Tennis News

Top seed Caroline Wozniacki is through to the final of the Malaysian Open and will look to maintain her dominant campaign in the tournament to lift the title on Sunday afternoon. Her opponent in the final will be Alexandra Dulgheru, whom she has already faced twice previously on the professional tour. Wozniacki leads the head-to-head series 2-0.

Follow the final match live here: Wozniacki vs Dulgheru Live Stream

The Dane faced minimal resistance in her semi-final match-up against Su-Wei Hsieh to reach her second final of the season. The contest lasted 1 hour and 17 minutes and save her break serve six times to secure the 6-2, 6-2 victory.

“Hsieh Su-Wei’s a tough opponent,” Wozniacki said afterwards. “She plays very unorthodox, she has some amazing shots – it’s tough to play someone like that because you don’t get much rhythm.

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“I just kept my head cool out there and fought until the end.”

Wozniacki will come up against Alexandra Dulgheru, who had a more difficult path to the final of the tournament. She defeated fourth seed Jarmila Gajdosova by rallying back from a set down to win 5-7, 7-5, 7-6(4) in three hours and 14 minutes.

“It’s always exciting to be in finals – that’s what we practice so hard for,” Wozniacki said. “It’s my second final this year, so hopefully I can go the whole way.”

This marks the third time that these two competitors will meet on the professional tour, with Wozniacki leading the series 2-0. While one was a dominant win, the other was came via retirement. However, this should not affect Wozniacki’s path to victory, as she stands as a major favourite in Sunday’s final.

Prediction: Caroline Wozniacki in Straight Sets

As expected, the opening day of action in Round 1 of the 2015 Davis Cup brought with it some enthralling match-ups, riveting encounters, and surprising upsets which produced a fascinating 24 hours of competition on Friday.

In Glasgow, Andy Murray needed less than two hours to defeat Donald Young to give Great Britain the 1-0 lead as expected, but it was James Ward who was the hero to be remembered on the opening day, as he overcame a two set deficit and rallied back to beat American No. 1 John Isner in four hours and 56 minutes. The match went to 14-13 in the final set before Ward managed to break Isner to close out the affair.

In Serbia, world No. 1 Novak Djokovic gave his country a 1-0 lead with a 6-3 6-2 6-4 victory over Mate Delic. His nation would take a 2-0 lead when Viktor Troicki defeated rising star Borna Coric in five sets 4-6 1-6 6-3 6-2 6-1.

Complete Day 1 results available below:

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Germany 0 – 2 France
Venue: Fraport Arena, Frankfurt, GER (hard – indoor)

Great Britain 2 – 0 USA
Venue: Emirates Arena, Glasgow, GBR (hard – indoor)

Czech Republic 0 – 2 Australia
Venue: Cez Arena, Ostrava, CZE (hard – indoor)

Kazakhstan 1 – 1 Italy
Venue: National Tennis Centre, Astana, KAZ (hard – indoor)

Argentina 1 – 1 Brazil
Venue: Tecnopolis, Buenos Aires, ARG (clay – outdoor)

Serbia 2 – 0 Croatia
Venue: Kraljevo Sports Centre, Kraljevo, SRB (hard – indoor)

Canada 1 – 1 Japan
Venue: Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre, Vancouver, CAN (hard – indoor)

Belgium 1 – 1 Switzerland
Venue: Country Hall du Sart Tilman, Liege, BEL (hard – indoor)

With little resistance all week, Danish tennis star Caroline Wozniacki advanced to the semi-final stage of the Malaysian Open on Friday and will now come up against Su-Wei Hsieh for a spot in the tournament final. This marks the fourth time that these two competitors will come across each other on the tour, with Wozniacki leading the head to head series 3-0.

Follow the match live here: Wozniacki vs Hsieh Live Stream

The top seed in Kuala Lumpur beat Carina Witthoeft in the quarter-final stage on Friday to advance to the final four in the tournament. The Dane won the match 6-3, 6-1 , and did so in 1 hour and 12 minutes. Wozniacki hit 2 aces, won 80% of her first service points and saved both the break points she faced in the match.

“We had a lot of tight games early on, but I managed to play well in the important points, and that made the difference,” Wozniacki said afterwards. “I’m happy about the way I played out there today. I think that was my best match so far in the tournament, and I hope to just keep improving from here.”

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Wozniacki will next come up against Su-Wei Hsieh, who needed three sets to get past Russian qualifier Elizaveta Kulichkova, 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-0. It was only during the final set that she truly picked up the pace and stormed to victory in 22 minutes. She will now be faced with her toughest match of the tournament in Wozniacki.

“Playing against top players is always tough, so I won’t be thinking about who I’m playing against,” Hsieh said. “I will concentrate on bringing my best game to the court and enjoying the semifinal.”

This marks the fourth time that these two competitors will cross paths on the professional tour, with Wozniacki leading the series 3-0. One of those three meetings was a tough encounter – she nearly lost to Wei in Beijing when she was pushed to 6-7(7), 7-6(3), 6-0.

Prediction: Caroline Wozniacki in Straight Sets

In her only previous appearance at the Malaysian Open two years ago, Caroline Wozniacki suffered a surprising upset in the opening round of the tournament. Over 700 days later, the Dane returned to Kuala Lumpur and kicked off her campaign in solid fashion. Through to the second round of the tournament, Wozniacki will come up against Lin Zhu, whom she has never faced previously on the professional tour.

Follow the match live here: Wozniacki v Zhu Live Stream

The tournament’s top seed commenced her week in Malaysia with a rapid-fire victory over a Chinese qualifier. She defeated Yafan Wang 6-3, 6-1 in 1 hour and 14 minutes to advance to the following stage of the event. While she struck no aces, the Dane hit 73% of her first service points and saved 3 of 4 break points to earn the victory in a lopsided manner.

“I didn’t do so well when I was here last time, so I’m happy to get my first win in Malaysia. The first match of any tournament is always tough and I’m just happy to be through,” Wozniacki said.

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In a more difficult opening round match-up, Lin Zhu ousted Yuliya Beygeizimer in three sets 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 to advance to her second round meeting with Wozniacki. She struck 3 aces, won 67% of her first service points and converted seven breaks of serve to close out the match in 2 hours and 5 minutes.

This is just the first time that Wozniacki and Zhu will cross paths on the WTA tour. The Dane, who is positioned as the top seed of the tournament, will likely live up to her billing and will continue her dominant run through the draw. While first-time opponent and relative unknowns could always pose an unlikely threat to Top 10 players, Wozniacki should be able to advance in straight sets relatively unscathed.

Prediction: Caroline Wozniacki in Straight Sets

The nominations for the first round of the 2015 Davis Cup tournament will be headlined by world No. 1 Novak Djokovic and British No. 1 Andy Murray.

Djokovic will lead the charge for Serbia as they attempt to get past the depleted Croatian team without the injured reigning US Open champion Marin Cilic. The Croatian will now be lead by the youngest player in the ATP World Tour top 100 Borna Coric.

You will be able to follow the matches live here: Davis Cup 2015 Live Streaming

World No. 3 Andy Murray will be at the helm of the Great Britain team as they rematch the United States in the first round of the Davis Cup. The UK team defeated the US team last season and will look to duplicate their efforts this time around.

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Check out the full list of World Group nominations below:

Germany vs. France
Venue: Fraport Arena, Frankfurt, GER (hard – indoor)
Germany
Philipp Kohlschreiber
Benjamin Becker
Jan-Lennard Struff
Andre Begemann
Captain: Michael Kohlmann
France
Gilles Simon
Gael Monfils
Nicolas Mahut
Captain: Arnaud Clement

Great Britain vs. USA
Venue: Emirates Arena, Glasgow, GBR (hard – indoor)
Great Britain
Andy Murray
James Ward
Dominic Inglot
Jamie Murray
Captain: Leon Smith
USA
John Isner
Donald Young
Mike Bryan
Bob Bryan
Captain: Jim Courier

Czech Republic vs. Australia
Venue: Cez Arena, Ostrava, CZE (hard – indoor)
Czech Republic
Lukas Rosol
Jiri Vesely
Jan Mertl
Adam Pavlasek
Captain: Jaroslav Navratil
Australia
Nick Kyrgios
Bernard Tomic
Samuel Groth
Lleyton Hewitt
Captain: Wally Masur

Kazakhstan vs. Italy
Venue: National Tennis Centre, Astana, KAZ (hard – indoor)
Kazakhstan
Mikhail Kukushkin
Andrey Golubev
Aleksandr Nedovyesov
Dmitry Popko
Captain: Dias Doskarayev
Italy
Fabio Fognini
Andreas Seppi
Simone Bolelli
Paolo Lorenzi
Captain: Corrado Barazzutti

Argentina vs. Brazil
Venue: Tecnopolis, Buenos Aires, ARG (clay – outdoor)
Argentina
Leonardo Mayer
Federico Delbonis
Diego Schwartzmann
Carlos Berlocq
Captain: Daniel Orsanic
Brazil
Thomaz Bellucci
Joao Souza
Marcelo Melo
Bruno Soares
Captain: Joao Zwetsch

Serbia vs. Croatia
Venue: Kraljevo Sports Centre, Kraljevo, SRB (hard – indoor)
Serbia
Novak Djokovic
Viktor Troicki
Filip Krajinovic
Nenad Zimonjic
Captain: Bogdan Obradovic
Croatia
Borna Coric
Mate Delic
Marin Draganja
Captain: Zeljko Krajan

Canada vs. Japan
Venue: Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre, Vancouver, CAN (hard – indoor)
Canada
Milos Raonic
Vasek Pospisil
Frank Dancevic
Daniel Nestor
Captain: Martin Laurendeau
Japan
Kei Nishikori
Go Soeda
Tatsuma Ito
Yasutaka Uchiyama
Captain: Minoru Ueda

Belgium vs. Switzerland
Venue: Country Hall du Sart Tilman, Liege, BEL (hard – indoor)
Belgium
David Goffin
Steve Darcis
Ruben Bemelmans
Niels Desein
Captain: Johan van Herck
Switzerland
Yann Marti
Adrien Bossel
Henri Laaksonen
Michael Lammer
Captain: Severin Luthi

Rafael Nadal lived up to his billing as the top seed of the Argentina Open presentado por Buenos Aires Ciudad, as he worked his way through the draw to eventually lift the crown following a quick final against Juan Monaco.

Faced against the local favourite on hostile territory, Nadal required only 1 hour and 27 minutes to dispatch his opposition and secure his first title of the season. The Spaniard, who did not face a single break point on serve, closed out the match 6-4, 6-1.

“All titles are special, but I’m really happy because I have not been a champion for a long time,” said Nadal. “Against [Monaco], I played my best of the week. That is great news for me because I’m trying to gain more confidence.”

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While the contest was a straightforward affair, the hours leading up to it certainly weren’t. A two-hour rain delay ahead off the final forced the tournament officials to add more clay to the court, which did not impress a grumpy-looking Nadal. However, in front of legends like Guillermo Vilas, Nadal was able to win the match, and tie Vilas for 46 clay court titles in the Open Era.

Nadal took home $91,050 and 250 Emirates ATP Rankings points for his title win, while Monaco fell to 1-6 against the world No. 5.

“It was a difficult week at first, but then I took confidence and I think I’m slowly returning to my best,” said Monaco. “That’s why I leave here happy.”

17-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer reached yet another historic milestone on Saturday evening in Dubai, when he earned a solid straight sets victory over world No. 1 Novak Djokovic to earn his seventh title at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. He did so by serving 12 aces, which allowed him to surpass the 9,000 aces in his career mark.

“The seventh is quite unbelievable, what I hear people talking about that, announcing I’m the six-time winner here in Dubai,” said Federer following the match. “Sounds pretty crazy. It’s nice that Wimbledon and Halle are that way, as well.”

The world No. 2 hit 12 aces, and played a traditional serve and volley game to trouble Djokovic en route to the straightforward finish in 84 minutes. He defeated the Serb 6-3, 7-5 to bring his overall tournament record to 47-5 in 12 apperances.

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The 33-year-old has now won two titles this season after picking up a win in Brisbane at the start of the year.

“I think it’s really become a very nice rivalry,” said Federer. “I think we play very nicely against each other, and it seems people like the way we play against each other, as well. I don’t think we have to adjust our games very much against each other, which I think is nice, as well. We can just play our game, and then the better man wins.

“It’s been nice seeing Novak’s improvements over all these years. He’s become such an unbelievable player, especially the past five, six years, and cleaned up his game so nicely and became the best mover in the game. It’s really a pleasure playing against him every single time again.”

Federer also improved to 20-17 against Djokovic in their head-to-head series. He led the series 3-2 in 2014 as well. He was awarded $505,000 for his efforts, as well as 500 ATP ranking points.

After a weak conclusion to his 2014 season, David Ferrer has been dominant so far in 2015, as he managed to win his third ATP World Tour title of the year with a straight sets victory over Kei Nishikori in the final of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel.

Ferrer, 32, has now won four titles at this tournament, with the latest one coming against the Japanese No. 1 – a player seven years younger than he is. He struck 11 winners and handled 40 unforced errors from Nishikori to defeat him 6-3, 7-5 in 1 hour and 49 minutes.

“Tonight I played my best match this week,” said Ferrer. “For sure. I played very aggressive, without mistakes. I’m very happy. To win here a fourth time is a dream.

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“I tried to play my forehand to his forehand and with more energy. In important moments, he made more mistakes and I took my chances. I feel very confident with my tennis now. I’ve won three tournaments this year and we’ve only began the season.”

Ferrer, who improved to 18-1 this season with his title win, took home $343,000 in prize money and 500 Ranking points, while Nishikori received $154,620 in prize money along with 300 points. Nishikori, however, is expected to rise to world No. 4 in the ATP rankings, which means he will overtake Nadal for that slot, while Andy Murray moves up to No. 3.

“There were too many unforced errors,” Nishikori said. “I tried to be aggressive but I was missing too much. Especially with this slower surface, he gets everything. I knew I had to step in a little more, but it wasn’t my day.

“I fought hard from 0-3 (in the second set) and tried to come back, but he was too good. It was definitely a great week, I had some tough matches and it’s always a great feeling coming through to a final.”