Insider Podcast: The State Of Serena, Draw Shake-Up In The Desert
WTA Insider | The Insider team addresses the withdrawal of top seed Serena Williams, the re-ascent of Angelique Kerber to No.1, and the similarly different BNP Paribas Open draw.
WTA Insider | The Insider team addresses the withdrawal of top seed Serena Williams, the re-ascent of Angelique Kerber to No.1, and the similarly different BNP Paribas Open draw.
Svetlana Kuznetsova talks ahead of the BNP Paribas Open.
Wednesday was Media Day at the BNP Paribas Open, and all the top seeds were on hand for a medley of interviews. How many WTA players can you spot in this photo?
Agnieszka Radwanska took to the rooftop at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden for a series of video interviews.
Dominika Cibulkova is ready for her close up…
…while all eyes are on Angelique Kerber, who is set to return to World No.1 after Indian Wells.
Simona Halep is thrilled to be back on the tennis court after being on the sidelines with an injury.
Inside the media center, No.3 seed Karolina Pliskova answered questions from the media during All-Access Hour.
No.7 seed Garbiñe Muguruza comes to Indian Wells hoping to put an Achilles injury behind her.
No.5 seed Dominika Cibulkova was all smiles during All-Access Hour.
Radwanska, a runner up here in 2014, is hoping to do one better and claim her 21st WTA title at Indian Wells.
No.8 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova made back-to-back finals at Indian Wells in 2007 and 2008.
The Russian kept the press room in stitches with her trademark dry wit.
2015 champion Halep is thrilled to be back in Indian Wells after a left knee injury kept her away from tour for almost a month.
“I tried not to think that much about tennis,” Halep said. “I tried to be different but it’s not easy. I am addicted a little bit to this sport. When I don’t have competition, it’s tough to live.”
The most in-demand player by far was No.2 seed Kerber, who earlier this week found out she’d return to WTA World No.1 at the end of the tournament.
“I’ve been there already, but at the end, of course it feels good to reach the spot again,” Kerber said. “But for me I came here to really focus not on becoming No.1 or the ranking.”
The two-time semifinalist is looking to snap a four-match losing streak in the California desert, having lost her opening match here the last three years.
Jelena Ostapenko scored her first win at the BNP Paribas Open while Monica Niculescu emerged victorious from an all-Romanian clash – catch up on more Day 1 results right here.
Karolina Pliskova talks about her feelings and expectations before the BNP Paribas Open.
Kirsten Flipkens takes on CiCi Bellis in the first round of the BNP Paribas Open.
Angelique Kerber says the boldest decision she ever made came when she was 17 and decided to play tennis professionally.
Her comments reflect the theme of this year’s International Women’s Day: ‘Be Bold For Change’.
“The toughest decision I made was when I was 17, and I decided to start to play tennis [professionally],” she reveals in an exclusive WTA interview. “I was not able to get through to the university and of course when you are 17 years old that’s always a tough decision, because you don’t know how far you can get and what’s happening the next year.”
It was very much a decision that paid off for the 29-year-old, who enjoyed the best year of her career in 2016. In addition to finishing the year at No.1 in the WTA rankings (making it five years in a row in the Top 10), there was double Grand Slam success at the Australian Open and US Open, plus a WTA win in Stuttgart.
On top of that, there were finals at Brisbane, Wimbledon, Cincinnati and the year-end BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global, and a silver medal at the Olympics in Rio.
International Women’s Day falls on March 8 every year, and celebrates the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women.
The boldest decision Karolina Pliskova ever made came at a very young age.
She was 12 – and she made the choice to focus on tennis rather than education.
“I decided to start with tennis and quit with school,” she said in an exclusive WTA interview. “I didn’t study at all, I just put everything into the tennis and it worked.”
It proved a wise decision for the 24-year-old, who turned pro just five years later, in 2009. After reaching her maiden Grand Slam final at the US Open in 2016, she has taken her game to a new level this year and has two 2017 titles to her name already, at the Brisbane International in January and the Qatar Total Open in Doha last month. Her success in Brisbane saw her reach a career-high No.3 in the WTA rankings on January 30.
Pliskova’s comments mark 2017 International Women’s Day, the theme of which is ‘Be Bold For Change’.
International Women’s Day falls on March 8 every year, and celebrates women’s achievements in culture, the economy, politics and society.
Kirsten Flipkens has Wednesday’s shot of the day on Day 1 of the BNP Paribas Open.