Tennis News

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil – History is on the line in Rio on Saturday as Angelique Keber and Monica Puig chase Olympic gold. But before the two face off on Centre Court, here are 10 points to ponder…

 (2) Angelique Kerber (GER #2) vs Monica Puig (PUR #34)
Head-To-Head: Kerber leads Puig, 2-0

1) Kerber holds the head-to-head bragging rights.
The players’ two encounters on tour could not have been more different. Perhaps crucially on a psychological level, though, both have gone the German’s way. The first saw Kerber come within two points of defeat against a very green Puig three years ago in Brisbane, eventually prevailing on a third set tie-break. The second, last summer in Toronto, was rather more one-sided, Kerber dropping just five games against the young Puerto Rican.  

2) On top of their game.
Both Kerber and Puig have enjoyed campaigns to remember. After a slight lull following January’s memorable Australian Open triumph, Kerber has enjoyed a productive summer, reaching the Wimbledon final and winning 15 of her past 17 matches. Puig, meanwhile, has been quietly impressive all year long, reaching the biggest final of her career, in Sydney, the Eastbourne semifinals and posting a career-best 46 match wins.

3) Kerber holds a decided edge in big-match experience.
For all her recent improvement, Puig has still only ever appeared in two finals. Kerber, meanwhile, is becoming an old hand at the business end of tennis’ flagship events, having appeared in two major finals and lifted six Premier titles.

4) History in the making.
Puig has a chance to write her name in the history books as the first athlete in any sport from Puerto Rico to win a gold medal at the Olympic Games. As it is, she is already guaranteed to go down as the island’s first female medalist.

5) Kerber was eight months old the last time a German won Olympic gold.
If Kerber wins, she will be the first German woman to win Olympic tennis gold title since Steffi Graf in 1988. Graf returned to the final four years later only to lose out to an inspired Jennifer Capriati in Barcelona.

6) Consistency the Kerber’s key to success.
Kerber has improved as she has progressed in Rio, something born out in her increasingly stingy unforced error count. After hitting 31 in her first-round win over Mariana Duque-Mariño, Kerber’s totals for her subsequent matches were 19, 14, 11 and just eight against Madison Keys in the semifinals.

7) Ready for another upset?
Puig had only registered one win over a member of the Top 10 before arriving in Rio. This came against No.5 Sara Errani at Wimbledon in 2013. She doubled this tally thanks to her magnificent third-round upset of Garbiñe Muguruza. Is she ready to make it three?

8) Olympic outsider.
Puig is the first unseeded singles finalist since tennis’ reintroduction to the Olympics in 1988. The lowest-ranked player to appear in the gold medal match up until now was then-No.17 Elena Dementieva in 2000.

9) Kerber’s unblemished record.
Kerber has not dropped a set on her way to the final. London 2012 gold medalist Serena Williams is the only player to win the competition since without dropping a set since the sport’s reintroduction to the Olympics.

10) The exclusive leftie club.
By defeating Keys, Kerber ensured she will become just the second left-hander to win an Olympic singles medal since tennis’ return. The other was 2000 bronze medalist Monica Seles.

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil – Timea Bacsinszky and Martina Hingis staged a stunning comeback on Friday night to defeat Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka and keep alive their dream of an Olympic gold medal.

Four years ago in London, Hlavackova and Hradecka won silver and they looked on course for a return to the final when took the first set and surged ahead in the second. However, their Swiss opponents hung doggedly onto their coattails, escaping from a dramatic second set to complete a 5-7, 7-6(3), 6-2 victory.

The turning point came with Hradecka serving at 5-4 in the second set. Having already saved one match point, Hingis fended off another with a ferocious volley that struck Hlavackova in the eye from point-blank range.

Despite a lengthy injury timeout, it was a blow from which Hlavackova and Hradecka were unable to recover. The Czechs lost the first two points on the resumption to drop serve and while they did manage to force a tie-break, it was one that never looked like going their way.

Bacsinszky and Hingis compounded this misery in the decider, rattling off four straight games to complete the comeback.

Heading into Rio, an Olympic medal was one of the few prizes missing from Hingis’ resume. Her hopes of winning one were dealt a double blow by the withdrawal or first Roger Federer and then Belinda Bencic. Bacsinszky, though, has deputized ably and on Saturday the first-time partnership will meet Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina for gold.

Makarova and Vesnina were quarterfinalists in London and have picked up a couple of Grand Slam titles since then. Against Lucie Safarova and Barbora Strycova they needed to draw on all this experience to overcome a slow start and edge through, 7-6(7), 6-4.

Dreams are coming true for @EVesnina001 who's guaranteed an Olympic medal after reaching the women's doubles final pic.twitter.com/iQtGsEjjWm

— ITF Olympic Tennis (@OlympicsTennis) 12 August 2016

KEY INFORMATION:
Tournament Level: Premier 5
Prize Money: $2,804,000
Draw Size: 48 main draw (16 byes)/48 qualifying
Main Draw Ceremony: Friday, August 12, 5.30pm EDT
Qualifying Dates: Saturday, August 13 – Sunday, August 14 
First Day of Main Draw: Monday, August 15
Singles Final: Sunday, August 21, 2pm EDT
Doubles Final: TBC – Sunday, August 21, 12.15pm EDT on Grandstand

MUST FOLLOW SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS:
@WTA
@WTA_Insider – WTA Insider, Senior Writer Courtney Nguyen
@CinyTennis – official tournament handle
Get involved in conversations with the official hashtags, #CincyTennis and #WTA.

TOURNAMENT NOTES:
· Serena Williams bids to win a third straight Cincinnati title after accepting a late wildcard. She is the only player in the Open Era to win multiple times at the event.
· Since the tournament’s return to the tour in 2004, there have been 11 different winners of the tournament, although Serena is the only returning champion in the field this year. There are a couple of former runner-ups – Simona Halep (2015), Ana Ivanovic (2014) and Angelique Kerber (2012).
· The WTA’s current Top 5-ranked players are all in attendance: Serena, Kerber, Halep, Garbiñe Muguruza and Agnieszka Radwanska.
· Halep arrives on a 10-match winning streak, having won her past two tournaments, in Bucharest and Montréal.
· Lucie Safarova and Andrea Petkovic could both register their 400th career win by reaching the second round and quarterfinals, respectively.
· For the full draw click here.

WILDCARDS:
Serena Williams (USA), Christina McHale (USA), Louisa Chirico (SVK)

WITHDRAWALS:
Sloane Stephens (right foot), Jelena Jankovic (right shoulder)

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil – No.2 seed Angelique Kerber is guranteed to win a medal at the Olympic tennis event; the Australian Open champion clinched her spot in the Gold Medal match with a 6-3, 7-5 victory over Madison Keys on Friday in the semifinals.

The highest ranked woman to reach the final four in Rio, Kerber came up against an in-form rival in Madison Keys, who has taken her to three sets in two of their last three encounters – beating her to win the 2014 Aegon International in Eastbourne.

Hoping to become the first German woman to medal at the Olympic tennis event since idol Stefanie Graf, the World No.2 played contained tennis against her more aggressive opponent, hitting just two unforced errors in the first set alone to take the early initiative.

Madison Keys: 14 winners, 18 unforced errors.

Angelique Kerber: 1 winner, 1 unforced error.

Kerber leads *4-3. https://t.co/LBU8kSMjRn

— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) August 12, 2016

“It means a lot to be in the final right now,” she said after the match. “It wasn’t easy to be the next after Steffi to reach the final at the Olympics means a lot. It’s really special to be here today, and tomorrow in the finals.”

Keys became the first American to make her Top 10 debut since Serena Williams back in 1999 earlier this year, and wasn’t about to go down without a fight. Facing down the barrel of triple match point in the tenth game of the second set, Keys saved all three – a total of four by game’s end – to try and force a deciding set.

“She’s an unbelievably good player and she played really hard today. I was trying to move well, get the balls back and go for it when I had the chance. It wasn’t easy in the second set when I had four match points, but I managed to come back and focus again. It’s really special to be in the final now.”

Kerber saved two break points on her own serve to get back within striking distance of her first Olympic final – having fallen in the quarterfinals back in her London debut four years ago – and finally secured victory on her sixth match point. 

Standing between the German and a gold medal is Puerto Rico’s Monica Puig, another youngster in the midst of a career-best season. Puig became the first woman from her country to win a medal after upsetting No.11 seed Petra Kvitova in the other semifinal, and has knocked out quality opposition all week in Rio, including reigning French Open champion Garbiñe Muguruza.

“She’s played very good this week,” Kerber said when asked about her next opponent. “I know it’ll be a tough final, but I’ll try to enjoy it, go out and play my best tennis and, of course, win the next match. But Monica plays good and I’m ready for that.”

.@AngeliqueKerber will face @MonicaAce93 in the gold medal match after defeating Madison Keys 63 75 at #Rio2016 pic.twitter.com/7ruVKIroOF

— ITF Olympic Tennis (@OlympicsTennis) August 12, 2016

Puerto Rico’s Monica Puig is set to become Puerto Rico’s first women to win an Olympic medal as she advanced to the gold medal match with a three-set win over Petra Kvitova, 6-4, 1-6, 6-3.

As a result, Puig will become the first woman representing Puerto Rico to win an Olympic medal and has the chance to become the first athlete from Puerto Rico – man or woman – to win a gold medal.

#PicaPower, the world No.34’s rallying cry on social media, became a worldwide trending topic on Twitter following her victory.

Dreams come true when you work hard enough to get them! Going all the way! #JuegosOlimpicos #Tenis ?❤️?? #EquipoPUR pic.twitter.com/AI7QaVXKaT

— Monica Puig (@MonicaAce93) August 11, 2016

Entering the gold medal match, Puig has won a career-best 36 main draw matches in 2016, more than she won in the previous two seasons.

But perhaps most impressive… did Puig forecast her success in Rio back on July 27 when she shared with her Twitter following that she introduced “Rio Puig” to the Twitter-verse?

Meet the newest addition to my family! “Rio Puig” ? #NewBaby pic.twitter.com/hpdwKJGlG0

— Monica Puig (@MonicaAce93) July 27, 2016

While Puig will become the first woman representing Puerto Rico to win an Olympic medal, Gigi Fernandez, born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, won two gold medals in doubles for the United States playing alongside Mary Joe Fernandez in 1992 and 1996. Gigi was quick to join in the celebration.

MEDALLA. ??MEDALLA. ??MEDALLA ??para @MonicaAce93 y @PuertoRicoPUR ?????? POR FIN!!!! No puedo de la emocion!

— Gigi Fernandez (@gigifernandez) August 12, 2016

No matter what happens in Saturday’s Gold Medal match, we know Puig will have one fan firmly in her corner:

So some good news today though! Rio started puppy school and is doing a fantastic job!!!! Im a proud mama ❤️?? pic.twitter.com/Yb9RVzcPnK

— Monica Puig (@MonicaAce93) August 10, 2016

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil – A pair of Olympic debutantes will try to knock off two experienced southpaws with the Gold medal match on the line. It’s semifinal time at the 2016 Olympic Games! Chris Oddo breaks down the match-ups for wtatennis.com.

Friday, Semifinals

Centre Court
[11] Petra Kvitova (CZE #14) vs. Monica Puig (PUR #34)
Head-to-head: First meeting
Key Stat: Puig is bidding to become the first Puerto Rican tennis player to win a medal at the Olympic Games.

Talk about making the most of an Olympic debut! Puerto Rico’s Monica Puig has dropped just 14 games en route to a semifinal appearance at Rio, and on the way the 22-year-old notched a career-best win in terms of ranking when she drubbed World No.4 Garbiñe Muguruza, 6-1, 6-1. Puig is riding an emotional high in Rio that she says is unlike any other. “It’s for my country, and I think nothing in the world can compare to that,” she told the Associated Press after defeating Germany’s Laura Siegemund in straight sets on Thursday. “It’s the most special feeling when you put on the colors of your country and you’re walking around the Olympic Village and everybody looks to see your country on the back of your shirt.” Puig will no doubt be inspired on Friday when she faces Petra Kvitova for a spot in the Gold medal round, but Kvitova is a woman who knows a thing or two about playing for national pride as well. The Czech has ably led her nation to four Fed Cup titles and she will look to add an Olympic medal to her fine international resumé when she faces Puig for the first time on Friday. Though it has been an up and down year for Kvitova, she has been in menacing form at Rio and looks primed to reassert herself as one of the dominant forces in tennis. Will Puig be able to ride the emotional wave past Kvitova, or will the legendary southpaw stay hot and break through to her first final of 2016?

Pick: Kvitova in three

[2] Angelique Kerber (GER #2) vs. [7] Madison Keys (USA #9)
Head-to-head: Kerber leads, 4-1
Key Stat: Keys has lost all three of her previous matches against Kerber on a hardcourt.

With Serena Williams out of the draw in Rio, No.2 seed Angelique Kerber has stepped in with confidence to book her spot in the last four, but she’ll have to pass her most difficult test of the Olympic Games if she is to reach the Gold medal match. Standing in Kerber’s way on Friday will be the daunting American Madison Keys, a player that has done nothing but impress since late spring. The 21-year-old has gone 25-4 since early May, playing finals in Rome and Montréal while winning the title in Birmingham. On Thursday she blitzed Russia’s Daria Kasatkina, finishing with 30 winners to just four for Kasatkina. Will Keys be able to achieve the same level of dominance against the fleet-footed, feisty Kerber? Unlikely, but Keys’ current form says that she is in this battle with a good chance to win. Though she has lost two in a row to the World No.2 she does own a win over Kerber and took the German to three sets in a wildly entertaining Charleston final in 2015. This semifinal promises to be a thrilling encounter of stylistic opposites. Kerber, the gritty, indefatigable counterpuncher, versus Keys, the scout’s dream with power to burn and a penchant for attacking. Who will emerge victorious?

Pick: Kerber in three

Around the grounds…
Women’s doubles will also be taking center stage on Friday in Rio as both semifinals are slated for Court No.2. The No.5 seeds, Martina Hingis and Timea Bacsinszky of Switzerland, will face the No.6 Lucie Hradecka and Andrea Hlavackova of the Czech Republic, while unseeded Lucie Safarova and Barbora Strycova square off with the seventh-seeded Russian pairing of Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina.

World No.1 Serena Williams has taken a wildcard into next week’s Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati, a Premier 5 event.

The two-time defending champion has a 10-match win streak in Cincinnati and will be making her eighth appearance at the tournament where she holds a 21-4 match record. Serena enters the event looking to rebound from a disappointing early exit from the Olympics in Rio, where she lost in the third round to Elina Svitolina.

Having played only three matches since winning Wimbledon in July, Serena will look to return to form as she continues to prepare for the US Open, where she has a chance to break the Open Era record for Slam singles titles by winning her 23rd major.

Also on the line for Serena next week: The No.1 ranking.

Current World No.2 Angelique Kerber has a chance to end Serena’s 183-week reign at No.1 at Cincinnati, however, it will not be an easy task. Kerber, who is still in Rio de Janiero at the Olympic tennis event, would need to win the title at the Western & Southern Open in order to do so.

With Serena accepting the wildcard, she can extend her stay at No.1 through US Open if she makes the quarterfinals, regardless what Kerber does.

Kerber is trying to become the first German to reach No.1 since her idol Stefanie Graf and would be the third left-handed player to hold the No.1 ranking (along with Martina Navratilova and Monica Seles).

Main draw play at the Western & Southern Open begins on Monday, with the top 16 seeds receiving a bye into the second round. The draw ceremony will be held on Friday, August 12, at 5:30pm local time.

SHE'S BACK.

2-time defending champ @serenawilliams returns to #CincyTennis after receiving a WC into the main draw. pic.twitter.com/1rNIEvHaok

— W&S Open (@CincyTennis) August 11, 2016