extend his head-to-head record against Lopez to 9-0 when the two step across from each other on the court on Thursday afternoon. This is their first meeting of the season and in almost a year. While Murray is capable of a straight sets win, do not be surprised if this one goes the distance given Lopez’s recent showing.

Prediction: Andy Murray in Three Sets

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Rafael Nadal vs Gilles Simon Preview – Indian Wells 2015 Round 4

Rafael Nadal vs Gilles Simon Preview – Indian Wells 2015 Round 4

  • Posted: Mar 18, 2015

Rafael Nadal

Following a decent showing on Tuesday evening, world No. 2 Rafael Nadal is now through to the fourth round of the Indian Wells Masters event, where he will meet France’s Gilles Simon. The two competitors have previously met on six occasions, with the Spaniard leading the head-to-head series 6-1.

Follow the match Live Here: Nadal vs Simon Live Streaming

In a match that was far from his best performance this year, the tournament’s third seed beat Donald Young in straight set in the third round of the Masters 1000 event. While the scoreline ended 6-4, 6-2, it featured a competitive opening set, even though the American faded as the match went on. In the end, Nadal converted six break points to close out the match in 80 minutes.

“Last year is 2014; we are in 2015,” said Nadal. “We cannot think about what happened last year in every round and in every tournament. Every year is different.”

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Nadal will come up against France’s Gilles Simon, who defeated Michael Berrer in straight sets 6-2, 7-5 to advance to the fourth round berth with the Spaniard. He struck four aces, won 66% of his first service points and converted five break points to end the match in a total of 83 minutes.

“I like playing here – I love the players, I love the organization, I love the fans here and I feel very comfortable,” Nadal added. “I’m happy to be in the fourth round… Tomorrow I have a tough match against Simon. He’s tough, a good player.”

This marks the eighth time these two competitors will meet on the ATP World Tour, with Nadal leading the head-to-head series 6-1. Rafa has won their last four consecutive matches and will likely maintain that momentum when they cross paths on Wednesday evening. Now that he has survived a repeat of his early exit from Indian Wells last season, Nadal is more than capable of a deep run at the tournament.

Prediction: Rafael Nadal in Straight Sets

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