WTA Brisbane, Shenzen, and Auckland Round-Up: Azarenka, Stephens and Radwanska Claim Titles Niall Clarke, Tennis Atlantic
The new season is officially underway and i the opening week the WTA crowned three champions in Brisbane, Shenzhen and Auckland respectively, Amongst the tennis there was some big injury withdrawals. Simona Halep, Maria Sharapova and Petra Kvitova are just a few names that either failed to take to the court or complete their first match-up of the season.
That did not stop the players from putting on some great tennis action to get us going for 2016. Here is a recap of what happened in the WTA this week.
Perhaps the most stand-out performer of the week was former world number one Azarenka. The Belarusian stormed through her draw to get 2016 off to the perfect start with a Premier title.
Azarenka looked more like her old self, dictating play from the baseline and being as feisty as ever. Despite dominating her opponents all week, the two time Australian Open champion saved her best tennis until the final.
The former world number one hit 23 winners and only nine unforced errors as she cruised past Angelique Kerber in Saturday’s final 6-3, 6-1.
The win marked Azarenka’s 18th career title, but it was her first for two and a half years after injury struggles in recent seasons.
“Congratulations to Angelique and thank you for pushing me – you always push my limits. I hope we get to play more matches soon and good luck the rest of the year.” Azarenka said in her post match interview.
“Every time I play in front of this crowd I couldn’t be happier.
“My dreams come true whenever I step on the court, and I want to thank you all for showing up, motivating us so much and inspiring us so much.”
With her performance this week, the Belarusian has established herself as a huge threat for the Australian Open.
Across in New Zealand America’s Sloane Stephens picked up her second career WTA title after pulling double duty on Saturday. Due to the rain on Friday, the fifth seed was forced to continue her semi final match-up with Caroline Wozniacki on Saturday with a 5-2 first set lead. Despite the delay to her momentum, Stephens picked up where she left off the previous day, rounding off the victory 6-2, 7-6(3).
Still on a high from her semi final victory, the world number 30 went on to defeat Germany’s Julia Goerges 7-5, 6-2 despite the German being fresher of the two players. The key was her dominance on serve, holding in all 10 of her service games and only facing two break points.
“You can never prepare for playing a set and then rain, then finishing the match the next morning and coming back again in the afternoon. You just have to keep going and do your best,” Stephens said.
“Julia had been playing some really great tennis all week, but I knew if I just kept playing solid I could do it. I was pleased the way I was able to pull myself together and come back and play well.
“Just kind of going with the flow – that was pretty much it. Pretty basic.”
Despite having enormous talent, Stephens has failed to kick on since her breakthrough run to the Australian Open semi finals in 2013. After claiming her first title in Washington last year and adding to her collection here, will 2016 be the year Sloane finally enters the elite?
“We have a really long season – I have to play all the way until October – so to win a tournament in the first week of the year is amazing,” Stephens added. “But I’m going to have many more opportunities throughout the year, and I’m looking forward to all of them. It’s easier to look at it that way.”
Agnieszka Radwanska capped off her ranking climb to number four in the world by capturing the Shenzhen title.
After finishing 2015 in perfect fashion with victory at the WTA finals, the Pole started the new just the same. Radwanska played almost flawless tennis as she dispatched every opponent including the eventual runner-up Alison Riske.
It took the new world number four only one hour and 16 minutes to claim a 6-3, 6-2 victory over the American on Saturday.
I think Alison was really playing solid tennis today,” Radwanska said in her post match interview. “She has a very powerful game from the baseline – I was really struggling from the baseline. I was really in a lot of trouble there.
“But my serve really helped me today. Also in the deciding points I was a little bit better, and I think that’s why the score was the way it was – it made it look easier than the actual match was.”
It was Radwanska’s 18th career title, but more importantly she has passed Maria Sharapova in the rankings to earn a top four seeding at the Australian Open, meaning she avoids Serena Williams, Simona Halep and Garbine Muguruza before the semi finals.
The qualifying competition for the men’s ASB Classic encountered a problem before proceedings got underway. Last week the organizers admitted that they was short of participants for the 16-player draw. Fortunately the crisis was resolved with the additional of five alternate players.
Headlining the field was world No.66 Robin Haase. 2016 is the fifth year that Haase has competed at the tournament but he has only been able to win one main draw match at the event (2011 against John Isner). In the first round of qualifying he faced American doubles specialist Eric Butorac. Despite playing in his first singles match since May, Butorac started the match well with a 3-1 lead before Haase battled back to win 6-4, 7-5 in less than an hour.
In the final round Haase faced fifth seed Duck-hee Lee. The South Korean enjoyed a easy first round encounter against Colombian doubles specialist Robert Farah Maksoud, winning 6-1, 6-2. Last year Hee claimed five Futures titles. Haase proved too strong for Lee as he won 6-1, 6-3, after only 45 minutes on the court.
Another Dutch triumph in Auckland occurred for Thiemo de Bakker. De Bakker opened up his campaign with a 6-2, 6-2, win over Australia’s Greg Jones. After grabbing his opening win, Bakker faced Croatian seventh seed Mate Pavic. Pavic defeated 2011 French Open doubles finalist Juan Sebastián Cabal (6-2, 6-4) in his opening match. It was a tough start to his final match after Bakker dropped the first set in exactly 30 minutes. Despite the slow start, the Dutchman battled back to win 4-6, 6-2, 6-3. Bakker, who is a regular feature on the Challenger tour, will now be bidding to win his first main draw match on the ATP World Tour since the Rio Open in February last year.
World No.299 Matthew Barton will play in his first ATP World Tour main draw after his duo of triumphs. In the opening round Barton played Australian compatriot Artem Sitak. Sitak is a doubles specialist ranked 43rd in the world. Sitak proved troublesome for Barton during the first set before he dominated the second set to win 7-6(8), 6-0. It was expected that Barton would experience a tricky second match against second seed Denis Kudla. Kudla defeated Trey Huey in straight sets during his first match. Incredibly Barton trailed 2-0 at the start of the match before winning 12 consecutive games top stun the second seed 6-2, 6-0.
Finally Germany’s Benjamin Becker dropped only seven games during his qualifying campaign. In the first round, he dismissed alternative entrant Scott Lipsky 6-3, 6-1. Lipsky is best known for winning the 2011 French Open mixed doubles title with Casey Dellacqua. Then in the second round he played South African-born Brit Cameron Norrie. Norrie achieved a career ranking high of 637th in 2014. The inexperienced Brit was no match for Becker as the German took the match 6-1, 6-2, in under an hour.
Barton opens against American Steve Johnson, Haase has a winnable match against dirtballer Pablo Andujar, De Bakker faces another Spaniard, Albert Ramos, and Becker will face his countryman and Davis Cup teammate Philipp Kohlschreiber.
2016 ATP Auckland Preview and Predictions Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic
The remaining pair of ATP 250 warm-up tournaments prior to the Australian Open take place this week in Auckland, NZ, and Sydney, Australia. Both are on outdoor hard courts and feature fields that could lead to some surprising results.
ATP Auckland
ASB Classic
ATP World Tour 250
Auckland, New Zealand
January 11-January 17, 2016
Surface: Hard
Prize Money: $463,520
Top 4 seeds (who all receive first round byes) (ATP ranking in parentheses)
1: David Ferrer (7)
2: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (10)
3: John Isner (11)
4: Kevin Anderson (12)
Auckland has an improved field compared to last season with eight top 25 players, hopefully a strong field will continue to grow interest in tennis in NZ.
A battle of big servers likely to feature at least one tiebreak. Karlovic is making his 2016 debut after a strong 2015 season where he reached multiple quarterfinals or better on hard courts. The 36 year old continues to be a tricky opponent with his sidewinding serve. Pospisil lost last week in the opening round of Chennai and looks to do better here. The younger Canadian is likely to start 0-2 heading into the AO however, as Karlovic is a tough out.
(8)Roberto Bautista Agut vs. Jiri Vesely
The defending champion Vesely faces 2014 semifinalist Bautista Agut in this cracking hard court match. Vesely is unseeded but the 22 year old is nearly into the top 40 and 4x reached an ATP quarterfinal or better in 2015. The Czech slumped late last season, and looks to get back on track now after a 1-2 result in Hopman Cup singles. RBA reached the quarterfinals in Chennai and appears to be primed for another good week.
(6)Fabio Fognini vs. Joao Sousa
A gut check match for Fognini, who beat Sousa in China late last year. Fabio had a strong finish to last season on hard courts, displaying shotmaking prowess, but his talent has never been in doubt and his focus has continually been a disappointment. Fognini should be the favorite here, Sousa is a good attacking baseliner however, and reached a remarkable four ATP finals last year, capturing one title.
Four-time Auckland champion David Ferrer should be able to cruise to the quarterfinals past Steve Johnson/Matthew Barton, as Johnson dropped his opening match in Brisbane last week, and Barton is making his ATP debut after years on the challenger tour. Ferrer was shocked in Doha by Illya Marchenko, and could run into trouble in the quarterfinals if Benoit Paire can find form.
The Chennai semifinalist continues to rise. Paire should ride his backhand to a win over wild card Michael Venus, and then beat the Guillermo Garcia-Lopez/Lukas Rosol winner. Paire just beat Rosol in Chennai, where GGL was a quarterfinalist. Paire is 2-1 against GGL, but 0-3 against Ferrer. Having never faced him on a fast surface, I’m going with Paire’s form to upset Ferrer and reach the semifinals.
Kevin Anderson sustained a knee injury that forced him to withdrawal from Chennai and now he’ll have to defend semifinal points in Auckland. The South African is in for a tricky quarterfinalist test against the Karlovic/Pospisil winner, as long as he can brush off injury concerns to beat either Pablo Andujar or qualifier Robin Haase in round 2.
Anderson is 1-1 against Karlovic on hard courts, but given the knee concerns for Anderson, I have Karlovic reaching the semifinals. Karlovic/Pospisil faces Jack Sock/Victor Estrella in round 2. Sock struggled in Hopman Cup play for Team USA, he remains talented and rising, but his form is in question. Karlovic is 3-0 on fast surfaces against Sock.
Bottom Half:
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga went 19-8 in the summer and fall hard court seasons in 2015, after a slow start returning to tour from an injury. The Frenchman is back in the top 10, now as an experienced campaigner, and with his health back, the fan favorite should be able to continue his attacking brand of tennis into 2016. Tsonga is set to face a German in round 2, Benjamin Becker has qualified for both Doha and Auckland already this year, while Philipp Kohlschreiber remains a talented veteran, reaching an ATP quarterfinal or better more than a half dozen times, though he had erratic results as well. The 2008 Auckland champion should defeat Becker but fall to Tsonga, given the Frenchman’s dominant 8-0 h2h record.
Tsonga’s difficult section should continue in the quarterfinals. The Fognini/Sousa winner will be favored over either qualifier Thiemo De Bakker or Albert Ramos. Either could trouble Tsonga, but given his 3-0 h2h over Fognini, he should be the favorite to reach the semifinals.
Rounding out the semis should be two-time champion John Isner. The American #1 is bidding for the top 10 after a strong season on hard courts last year (a title, a final, and a masters semi). Isner will need to serve past either his good friend Sam Querrey, or Chennai semifinalist Aljaz Bedene in round 2. Querrey is capable of decent hard court results, while Bedene continues to show improvement but may be suffering from fatigue.
The RBA/Vesely winner is the likely quarterfinal opponent for Isner, with just Donald Young or local wild card Finn Tearney standing in their path round 2. Tearney is making his ATP debut, the former Pepperdine NCAA player has risen up the challenger ranks, while Young remains an unpredictable competitor.
Isner is 2-0 in the h2h against RBA, though both their matches went three sets. Isner should be the superior player and setup a semifinal meeting with Tsonga.
Like Vesely, Sock went just 1-2 in Hopman Cup singles, however he could find his way into the semifinals or better if he can get past Karlovic/Pospisil in round 2, and likely a hobbled Anderson in the quarters. Facing big servers is always a tough ask on hard courts, but Sock has the ground strokes to compete, and this looks to be a good year for him. I wouldn’t put it past the American to find form and impress this week.
Predictions
Semis Karlovic d. Paire
Isner d. Tsonga
Karlovic has a hard court h2h win over Paire, while Isner is 3-1 against Tsonga, and has winning history in Auckland. Ferrer or Paire could just as well reach the final, but I’m backing big servers.
Final Isner d. Karlovic
Karlovic leads Isner 2-1 on hard courts, but it’s a close matchup of players with similar styles. Expect tiebreaks, with Isner’s sweeping forehand against Karlovic’s net game. This sets up to be a good week for Isner, who opted to start the season in Auckland.
With the new season finally upon us, the WTA is hosting three tournaments to kick off 2016 in style. With tournaments in Brisbane and Shenzhen also taking place this week, the WTA goes to the island of New Zealand for the ASB Classic in Auckland.
The season opener started back in 1985 for the start of the 1986 season and has been a staple on the calendar ever since.
Previous champions include Marion Bartoli, Lindsay Davenport, Elena Dementieva, Jelena Jankovic, Agnieszka Radwanska, Ana Ivanovic and last year’s winner Venus Williams.
The ASB Classic
Tier: International
Location: Auckland, New Zealand
Surface: Hard
Prize Money: $226,750
Date: January 4th-10th 2016
All the seeds ranks inside the top 50 with three former grand slam champions and a former world number one set to compete.
First round matches to watch
(4) Svetlana Kuznetsova vs Mona Barthel
Kuznetsova had the misfortune of drawing the next highest ranked player outside of the seeds in the opening round, Mona Barthel.
The German is known as an underachiever, being blessed with plenty of talent but has seemingly been unable to translate it into the desired results. Kuznetsova on the other hand is a former grand slam champion but t 30 years of age, can she reproduce that form?
An interesting round one here with two inconsistent players which means it could go either way. Don’t be surprised to see the fourth seed flounder at the first hurdle.
There is an argument that the top players are potentially most vulnerable at the start of the season having not played for a few months. Can Kovinic take advantage and claim the scalp of the former world number one?
Wozniacki did not enjoy the best of 2015’s, finishing outside the top 10. But the former world number one must not be under-estimated. She is still one of the best defenders on tour and difficult to break down.
That is the task ahead of her 21 year old opponent who enjoyed her bests season to date in 2015. The Montenegrin almost broke the top 50 last year, and a win over Wozniacki will give her a huge confidence boost to start the season.
Draw Analysis
First Quarter: Top seed Venus Williams is back to defend her title after a small resurgence in 2015. The former world number one will kick her season off against Daria Kasatkina in the opening round. If the American predictably makes round two, she will face the winner of Mariana Duque Marino vs Nao Hibino. It would be a huge shock if Venus does not make the quarter finals.
Barbora Strycova’s 2015 did not go as planned as she surrendered her top 30 place to finish just inside the top 50. The Czech however enjoyed the Fed Cup success and will be hoping to translate that form into 2016. The seventh seed opens against a qualifier, but Lucie Hradecka or Julia Goerges could throw a spanner in the works in round two.
Second Quarter: Kuznetsova on the other hand will want to re-kindle old glory in 2016 after a respectable 2015 that saw her finish inside the top 30. The Russian has a difficult round one against Barthel with round two proving much easier for the winner against a semi retired Francesca Schiavone or a qualifier.
Coco Vandeweghe is one of the many Americans in the draw, but she is still searching for her major breakthrough. She made a good run at Wimbledon last year on a surface that suits her game but the courts here are slower, will that impact her effectiveness? It is an all American round one against Irina Falconi with Bethanie Mattek Sands likely for round two- Plenty for the American fans to enjoy.
Third quarter: Wozniacki lost her top 10 status in 2015 but her quest to regain her position amongst the elite starts in Auckland against Kovinic. If there aren’t enough Americans in the draw, Christina McHale is possible for round two against the winner providing she can defeat Misaki Doi.
Talented Belgian Alison Van Uytvanck is name that may be familiar due to her quarter final run at Roland Garros last year. However she has not built on that run, will 2016 be her time to break through? Van Uytvanck faces Alexandra Dulgheru in the opening round. Home favourite Marina Erakovic or Yulia Putintseva await the winner.
Fourth Quarter: Like Wozniacki, Ana Ivanovic lost her top 10 status last year, finishing 15th in the world. The Serbian will kick off her 2016 season against a qualifier before meeting Jelena Ostapenko or Joanna Larsson- a good draw for the second seed Sloane Stephens completes the American line up for Auckland as the fifth seed. She only has one title to her name, can she add a second here? Stephens opens against Hercog before meeting the winner of Witthoeft vs Maria. A decent little section here.
I have gone for the defending champion again. Williams showed superb form at the end of the season and won the title last year for a reason. A good run for Barthel to the semi finals too with Ivanovic being the defeated finalist.
It was a tremendous week for young gun Jiri Vesely in Auckland, the Czech qualified without dropping a set (wins over Thomas Fabbiano and Lucas Pouille), and then beat Thomaz Bellucci, top 15 player Ernests Gulbis (in 3 sets), Donald Young, Kevin Anderson, and finally Adrian Mannarino in the final 6-3 6-2 to win his maiden ATP title. Neither Vesely nor Mannarino had ever contested an ATP final, and it was a new experience for them both, that said the 21 year old Vesely is the player that fans are most excited about, as he is making his move and has now broken into the top 40 in the world. It will be interesting to watch what he does this season.
Mannarino had a great week as well, he will be at a career high ranking inside the top 40 when the new rankings come out. The eclectic Frenchman beat Federico Delbonis, an ill Roberto Bautista Agut, and lucky loser Alejandro Falla without dropping a set, then he defeated another lucky loser, Pouille, in the semis to reach the final, needing three sets as the two traded winners in an exciting match. The draw was entirely blown up in Auckland this week, but the tennis was still exciting, and it’s nice to see some lesser known names have great results at the ATP level.
Raven Klaasen and Leander Paes won the doubles title over Dominic Inglot and Florin Mergea.
Viktor Troicki continued his admirable comeback, and captured his second career ATP title in Sydney. The title is his first since 2010 and he was contesting his first final since 2011. The Serbian beat fellow qualifier Mikhail Kukushkin who was contesting just his third career ATP final. With the 6-2 6-3 victory over Kukushkin in the battle of a qualifiers Troicki has very nearly returned to the top 50 in a short span of time since his comeback to the tour, and he is a motivated, tenacious player at this point in his career, having found renewed spark and fire.
Troicki qualified with wins over Enrique Lopez-Perez, Nicolas Jarry and Stefano Travaglia. In the main draw he upset Martin Klizan, and then needed three sets to oust Pablo Andujar and Simone Bolelli. He beat Gilles Muller, another comeback king, to reach the final.
Kukushkin beat Christopher O’Connell, Denis Kudla and JP Smith to qualify, then beat Denis Istomin, Pablo Cuevas, Juan Martin Del Potro and Leonardo Mayer without dropping a set to reach the final. Kukushkin has never been able to have consistently sustained success in his career, but he is a talented player and perhaps he can have a career year this year.
Rohan Bopanna and Daniel Nestor beat Jean-Julien Rojer/Horia Tecau to win a much more predictable doubles final.
Round 2 Matches: Robredo vs. Gonzalez, Ramos vs. Lu, Bautista Agut vs. Mannarino, Falla vs. Giraldo, Johnson vs. Coric, Thiem vs. Anderson, Garcia-Lopez vs. Young, Vesely vs. Gulbis Quarterfinals: Robredo vs. Lu, Bautista Agut vs. Giraldo, Johnson vs. Anderson, Garcia-Lopez vs. Gulbis Semifinals: Lu vs. Bautista Agut, Johnson vs. Gulbis Final: Bautista Agut vs. Johnson Champion: Bautista Agut
Chris de Waard’s predictions
Round 2 Matches: Robredo vs. Gonzalez, Lorenzi vs. Lu, Bautista Agut vs. Mannarino, Falla vs. Giraldo, Johnson vs. Coric, Thiem vs. Anderson, Garcia-Lopez vs. Young, Bellucci vs. Gulbis Quarterfinals: Robredo vs. Lu, Bautista Agut vs. Giraldo, Coric vs. Thiem, Young vs. Gulbis Semifinals: Robredo vs. Bautista Agut, Coric vs. Gulbis Final: Bautista Agut vs. Gulbis Champion: Gulbis
Courtney Massey’s predictions
Round 2 Matches: Robredo vs. Gonzalez, Lorenzi vs. Lu, Bautista Agut vs. Mannarino, Falla vs. Giraldo, Johnson vs. Coric, Thiem vs. Anderson, Garcia-Lopez vs. Young, Bellucci vs. Gulbis Quarterfinals: Robredo vs. Monaco, Bautista Agut vs. Giraldo, Coric vs. Thiem, Soeda vs. Gulbis Semifinals: Robredo vs. Bautista Agut, Coric vs. Gulbis Final: Bautista Agut vs. Gulbis Champion: Gulbis
Niall Clarke’s predictions
Round 2 Matches: Robredo vs. Gonzalez, Lorenzi vs. Lu, Bautista Agut vs. Delbonis, Falla vs. Giraldo, Johnson vs. Coric, Thiem vs. Anderson, Garcia-Lopez vs. Young, Bellucci vs. Gulbis Quarterfinals: Robredo vs.Lu , Bautista Agut vs. Giraldo, Johnson vs. Thiem, Garcia-Lopez vs. Gulbis Semifinals: Robredo vs. Bautista Agut, Thiem vs. Gulbis Final: Bautista Agut vs. Gulbis Champion: Bautista Agut
Jeff McMillan’s predictions
Round 2 Matches: Robredo vs. Gonzalez, Lorenzi vs. Lu, Bautista Agut vs. Mannarino, Falla vs. Giraldo, Johnson vs. Coric, Thiem vs. Anderson, Garcia-Lopez vs. Young, Bellucci vs. Gulbis Quarterfinals: Robredo vs. Lu, Mannarino vs. Giraldo, Johnson vs. Anderson, Young vs. Bellucci Semifinals: Lu vs. Giraldo, Anderson vs. Young Final: Lu vs. Anderson Champion: Anderson
RBA and Gulbis appear to be relatively consensus picks to do well this week, perhaps we will get another rivalry matchup between the two in the final, in addition Borna Coric, Rendy Lu and Tommy Robredo are favored to have good weeks.
Round 2 Matches: Fognini vs. Del Potro, Istomin vs. Almagro, Benneteau vs. Pospisil, Janowicz vs. Becker, Querrey vs. Muller, Tomic vs. Kohlschreiber, Klizan vs. Nieminen, Bolelli vs. Goffin Quarterfinals: Del Potro vs. Istomin, Pospisil vs. Janowicz, Muller vs. Tomic, Klizan vs. Goffin Semifinals: Istomin vs. Pospisil, Tomic vs. Klizan Final: Pospisil vs. Klizan Champion: Pospisil
Chris De Waard’s predictions
Round 2 Matches: Fognini vs. Stakhovsky, Istomin vs. Almagro, Benneteau vs. Pospisil, Kyrgios vs. Mayer, Chardy vs. Groth, Tomic vs. Kohlschreiber, Klizan vs Andujar, Bolelli vs. Goffin Quarterfinals: Stakhovsky vs. Almagro,, Pospisil vs. Kyrgios, Chardy vs. Tomic, Klizan vs. Goffin Semifinals: Almagro vs. Kyrgios, Tomic vs. Goffin Final: Kyrgios vs. Goffin Champion: Goffin
Courtney Massey’s predictions
Round 2 Matches: Fognini vs. Stakhovsky, Istomin vs. Cuevas, Benneteau vs. Seppi, Kyrgios vs. Becker, Chardy vs. Groth, Tomic vs. Kohlschreiber, Klizan vs. Nieminen, Matosevic vs. Goffin Quarterfinals: Stakhovsky vs. Istomin, Seppi vs. Kyrgios, Chardy vs. Tomic, Klizan vs. Goffin Semifinals: Istomin vs. Kyrgios, Chardy vs. Goffin Final: Istomin vs. Chardy Champion: Chardy
Niall Clarke’s predictions
Round 2 Matches: Fognini vs. Stakhovsky, Istomin vs. Almagro, Benneteau vs. Seppi, Kyrgios vs. Mayer, Chardy vs. Groth, Tomic vs. Kohlschreiber, Klizan vs Nieminen, Matosevic vs. Goffin Quarterfinals: Fognini vs. Almagro, Benneteau vs. Kyrgios, Chardy vs. Kohlschreiber, Klizan vs. Goffin Semifinals: Fognini vs. Kyrgios, Kohlschreiber vs. Goffin Final: Kyrgios vs. Goffin Champion: Goffin
Jeff McMillan’s predictions
Round 2 Matches: Fognini vs. Del Potro, Istomin vs. Almagro, Benneteau vs. Seppi, Kyrgios vs. Mayer, Chardy vs. Groth, Tomic vs. Kohlschreiber, Klizan vs Andujar, Matosevic vs. Goffin Quarterfinals: Fognini vs. Istomin, Seppi vs. Mayer, Groth vs. Tomic, Klizan vs. Goffin Semifinals: Istomin vs. Seppi, Tomic vs. Goffin Final: Istomin vs. Goffin Champion: Goffin
Three of our five experts have David Goffin winning the title this week, while opinions are mixed on Denis Istomin, Nick Kyrgios and Vasek Pospisil among others, it’s a week before a slam and this tournament has a wide open field.
everyone had perfect semis except Jeff, while Chris outdid Courtney in the early rounds and given the fact they both had Federer as champion, they finished 1/2 in Brisbane this week. Shout out to Courtney for picking Duckworth over Simon in a big upset no one else picked.
Steen finished first and Jeff finished second because they were the only two who had Berdych in the final, Steen had Ferrer in the semis and that was the difference.
Chennai 1: Niall (104 points) (+250 overall)
2: Courtney (102 points) (+150 overall)
3: Steen (72 points) (+90 overall)
4: Chris (62 points) (+90 overall)
5: Jeff (60 points) (+45 overall)
Having Wawrinka as the champ and RBA in the semis made the difference for Niall as he won the Chennai tournament this week. Courtney also had Wawrinka as the champ and outpaced the rest of the field, with the difference between the top two being the fact Niall did one pick better in round 2.
Chris and Steen both took titles and got semifinal points in two other tournaments, which puts them out in the lead, while Courtney getting final points from two events puts her in third. A dual champion could add 500 points to their total this week.
WTA Recap: Sharapova, Halep & Venus Open Their 2015 Accounts With Titles Niall Clarke, Tennis Atlantic
The opening week of the new WTA season has now concluded, and it didn’t disappoint. There were plenty of shocks, drama and quality tennis to fill the appetite of any fan of this great sport. Let’s take a look at what went on in week one.
Maria Sharapova started her 2015 campaign in the perfect way by claiming the Brisbane title. The Russian came from a set down to defeat number two seed Ana Ivanovic 6-7,6-3,6-3. Sharapova undeniably is one of the best fighters on tour, and Saturday’s final proved that to its fullest. Despite not playing her best, the 5 time Grand Slam champion managed to pull the victory out of the bag despite being a set down. How many times have we seen that before? The run up to the final was fairly easy for Sharapova, who didn’t drop more than four games in a match before her meeting with Ivanovic. Her title win in Brisbane continues her great streak of winning a title every year since 2003, an impressive stat indeed. Sharapova will go into the Australian Open in good form and confidence, where she’ll hope to win her 6th Grand Slam crown. Judging by her form this week, that could very well happen.
It would be unfair to not mention the efforts of Ana Ivanovic, who did just as much as her opponent to make the final an entertaining and dramatic spectacle. The Serbian never gave up the fight, coming back from a break down to win the first set, and saving championship points before eventually losing the match. Despite the loss, the 2008 Roland Garros champion should be in good spirits heading into the Australian Open. The Serbian will be looking for a deep run in Melbourne, with the potential of going all the way.
In the doubles, Martina Hingis and Sabine Lisicki defeated Caroline Garcia and Katarina Strebotnik 6-2,7-5 in the final. That’s their second title together.
WTA Shenzhen Embed from Getty Images
Simona Halep became the first player not named Li Na to win the Shenzhen open. The Romanian survived the early round scare by Annika Beck, and from then on looked ominous on her way to the title. Halep didn’t drop a set after losing the first in her opening round match, and didn’t face a break point in the final. The world number two defeated eighth seed Timea Bacsinszky 6-2,6-2 in just over an hour, despite feeling a bit sick in the build up to the match.
Winning the Shenzhen title historically has had a good bearing on the Australian Open. Li Na made the final in 2013 after winning the inaugural event, and in 2014 the Chinese star went all the way after winning her second straight Shenzhen title. It bodes well for Simona Halep, who will go into the first grand slam of the year as one of the favourites.
Runner up Timea Bacsinszky can be proud of her efforts in Shenzhen despite being completely outplayed in the final. The Swiss upset number two seed Petra Kvitova in the semi finals in straight sets, denying us a first seed vs second seed final. The 25 year old has been as high as 37 in the world rankings, and on the back of a good week here she’ll move up to number 38 in the world. Chances are Bacsinszky will achieve a career high ranking sooner rather than later.
In the doubles, Ukrainian pair, Lyudmyla Kichenok and Nadiia Kichenok defeated China’s Liang Chen and Wang Yafan, 6–4, 7–6(8–6) to win the title.
Many people are questioning whether 2015 will see the end of Venus Williams’ tennis career, but judging by the former world number one’s performances in Auckland, there is plenty of juice still left in the tank.
Venus was dominant on the road to the final, not dropping a set and handing out enough bagels to set up a bakery. Her biggest challenge stood in the form of Caroline Wozniacki in the final. The first set saw Venus struggle with the conditions which meant she hit a lot of unforced errors. Wozniacki remained aggressive yet consistent to take it 6-2. The American picked her game up in the second, and Caro started to fade. The third was the closest set of the lot, but The American stayed strong on serve to take the match 2-6, 6-3, 6-3 and improved her head to head advantage over the Dane to 6-0. This was the perfect warm up for Melbourne for Venus Williams, who in this form will be a dark horse to go deep in the competition.
Caroline Wozniacki had a good run, but never really asserted any dominance during the week. She made many uncharacteristic mistakes in the final, and didn’t serve very well. The former world number one will have to improve her performance if she wants to go deep in Melbourne. Wozniacki will look to use the Sydney tournament to build up some better form for the Australian Open.
Overall, a good first week of the season. Halep and Sharapova began their quest for the year end number one spot, whilst Venus showed she isn’t finished just yet. Let’s see what Sydney and Hobart bring as the Australian Open build up continues.
2015 ATP Sydney and Auckland Preview and Predictions Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic
The week before the Aussie Open, the final ATP tuneups will take place at 250 level events in Sydney and Auckland, and both hard court tournaments are up for grabs with a lot of rising players and second tier names gunning for ATP ranking points and a coveted ATP title, additionally, Nick Kyrgios, Juan Martin Del Potro, Nicolas Almagro, Ernests Gulbis, and more are making their 2015 debuts.
ATP Sydney
2015 ATP Sydney Preview
Apia International Sydney
ATP World Tour 250*
Sydney, Australia
January 12-January 17, 2015
*denotes joint ATP/WTA event
Top 4 seeds (ATP ranking in parentheses) 1: Fabio Fognini (19)
2: David Goffin (22)
3: Philipp Kohlschreiber (24)
4: Julien Benneteau (25)
A very balanced field in Sydney this week, none of the seeds are super formidable, so the unseeded players have great chances at putting up good results.
Juan Martin Del Potro is making (yet another) long awaited return in Sydney, hoping that his wrists and all his over physical ailments are sorted out as he begins his effort to return to the top 10 and become a force on the ATP tour again. The tennis world has missed the tower of Tandil, and he has a winnable opening match against Sergiy Stakhovsky, Stako was crushed by Novak Djokovic after beating a no name wild card in Doha, and though he has had flashes of playing above his ranking, he’s a journeyman. It’s also worth noting JMDP is the defending champion, not that that really means much right now. This is an incredibly difficult match to predict but I have Del Po winning on a coin flip.
(6)Pablo Cuevas vs. Nicolas Almagro
Nicolas Almagro is another top player making his return from injury this week, he hasn’t played since the clay court season last year and he opens with dirtballer Pablo Cuevas, who is currently on a nine match win streak, though all those wins came on clay. Almagro got a couple of matches in at the Abu Dhabi exo, so he won’t be entirely rusty, and given this is hard courts, I have him advancing after shaking off some rust.
Andreas Seppi vs. Vasek Pospisil
Seppi found form and snuck into the semis in Doha, though he didn’t face any highly ranked opponents there while Pospisil is making his 2015 debut in Sydney. He went 19-23 in 2014 with an ATP semi and an ATP final as his best results. That said he spent part of the season hampered by a back injury, and his form picked up late in the year, he’s clearly a capable talent, and I feel Seppi may be somewhat fatigued going into this match, with that in mind, I have Pospisil evening up the h2h at 2-2 and winning this match. The hard courts in Sydney should suit the Canadian.
Nick Kyrgios vs. Jerzy Janowicz
Breakthrough star Nick Kyrgios will be making his home soil debut in Sydney against Hopman cup champion Jerzy Janowicz in a highly anticipated contest. Kyrgios has been hampered by a lingering shoulder injury that forced him to skip the Hopman cup, and his physical condition has question marks here, but that said the crowd will be behind him, and he always seems to play his best tennis when the bright lights are on. Kyrgios is favored and the Wimbledon quarterfinalist will have every chance of getting a win. That said, Janowicz is trying to reboot his results in 2015, after a relatively poor 2014, and he won’t roll over lightly, this is a hard match to pick, but I’m favoring the experienced Janowicz, as Kyrgios will likely need more time to adjust than he will.
Top seed Fabio Fognini is in awful form, he clowned around yet again in the Hopman Cup, and he finished 2014 in a slump as well. I have Fognini crashing out against Stakhovsky/Del Potro in his first match, and potentially we could see a Del Potro vs. Almagro quarterfinal in a battle of players returning to the tour. Standing in Almagro’s way, assuming he beats Cuevas, is a qualifier or Denis Istomin, Istomin didn’t do anything special in Doha as he was crushed by Tomas Berdych, but he is 3-0 in his career against Almagro, and that with the rust factor perhaps makes him a slight favorite to reach the quarters and meet Del Potro/Stakhovsky/Fognini. Given the rust factor I have Istomin through to the semis over Del Potro, but it’s anyone guess who will make the semis quite honestly.
Julian Benneteau fell to Thanasi Kokkinakis in the opening round of Brisbane, his poor showing means it appears he is likely to go against the Seppi/Pospisil winner, and that’s the result I have as well. Kyrgios/Janowicz are likely to await Pospisil/Seppi in the quarterfinals, Benjamin Becker, a grinder who fell to Simone Bolelli in Doha, is also in this section and opens with Leo Mayer, who much prefers clay. I have Pospisil over Janowicz in the quarterfinals in this section, JJ may be somewhat fatigued from the Hopman and they have never met before, but again this a very hard section to predict this early in the season with so few matches to judge players by.
Chennai semifinalist David Goffin has a great chance this week to do well, but he’ll need to defeat the dangerous shotmaker Simone Bolelli in round 2, assuming Bolelli defeats the struggling Marinko Matosevic in round 1. If Goffin beats Bolelli/Matosevic, Martin Klizan is likely to await in the quarters. Goffin has one h2h victory against Klizan at a challenger and the Slovak made the quarters in Brisbane, with wins over Alex Dolgopolov and Jurgen Melzer before losing to Grigor Dimitrov. Klizan-Goffin should be a great match as long as Klizan beats a qualifier and Pablo Andujar/Qualifier. It’s hard to predict but I have a hunch Klizan will overpower Goffin and reach the semis.
Philipp Kohlschreiber, who lost his opening match in Doha, will open with former Sydney champ Bernard Tomic or a qualifier, Tomic beat Sam Querrey and Thanasi Kokkinakis in Brisbane and made the quarterfinals, and with Kohli out of form, while Tomic will be motivated on home soil, the Aussie should advance to the quarters. He’s likely to face a big server at that stage, Gilles Muller, a Chennai quarterfinalist, faces Sam Groth, a Brisbane quarterfinalist, in the opening round, expect a lot of aces in that one and I have Muller facing Sam Querrey in round 2. Querrey is 3-1 in his career against his first round opponent Jeremy Chardy and is looking to bounce back from an early loss in Brisbane. Chardy lost to Grigor Dimitrov in round 2 of Brisbane. I have Muller over Querrey for a spot in the quarters, and then Tomic reaching the semis by defeating Muller.
Dark Horse: Vasek Pospisil
I have the Canadian number two taking the title this week, given how up in the air this tournament is. He has basically no points to defend after the Australian Open, until the Fall, given he struggled at that point last season, and will be looking to pad his ranking at events like this. I feel he’s due for his maiden ATP title.
Predictions
Semis: Pospisil d. Istomin
Klizan d. Tomic
Istomin has a h2h win against Vashy but I feel the Canadian is a better player right now, Klizan beat Tomic last year on clay, and again I feel like his form is better than the Aussie.
Heineken Open
ATP World Tour 250
Auckland, New Zealand
January 12-January 17, 2015
Top 4 seeds (who all receive first round byes) (ATP ranking in parentheses)
*1: David Ferrer (10) 2: Ernests Gulbis (13) 3: Roberto Bautista Agut (15) 4: Kevin Anderson (16)
*5: Tommy Robredo (17)
*Ferrer withdrew and Robredo takes over his seedline as the technical five but the proper number 1 seed.
Auckland had a strong field lined up but Doha champ Ferrer, along with defending champ John Isner, and the exciting Gael Monfils all pulled out before the start of the tournament, making this week a rather slim week on the ATP tour in terms of big names. Still, Auckland has plenty of second tier talent in the tournament field.
A pair of rising players will duel under the Auckland sun in this one. Thiem is opening his 2015 season, which will be his first as a regular top 40 ATP player, in New Zealand, while Struff comes off recording a solid victory over Philipp Kohlschreiber in Doha. He fell to Dustin Brown in the next round, which to some extent shows his inconsistency but the talent is there for both players in this matchup they just need to put it all together to be successful. Thiem is favored but Struff will have his chance, and this matchup is harder to predict than many expect, that said I favor Thiem in 3 sets.
Top Half:
Tommy Robredo now headlines the top of the draw, the Spaniard should face limited opposition in route to the quarterfinals, as his draw features a qualifier or Kiwi wildcard Michael Venus in round 2, and then most likely Rendy Lu, a quarterfinalist in Chennai, in the quarters. Lu opens with Juan Monaco, who won the doubles title in Doha with Nadal but has struggled mightily in singles for quite a while, and then is slated to face the winner of Albert Ramos/Paolo Lorenzi, who would both prefer to be playing on clay. Ramos can occasionally put together a decent showing but Lu should get through to the quarters as well, as he looks to defend his final points from last year. Robredo is 3-1 against Lu in his career and beat him last year but I’m going with Lu to make the semis in an upset, he has played well in Auckland before, he will clearly be motivated, and he has form going in, unlike Robredo who made three ATP finals last year, but failed to win one.
Roberto Bautista Agut, a semifinalist in Chennai, opens with Adrian Mannarino or Federico Delbonis in round 2, given Mannarino is the more comfortable hard court player and comes off a challenger semifinal showing on hard courts, he should get to round 2, but RBA is superior in that matchup and the Spaniard is on track for the quarterfinals. In the quarters, Santiago Giraldo is his most likely opponent, Santi had a great season by his normal standards in 2014 as he compiled a 32-27 overall record with an ATP final, three semis and a Masters quarterfinal as his best results. The shotmaking Colombian will face a qualifier, then a qualifier or Kiwi wild card Jose Statham in round 2. RBA beat Giraldo twice last year in straight sets, and he most likely will do so again, but if this matchup comes to fruition it will still be worth watching given the talented shotmaking and aggressive approaches of both players.
Bottom Half:
Ernests Gulbis opens his 2015 season in Auckland, the charismatic Latvian was 41-21 in 2014 with two ATP titles and a grand slam semi at the French as his best results, he performed well across surfaces, and that is why he’s now a regular top 15 player. Gulbis shouldn’t drop a set before the quarterfinals given his opposition is a qualifier or Thomaz Bellucci, a formerly top player who much prefers clay and similar to Monaco hasn’t put up a big result for quite some time now. His opposition in the quarters is most likely to be Donald Young or Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, GGL beat Young twice last year, and he comes off a decent run of form as he won a pair of matches and reached the quarters in Chennai. Garcia-Lopez will need to beat young Argentine dirtballer Diego Sebastian Schwartzman, and Young has a qualifier as his round one opposition. Young was 18-21 at the ATP level last year with one ATP semi as his best result. I see a Gulbis vs. Garcia-Lopez quarterfinal with Gulbis advancing. The h2h favors Ernie 2-1 but they haven’t met since 2013.
Kevin Anderson appears to be struggling as he was dumped by qualifier Lukasz Kubot in his opening match in Brisbane. He will face the Struff/Thiem winner, and if it is Thiem, he does have a 2-0 h2h with both matches taking place last season working in his favor. As a result, even though I don’t feel particularly confident I have Anderson through the quarters, with Thiem/Struff also having a great shot at posting the same result. The section above this one is the best in the draw, wild card Borna Coric, who beat Robin Haase in Chennai, will face Pablo Carreno Busta in round 1, and I have the youngster earning another ATP win given PCB much prefers clay. Steve Johnson, who played Kei Nishikori tough in Brisbane and also won a match there, will face off with Portugese number one Joao Sousa, the American should advance and face off with Coric in a battle of rising young players. Coric should test Johnson, but I feel he’s more battle tested, and his experience at the ATP level will win him the day, even if Coric has more natural talent and potential. This is a tough section with a lot of rising talent (Thiem/Struff/Johnson/Coric), and in my own bracket I have Johnson over Anderson (1-1 h2h in 2014) to reach the semifinals.
Anyone from that section full of rising talent I previewed above can be a dark horse this week, with the non-seeded Thiem, similar to the non-seeded Coric, getting the actual designation this week. I’m going with Thiem because he has more experience than Coric and he’s done well in ATP tournaments before (finalist in Kitzbuhel). If he can get past Struff, and reverse his poor h2h record against Anderson, which is entirely doable, he will have a winnable quarterfinal with Johnson or Coric, and a potential semifinal with his former mentor Gulbis. Ernie and Dominic know each other well and share coaching teams, so it would almost be a battle of brotherly love, and given Gulbis can be inconsistent, that’s also a winnable match in a very open Auckland draw.
Predictions
Semis: Bautista Agut d. Lu
Johnson d. Gulbis
RBA just beat Lu in a quality quarterfinal contest in Chennai, and the result should be the same (I also favor him against Robredo). Gulbis would still likely be favored to make the final, but Johnson is 2-0 in his career against him with both wins coming on hard court. The American seems very motivated and has a great chance to at least reach his first ATP final, and potentially win his first ATP title this week in Auckland.
Final: Bautista Agut d. Johnson
RBA beat Johnson three times last year, and that’s why I have him down as the winner this week, there are at least six different players who could take the title this week depending on form and motivation and Bautista is my selection.
2015 WTA Auckland and Shenzhen Preview and Predictions Niall Clarke, Tennis Atlantic
Two other events will take place on the WTA tour this week to open the 2015 season, one in Auckland and the other in Shenzhen, China, as players gear up for the Australian Open by making their preparations all across Asia and Australia-Pacific.
2015 WTA Auckland Preview
WTA Auckland
A regular on the WTA calendar, the ASB classic has been part of the WTA season for the past 30 years, and the season opener for the past 20 years. The formation occurred when a gap in the marketplace was seen by Ari Hallenberg and Global Sports. They pitched the idea of an event in Auckland to Tennis New Zealand, and thus the ASB classic was created.
Previous champions include the likes of: Marion Bartoli, Lindsay Davenport, Elena Dementieva, Jelena Jankovic, Agnieszka Radwanska and the 2014 champion was Ana Ivanovic.
ASB Classic WTA International Series Auckland, New Zealand January 5-January 10, 2015 Prize Money: $250,000
Top 4 seeds (WTA ranking in parentheses) 1: Caroline Wozniacki (8)
2: Sara Errani (14)
3: Venus Williams (18)
4: Barbora Zahlavova-Strycova (25)
A fairly strong field of seeded players with the lowest ranked seed being number 42, Mona Barthel. With two former world number ones, and three young stars we have got an open field that promises excitement.
The home crowd favourite will no doubt be Marina Erakovic. The New Zealander finished a measly number 77 in the world in 2014, but picked up her form towards the end of the season. Her opponent is one of the WTA’s rising stars. 21 year old Puerto Rican, Monica Puig reached her highest ranking in 2014, but a poor end to the season saw her finish as world number 61. This will be one the hotly contested matches of round one, with Erakovic looking to please the home crowd. Puig will look to spoil the party and defeat her opponent and the crowd. Marina will want to keep the points short, and hold her serve, while Monica will want long rallies, and counter Erakovic. Expect a tight encounter here.
(7)Coco Vandeweghe vs. Roberta Vinci
The crafty Italian vs the big serving American will be one of the most intriguing matches in the season opener. The 23 year old New York native, Vandeweghe, had a career best season in 2014 which saw her reach her highest ranking of 38 and finish as the world number 39. She also won her first WTA tournament at the Topshelf Open. Across the court stands experienced Italian Roberta Vinci. The 31 year old finished at number 48 in the rankings last year, but has reached a career high of 11 in the world. Vinci’s slice will be a key shot in this match, and if Coco isn’t on form, it will trouble the American a lot. But if Vandeweghe plays at her full potential, Vinci might not be able to handle the big serve.
(2)Sara Errani vs. Daniela Hantuchova
Vinci’s doubles partner, Sara Errani has a stern test in her opening match in the form of Daniela Hantuchova. Daniela didn’t enjoy the best of seasons in 2014, finishing the year as world number 57. However if the Slovak can show any sign of the form that got her to number five in the world, she could very well upset the number two seed. Sara Errani is one of the steadiest players on tour. The former Roland Garros finalist has great movement and rarely makes an error. However, she lacks the firepower to dictate a match which often leaves the result in her opponent’s hands. If Hantuchova can be aggressive and consistent she can upset Errani, but that is a big if.
Top Half:
Caroline Wozniacki is the number one seed and favourite to win the tournament. The former world number one drew lucky and will face a qualifier in round one. The consistent Dane will likely cruise to a quarter final clash with Svetlana Kuznetsova. Caro will most likely prove to be too good for the former grand slam champion and should advance from this quarter.
The second quarter is an interesting one. Any one of the eight players could realistically make the semi-finals with a good run. The Favourite will be number four seed, Barbora Zahalova-Strycova. The 28 year old should pass her first round test, Chanelle Scheepers and meet either Erakovic or Puig in the second round. Both players could cause big problems for the Czech, but Strycova is coming in off her best season to date. You’d expect the other quarter finalist to be one of: Roberta Vinci, Coco Vandeweghe and Kirsten Flipkens. All three are capable of a good run here, but it’s a question of who can find their form in time. I believe Strycova will advance from this section, but I wouldn’t be shocked at all if it’s somebody else.
Bottom half:
Number three seed Venus Williams is one of the favorites to win the tournament. The former world number one should make it through her first two matches without much hassle but if the veteran is off her game, she could easily be upset by Kiki Bertens or Kurumi Nara. The Interesting part of this section is the potential Quarter Final opponents for Venus. Mona Barthel is the seeded player and favourite, but the German has shown lack of mental strength and consistency in the past, despite her enormous talent. The 24 year old is unpredictable, and could blow the competition away or just as easily slump to a first round defeat. The key match will be the second round where Kristina Mladenovic or Elena Vesnina will await the winner. Both currently sit outside the top 50 and will be looking to kick off their season in a positive way. I feel Barthel makes it, but loses to Venus Williams in a tight encounter.
Number two seed Sara Errani would probably be more favoured on clay, but the Italian is so consistent, she won’t give any of her opponents’ free points. Errani should make it through to the quarter finals with her toughest test likely to come in round one against Daniela Hantuchova. Her opponent at this stage will likely be Sloane Stephens. The highly touted American made her breakthrough in 2013, but failed to make any improvements last year. Once touted a future number one, Sloane will be looking to live up to that potential in 2015.
Wozniacki should have no trouble getting past BarboraZahalovaStrycova in the semi-finals. Venus and Sloane will have a tight semi-final, which teases us with the end result multiple times. I am going to predict Stephens in three sets to set up a final clash with Caro.
Final: Wozniacki d. Stephens
The two pre-tournament favourites will contest the final in Auckland.In the final we will see plenty of long rallies, but Wozniacki will do what she does best and wear her opponent down in two tight sets.
WTA Shenzen
2015 WTA Shenzen Preview
Shenzhen Open WTA International Series Shenzen, China January 4-January 10, 2015 Prize Money: $500,000
The Shenzhen Open is one of three events kicking off the 2015 season. It is also one of seven WTA events to be hosted in China this year. The inaugural event took place in 2013, with Li Na doing her home country proud by winning the tournament. The Chinese superstar returned in 2014 to defend her crown in an all Chinese final where she defeated Shuai Peng in straight sets. Unfortunately, Li Na won’t return to this event to defend her title once again as she has now officially retired from the game, meaning we will have a new champion at the Shenzen Open. It promises to be an exciting way to kick off the new season.
Top 4 seeds (WTA ranking in parentheses) 1: Simona Halep (3)
2: Petra Kvitova (4)
3: Shuai Peng (21)
4: Zarina Diyas (33)
First round matchups to watch:
(1)Simona Halep vs. Annika Beck
The world number three will kick off her season against young German Annika Beck in Shenzen. A lot of people will look at this and think it will be an easy win for the Romanian. They could be right, but they may also be in for a surprise. Beck offers a very solid game, and if Halep isn’t on her game right away, the number one seed may just get caught off guard. Look for lengthy rallies in this match between two solid baseliners.
(4)Zarina Diyas vs. Donna Vekic
Zarina Diyas enjoyed her best season to date in 2014, and the talented Kazakh doesn’t want stop right there. The 21 year old will face fellow youngster Donna Vekic in the first round of the Shenzhen open. The 18 year old has reached a career high of 65, so she will look to potentially break the top 50 for first time in 2015. This is a match-up you could very well be seeing more of in the future,so it will be good to familiarise with these two quickly.
The former grand slam finalist will return to face third seed and home country favourite Shuai Peng. This is perhaps the more interesting of the first round matches with the return of Vera Zvonareva being one of the hottest talking points amongst WTA fans watching this tournament. With the retirement of Li Na, Peng is now the Chinese number one and will have the weight of an entire nation on her shoulders in this event. We shall see if she can handle that pressure in Shenzhen.
Number one seed Simona Halep will be big favourite to emerge from the top half of the draw. If the Romanian is off form however, there are a few players that can upset the world number two. Simona will likely face tests from Annika Beck and Klara Koukalova on her way to the semi finals, but if Halep isn’t completely off form, she should get through this section
Number 4 seed Zarina Diyas will be favourite to advance from her quarter, but it won’t be easy. As well as youngster Donna Vekic, Diyas could face tests from the likes of Monica Niculescu. The crafty Romanian is a difficult test for anyone with her variety of shots, and could easily advance to the semi-finals. The potential quarter final between Diyas and Niculescu could be one of the matches to watch in Shenzhen.
The whole of China will be pinning their hopes on last year’s runner-up Shuai Peng to keep the title in the Middle Kingdom. She faces a stern test in the first round in Vera Zvonareva who could upset the number three seed. With the home crowd behind her, Peng should advance to the quarter finals at least here. Who will meet her there is anyone’s guess, with the talented Stefanie Voegele and number eight seed Timea Bascinzky potential adversaries. I expect Peng to make the semi finals here with the home crowd behind her.
Number two seed Petra Kvitova will fancy her chances of winning the title here, but first she must navigate her way through the bottom half of the draw.The Wild Card round one shouldn’t be a problem for the big hitting Czech who should really make the semi finals without much trouble. However, with her known ‘off days’ Petra could very well be upset by the likes of Bojana Jovanovski or Irina-Camelia Begu.
Predictions
Semis
Halep d. Niculescu
Kvitova d. Peng
The top two seeds will make the final here. Niculescu’s spin won’t be a problem for Halep, who wins this one in straight sets. Kvitova has her difficulties with Peng, who takes her the distance, but the big match experience of the Czech will be enough to see her through.
Final
Halep d. Kvitova
The final will be the one the most tennis fans will be anticipating. Haelp vs Kvitova has the potential to be one of the best matches of the year and we have only just begun! A clash of styles that could go either way, so I will solidly predict a three setter. Which player will win is a prediction I keep changing, but I am going to say Halep’s consistency wins her the title.
Big Men Del Potro and Isner ATP World Tour Champions This Week
ATP Sydney
Juan Martin Del Potro needed less than an hour to run Bernard Tomic out of the building, 6-3, 6-1 and capture his 18th ATP title. In the process, Tomic was denied being a repeat champion in Sydney. Though he played well this week overall, he simply did not show up in the final. JMDP progressively improved as the week went on.
The world number 5 Argentine had a tough opening match against Nicolas Mahut that went 3 sets. He also needed 3 sets against Radek Stepanek, before cleaning up his game and taking it to Dmitry Tursunov in the semis, 6-4, 6-2.
Tomic beat Marcel Granollers in straights with a bagel, Blaz Kavcic in 3 sets, and Alex Dolgopolov in straights. He also dispatched surprise semifinalist Sergiy Stakhovsky, a qualifier, in 3 sets in the semis in what was a very high quality match where both guys played well and with a few key points being altered here and there, the winner could have been different.
Nenad Zimonjic/Daniel Nestor beat Rohan Bopanna/Aisam-Ul Haq Qureshi in the doubles final.
ATP Auckland
John Isner won a very high quality match against first time ATP finalist Yen-Hsun Lu, 7-6, 7-6 to capture his second career ATP Auckland title. Isner, as usual, relied on his serve to carry him through and then played clutch tiebreak tennis twice to beguile the agile baseliner Lu. Lu played some of the best tennis of his career this week and the passing shots in this final were bananas.
Isner beat Lukas Lacko and Philipp Kohlschreiber in 3 sets and also needed 3 sets against Roberto Bautista Agut in the semis, where he pulled off a major comeback, as RBA choked up 6-3 with a break in the second.
Lu beat Igor Sijsling in straights, Bradley Klahn in 3 sets, Steve Johnson in straights and then pulled off a remarkable upset victory of David Ferrer 6-4, 7-6 in the semifinals. Lu took it to Ferrer, playing aggressively and also played a very clean match, keeping his error count down and pushing Ferrer around.
Julian Knowle/Marcel Melo beat Alex Peya/Bruno Soares in the doubles final.
