Media playback is not supported on this device
Andy Murray says a strike by players over a packed tennis calendar is a “possibility”.
The British number one adds that players want changes to happen “sooner rather than later”, ahead of a meeting in Shanghai next month to plot their next move.
Murray argues that the current calendar is “gruelling” on the body.
Media playback is not supported on this device
Britain’s Oliver Golding says he is “amazingly happy” after winning the US Open boys’ title with victory over the junior world number one.
The 17-year-old came from a set down to win 5-7 6-3 6-4 against his former doubles partner and top seed from the Czech Republic Jiri Vesely.
The 13th seed follows in the footsteps of fellow Briton Andy Murray who also won the boys’ title at Flushing Meadows back in 2004.
Teenager Dayana Yastremska scored her first WTA victory from a set down over Andrea Petkovic on the first day of play at the TEB BNP Paribas Istanbul Cup.
STUTTGART, Germany – World No.4 Dominika Cibulkova has withdrawn from the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix due to a wrist injury.
Seeded No.3 at the tour’s first Premier tournament on European red clay, Cibulkova injured her wrist last week during practice ahead of Slovakia’s weekend tie against the Netherlands.
Cibulkova was forced to withdraw from the tie and, despite a first-round bye in Stuttgart, was unable to heal in time for Stuttgart.
As a result of Cibulkova’s withdrawal and in accordance with WTA rules, No.5 seed Garbiñe Muguruza, who was set to play her first-round match against countrywoman Carla Suárez Navarro, moves into Cibulkova’s vacated spot in the draw and now has a first-round bye.
A qualifier or lucky loser will take Muguruza’s vacated spot and will play Suárez Navarro. The rest of the draw remains unchanged.
.@PorscheTennis Revised draw @PorscheTennis. pic.twitter.com/71vHUsKaRz
— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) April 24, 2017
The flagship website for women’s tennis, www.wtatennis.com, will relaunch on Tuesday, April 25.
The upgrade, which is the culmination of six months’ planning and development, is designed to enhance the digital experience for everyone who follows the sport.
Users can look forward to a cleaner, crisper layout, an improved data service and a significantly upgraded video player.
The core functions will remain including rankings, news & features content alongside player, tournament and other tour information.
WTAtennis.com will also continue to house our exclusive WTA Insider content – including articles, podcasts, interviews and videos – produced by our expert team of writers, editors and producers.
Tuesday’s launch represents stage one of the overhaul of the WTA’s digital channels driven by WTA Networks, a partnership between the WTA and The Social Channel, a digital marketing and content company.
Exciting new features and upgrades are also scheduled to follow in the coming months. In the meantime, we welcome your comments on the changes via Facebook or Twitter.
A pair of 3-2 victories were on the cards for both Belarus and the United States on Sunday, as the two nations advance to the 2017 Fed Cup Final.
ZHENGZHOU, China – No.2 seed Wang Qiang earned her first WTA 125K Series title at the Biyuan Cup Zhengzhou Women’s Tennis Open at top seed Peng Shuai was forced to retire in the deciding set with the match standing at 3-6, 7-6(3), 1-1.
“I entered this tournament as the second seed, so there was an opportunity for me to win the title,” Wang said post-match. “I almost got knocked out in the second round. At that time, I didn’t feel as confident as I am today. I’m not quite sure what happened in the second set, but I tried to stay focused and play my game, not making too many mistakes. I knew that she would go for it whenever she had the chance.”
Peng led the match 6-3, 3-0 and served for the match, but surrendered the deciding tiebreak and could no longer play on after two hours, 15 minutes. Wang’s victory levels the head-to-head between the pair to 1-1.
It was a Chinese sweep for the home crowd as in the doubles final, Han Xinyun and Lin Zhu claimed the crown over Jacqueline Cako and Julia Glushko, 7-5, 6-1.
“We didn’t play each other before, so the only thing we could do was stick to the plan,” the pair said post-match. “The second set became easier as we found our rhythm. We were more powerful than our opponents from the baseline, and we had a better serve.”
All photos courtesy of the Biyuan Cup Zhengzhou Women’s Tennis Open.
The final day of April’s Fed Cup weekend is underway, and Australia and Italy were among the first teams to clinch victories over Serbia and Chinese Taipei, respectively, keeping their spots in World Group II.
Check out more highlights from Sunday’s action after a topsy turvy opener.
Romania d. Great Britain, 3-2 – World Group II Play-Offs, Constanta, Romania
Simona Halep restored order after a chaotic opening day in her hometown, avenging a Miami Open loss to Johanna Konta, 6-1, 6-3. Halep’s win put Romania on course for Irina-Camelia Begu to clinch the tie over Heather Watson, 6-4, 7-5, and remain in World Group II in 2018.
Halep was a mere points from victory over Konta in Crandon Park – the Brit went on to claim her maiden Premier Mandatory title two rounds later – and picked up where she left off yesterday at the Tenis Club IDU, hitting 17 winners and breaking serve five times to earn the win in one hour and 11 minutes.
“I expected on clay [for the match] to be like this,” Halep said after the match. “I did everything: I stayed focused and I was very motivated after yesterday. I’m really motivated to win this tie. I feel we’re dominating now.”
Begu was similarly solid in the finals singles rubber, and though Great Britain nabbed an entertaining doubles win over Halep and Monica Niculescu, Romania edged through in the end.
ROMANIA WINS!!! ?? @irina_begu defeats ?? Watson 64 75 and Romania defeats Great Britain 3-1 to maintain its place in World Group II pic.twitter.com/I3foTDmxMt
— Fed Cup (@FedCup) April 23, 2017
Germany d. Ukraine, 3-2 – World Group I Play-Offs, Stuttgart, Germany
Elina Svitolina kept up her flawless form against World No.1 Angelique Kerber, but it wasn’t enough for Team Ukraine, who fell in the face of an unstoppable Julia Goerges at the Porsche Arena.
After Goerges recovered from a set down to oust the reigning Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships winner on Saturday, the former Stuttgart champion edged past Lesia Tsurenko in straight sets to help clinch their place in World Group I next year.
GERMANY WINS!!! ?? @juliagoerges defeats ?? Lesia Tsurenko 64 64 to give Germany a 3-1 win over Ukraine! pic.twitter.com/Ok9yHJBrN7
— Fed Cup (@FedCup) April 23, 2017
Still, it was a solid week for Svitolina, who has now won her last four matches against the US Open champion.
“Kerber struggled to find any rhythm against an opponent who took her chances with greater success, particularly from the baseline,” noted FedCup.com’s Jeff Kavanagh. “Svitolina also committed less than half of the unforced errors of her opponent in the second set – 6-16 – and will feel mightily satisfied at a job well done against a player ranked 12 places above her in the world.”
More to come…
STUTTGART, Germany – The European clay season begins in earnest this week as hometown favorite Angelique Kerber leads the WTA into the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart. The two-time champion tops a draw that houses a host of elite players and threats on the dirt, as players look to get off on the right foot on the road to Roland Garros.
Check out 10 things to know ahead of Germany’s Premier red-clay event.
1) Star-studded sightings in Stuttgart.
Eight of the WTA’s top 10 are competing this week. Defending champion Angelique Kerber is the event’s top seed, as one of three former champions in the main draw.
2) Top seed, but not No.1 (for now).
Though Kerber will drop to World No.2 in the rankings on Monday, the German has a chance to reclaim the top spot in the WTA rankings should she reach the semifinals this week.
3) Good things come in threes.
Kerber could be the fourth player to three-peat in the history of the tournament, dating back to when Tracy Austin and Martina Navratilova did it at the event’s beginnings in Filderstadt. Maria Sharapova also won three straight tiles from 2012-14.
4) Siegemund sneaks in.
Last year’s runner-up Laura Siegemund earned the final wildcard to this year’s tournament at the 11th hour – the World No.37 was tabbed as the final entrant prior to Saturday morning’s draw.
5) Sharapova says hello.
The aforementioned three-time Stuttgart champion Maria Sharapova returns to the WTA this week.
6) An epic rematch first up.
Though both are unseeded, the first round match between Kristina Mladenovic and Mirjana Lucic-Baroni promises to have fireworks. The two have met already on clay this season, as the Croat took a marathon 4-6, 6-4, 7-6(13) victory in Charleston earlier this spring.
7) Game, set, match – for the first time.
Two of the event’s top 8 seeds will be looking to break a losing spell in Stuttgart this week. The No.6 seed and a wildcard in the event, Johanna Konta is 0-2 in her career at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, while No.3 seed Dominika Cibulkova has fallen in the first round in each of her four appearances.
8) Welcome back, welcome back, welcome back.
Several WTA stars will be returning to Stuttgart for the first time in a while this week, as Cibulkova makes her first appearance in the tournament since 2012, while Mirjana Lucic-Baroni plays the event for the first time in three years. Latvia’s Anastasija Sevastova plays just her second Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, having fallen in the first round in 2011, and her first-round foe, 2010 runner-up Samantha Stosur appears for the first time since 2013.
9) Compatriots to do battle to commence play.
Two first-round matches will see countrywomen face off, as Elena Vesnina will play Daria Kasatkina — and the winner of the all-Russian showdown will face either Garbiñe Muguruza or Carla Suárez Navarro, who face each other in an all-Spanish clash.
10) Show your colors, then head to Stuttgart.
Nine players who will feature in the main draw are also donning their country’s colors this weekend – Kerber, Vesnina, Kasatkina, Siegemund, Johanna Konta, Simona Halep and CoCo Vandeweghe.
World No.1 Angelique Kerber led Germany to a 2-0 lead at the Porsche Arena – catch up with all the World Group Play-off action from Saturday’s Fed Cup play.