Giant Slayer @SabalenkaA Into @ConnecticutOpen Semis, Faces @JuliaGoerges Tomorrow Steve Fogleman, Tennis Atlantic
After yesterday’s long matches at the Connecticut Open in New Haven, things flew along at a brisker pace today. Julia Goerges became the first player to advance to the tournament’s semifinals with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Kate Makarova.
Aryna Sabalenka, 2018 Connecticut Open (Photo: Mike Renz for Tennis Atlantic)
Goerges will be a favorite but the five seed will have her hands full tomorrow with giant-killer Aryna Sabalenka on the other side of the net. Sabalenka, who has notched wins against Gavrilova and Sam Stosur this week, was unstoppable against lucky loser Belinda Bencic by a count of 6-3, 6-2.
The other two semifinalists will be decided in a matter of hours but I expect the field to be Georges, Garcia, Kvitova and the Giant Killer herself. Be very afraid, y’all.
New Top Tenner @JuliaGoerges Booked for 2018 @VolvoCarOpen
DANIEL ISLAND, S.C. – Germany’s Julia Goerges has committed to play the 2018 Volvo Car Open, just days after breaking into the WTA’s top 10 and reaching the semifinals in the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy. Goerges already won the ASB Classic earlier this year, where she defeated now World No. 1 and Australian Open champion Caroline Wozniacki in the final.
She joins Caroline Garcia, Johanna Konta, Sloane Stephens, Petra Kvitová, Madison Keys, Daria Kasatkina, Shelby Rogers and CiCi Bellis in the Charleston, South Carolina field. The Volvo Car Open will take place March 31 – April 8, 2018 at the Family Circle Tennis Center.
The 29-year-old’s 2017 season was highlighted with wins at the WTA Elite Trophy in Zhuhai and the Kremlin Cup in Moscow, where she beat current Volvo Car Open champion Kasatkina for the title. She also reached the finals in Washington, D.C., Bucharest and Mallorca and semifinals in Budapest and Auckland last year.
“Breaking into the top 10 has been a great accomplishment for me, and I feel that I’ve been playing some of the strongest tennis of my career recently,” said Goerges. “I’m really looking forward to returning to Charleston. It’s always a fun atmosphere there, and the level of competition is great.”
The 2018 Volvo Car Open will be the fifth time Goerges has competed in Charleston, but the first since 2014. She reached the quarterfinals of the tournament in 2011.
“The addition of Julia to our strong player field is very exciting for our tournament,” said Eleanor Adams, Volvo Car Open Tournament Manager. “Her dominance on the court lately makes for the tennis matches we all love to watch. An elegant but fierce competitor, I know our fans have missed watching Julia and we are excited to welcome her back”.
The nine-day Volvo Car Open is the largest women’s-only tennis tournament in North America, attracting an average of 90,000 attendees and more than 100 of the top singles and doubles tennis players.
Tickets for the 2018 Volvo Car Open are available now. Patrons can choose from individual tickets, ticket packages and travel packages. Ticket prices range from $25 for an individual session to $525 for the all-inclusive weeklong package. The Volvo Car Open is providing six special packages in 2018, each offering more tennis at a greater value. In addition, the PowerShares Series returns to the Volvo Car Stadium on April 7th. The men’s legends event features Andy Roddick, Mark Philippoussis, Tommy Haas and one additional player to be announced at a later date.
The Volvo Car Open is bringing back its popular Ace Club from 2017, an exciting membership program for box and ticket package holders. The Ace Club provides unparalleled amenities and benefits during the tournament. In addition, members have the option to receive access into the Ace Lounge, an exclusive hospitality marquee providing first-class accommodations including, live entertainment, air-conditioning, elevated food options and more.
CITI OPEN CHAMPION MAKAROVA AND WORLD NO.16 SEVASTOVA BRING STAR QUALITY TO QUALIFYING DRAW AT CONNECTICUT OPEN
Doubles wild card awarded to Genie Bouchard and Sloane Stephens
NEW HAVEN, Conn., August 8, 2017 – Citi Open champion Ekaterina Makarova and runner-up Julia Goerges will headline a qualifying draw full of players recapturing their best form and talented teenagers at the Connecticut Open presented by United Technologies, it was announced today by Tournament Director Anne Worcester.
Wimbledon doubles champion Makarova, who won her first singles title in more than three years after coming from behind to defeat Goerges in Washington DC, will be joined in the 48-player qualifying draw by 2017 Wimbledon semi-finalist Magdalena Rybarikova (Connecticut Open finalist in 2014) and World No.16 Anastasija Sevastova, who won her first title in seven years at this year’s Mallorca Open after retiring in 2013.
Other dangerous names include Czech Katerina Siniakova, who won her second title of the year defeating four-time Connecticut Open champion Caroline Wozniacki in the final of Bastad, and Bucharest champion Irina-Camelia Begu of Romania. On the home front, Americans Shelby Rogers, Christina McHale and Varvara Lepchenko will attempt to reach the main draw.
Nine Top 50 players, six of whom have won at least one WTA singles title this year, will compete in the top-quality qualifying competition of the WTA Premier event that begins on Friday, August 18 at the Connecticut Tennis Center at Yale. Tickets to the action on Friday and Saturday cost $7.
Also competing for a spot in the prestigious main draw are a bevy of talented teenagers, headlined by Japan’s Naomi Osaka, 19, and the Czech Republic’s Marketa Vondrousova, 18. Vondrousova began the season ranked outside the Top 400 before winning her first WTA title in Biel/Bienne and making her Top 100 debut.
Also in the mix are former teenage phenoms Ashleigh Barty and Donna Vekic plus rising stars Natalia Vikhlyantseva of Russia, France’s Oceane Dodin, and Brazil’s Beatriz Haddad Maia.
“Our qualifying draw is full of exciting players who have proven themselves on the biggest stages in tennis and future stars who are breaking through,” said Worcester. “Rybarikova, Makarova and Sevastova are all playing some of the best tennis of their careers while Vondrousova and Osaka are the new kids on the block. The top of women’s tennis is so competitive right now and the strength in depth of our qualifying draw proves that. For $7 a ticket on Friday and Saturday, fans will be in for a real treat.”
Worcester also announced a doubles wild card for crowd favorites Sloane Stephens and Genie Bouchard (both of whom are receiving singles wild cards), who paired up to reach the final of the Citi Open last week.
For the first time in its history, the tournament guaranteed a wild card for a member of the Yale University tennis team. The lucky recipient is 18-year-old Samantha Martinelli from Denver, Colorado. Martinell’s impressive junior career included winning the 2015 U-16 Asics Easter Bowl and the 2015 U-16 National Clay Courts Singles title, as well as being ranked as high as No.2 in the United States U-16.
Martinelli will join Grand Slam legend Martina Navratilova in a mixed doubles exhibition following the 7pm night session match on Monday, August 21. For one of the two sets, Navratilova will play mixed doubles with Cameron Lickle, a former captain of the United States Naval Academy tennis team, against his business partner, seven-time Grand Slam singles champion Mats Wilander and a WTA player to be named.
The second set will be a Yale extravaganza with Navratilova appearing with and against former Yale No.1 Marc Powers (class of ’13), Martinelli (’21) and Jeff Dawson (’09), a New HYTEs board member and another former top Bulldog. For more information about the 2017 Connecticut Open, to volunteer to be part of our team and to purchase tickets visit http://www.ctopen.org
or call 203-776-7331.
Your Washington Women’s Champion is Kate Makarova Steve Fogleman in Washington
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Today’s Citi Open women’s final between Ekaterina Makarova and Julia Goerges couldn’t be more evenly matched on paper, with two players born in 1988 who each hold two pro career titles, one premier and one international. And as it turns out, it was evenly matched on court too.
Makarova had the advantage of far more experience playing in the Washington’s hot hard courts, having competed at the Citi Open for 6 of the 7 years of the WTA events existence. Makarova had also beaten Goerges in straight sets in their only prior meeting at the 2015 Australian Open. And she beat her again today, with Makarova coasting to home in 3-6, 7-6(2), 6-0 victory for the D.C. title.
It was Goerges who came out swinging early and playing error-free tennis. But Makarova broke her early in the second set and we all thought it was going three. Goerges was patient from that point forward and managed to level the set at 5-all and tried to serve it out at 6-5. She failed and lost the tiebreak 7-2. Goerges hadn’t won a pro title in over 6 years, and her inability to seal the victory is a prime example of her difficulties in tough situations.
Although it was an entertaining final, you have to feel that Washington was an opportunity missed by the WTA and tournament organizers, who had counted on Halep in the final to bring some press to this side of the action. In the end, Makarova’s and Goerges’ back stories are good, but the women’s side really could have used some more juice in the final. There’s always next year.
After an exciting and dramatic two weeks at Wimbledon which saw Serena Williams complete the second ‘Serena Slam’, the WTA tour heads back to the clay for a pair of International events in Romania and Sweden.
The biggest news heading in to the weeks proceedings is the world number one’s participation in Bastad. She is the top seed in a draw that features Sam Stosur, Barbora Strycova and Mona Barthel. Just days removed from Wimbledon it is hard to see Serena taking this tournament too seriously, but we have seen before that the 33 year old does not even have to be at her best to win titles- Just look at the French Open.
If she does end up withdrawing then it could open the door for Strycova or Stosur to get their season’s on track by claiming the title. The Aussie is the second seed and will be looking for better results on the clay after a disappointing 6-2, 6-0 loss at Wimbledon to Coco Vandeweghe. Third seeded Strycova failed to defend her quarter final points at SW19 after a first round loss to Sloane Stephens. The Czech has dropped out of the top 30 as a result, so she will be looking to get back in to the seeding positions in time for the US Open.
A trio of Germans also find themselves seeded in this tournament. Carina Witthoeft will be looking to continue her good form after winning an ITF last week. The 20 year old will be gunning for her first WTA title this week. Tatjana Maria has made herself a main tour regular this season with some impressive results. She too will be looking for her first WTA title along with Witthoeft. Barthel has tasted that success, but the talented German has struggled with consistency. She has failed to really break through so maybe she can kick start a launch towards the top 20 with a title victory in Bastad?
The Bucharest field is slightly weaker, but still features former French Open finalist Sara Errani as the top seed. The Italian is just ranked inside the top 20 at the moment, but still has aspirations of once again making the top 10. A win a Bucharest will hold her in good stead.
Former doubles partner Roberta Vinci is still in decline though she will be hoping for another title run in Bucharest as the second seed. Third seed Monica Niculescu will be looking to build off an impressive run to the fourth round of Wimbledon when she hits the clay courts. The Romanian’s tricky slices are more suited to grass however.
Germany’s Julia Goerges and Annika Beck both have good shots at winning the title. Anna Schmiedlova has also proved herself to be a clay specialist and will be one of the title favourites. Alexandra Dulgheru and Tereza Smitkova complete the seeding line-up.
Yaroslava Shvedova will be a name to watch from qualifying as she will be hungry to get back in the top 100 after Wimbledon. Teliana Pereira is another name to look out for with the Brazilian showing excellent form on clay this year. She defeated Shvedova in Bogota earlier on in the year to capture the title.
Thiem, Querrey regain form with round 1 wins at Miami Open (Day 2 Recap) Esam Taha for Tennis Atlantic
Photo Credit: Esam Taha for Tennis Atlantic
The first round of the men’s main draw at the 2015 Miami Open presented by Itau, got underway from the Crandon Park Tennis center in Key Biscayne, a suburb of Miami, and our journalist Esam Taha was there for action, as both Dominic Thiem, and Sam Querrey regained form and scored round 1 wins in the evening session. In addition, lots of matches took place on the WTA round 1 main draw side as well.
Dominic Thiem d. Diego Sebastian Schwartzman 7-6(0) 7-5
Photo Credit: Esam Taha
It’s fair to say that’s Dominic’s start this year has been somewhat underwhelming, he can’t afford many more early exits if he plans to live up to the hype that has been surrounding him at just 21 years of age. Today he played another young player in Diego Schwartzman (22), who is steadily moving up the rankings himself. The match took place in the Grandstand under a hot Miami sun. Both players struggled to hold serve in the 1st set as they broke each other 3 times. Thiem has the more dangerous serve but he struggled to get his 1st serve in, registering only 57% in the 1st set. Schwartzman while never known to have the most comfortable service games, was making up for it by always putting pressure on Dominic’s service games with aggressive ground strokes. The crowd, with a strong South American flavor, was pro-Diego, but he didn’t seem to be able to take full advantage of it, barely engaging them and showing little body language. Fans of the Austrian by contrast were far and few between.
Despite the struggles with his serve, Dominic had a chance to serve out the set at 5-4 but once again couldn’t find his first serve and DSS took full advantage. The set would go on to a tie break, where Thiem went after DSS with some overpowering forehands before eventually closing out the clean tiebreak with a rare ace.
Dominic was pushed hard in round 1 (Photo Credit Esam Taha)
It seemed that Dominic had all the momentum at that point and would power through DSS, however that was far from reality. The sun started to set and scorching heat subsided as the two youngsters started the 2nd. Schwartzman didn’t seem to lose belief after dropping the first set meekly, as he broke Dominic twice and jumped to an early 3-0 lead. Thiem was careless in those 1st 3 games but he gathered himself during the changeover and proceeded to string together 4 games to get back even on serve in a rollercoaster of a second set. Thiem was helped by DSS serving a measly 47% on his 1st serve. Meanwhile Dominic was starting to find his rhythm on serve, getting a lot of free points and registering 4 aces in the 2nd. Dominic serving first would eventually pay off, the pressure of serving to stay in the match would get to Schwartzman. Down 5-6 and looking to force a tiebreak, Diego would hit an unforced error on matchpoint. Thiem reacted with a confident fist pump as he escaped a tricky 1st round matchup, where his opponent outplayed him for considerable periods in the match. He’ll go on to face a tough opponent in Feliciano Lopez next round. Thiem will be bidding to win consecutive matches in a tournament for just the second time this season.
Sam Querrey d. Victor Estrella 6-4 6-3
The Dominican Community in Miami made their presence felt cheering on their man Estrella (Photo Credit Esam Taha)
Coming off 2 consecutive first round exits, Sam Querrey was hoping to quickly make amends in Miami, and return to the form that had granted him a semifinal showing in Memphis, about a month ago on US soil. His first match was against Dominican Victor Estrella Burgos, who surprised everyone by winning ATP Quito, Ecuador by beating Feliciano Lopez in the final on clay back in February. The 34 year old is peaking late as his ranking has continued to climb well into the top 100 the past 2 years, currently sitting just outside the top 50 at 55th overall.
The match started off the night session with both players comfortably holding serve, but it was clear right away that Victor was going to have home court advantage here in Miami as the Dominican crowd made their presence felt early.
The set seemed to be on fast forward as both players were playing aggressively and looking to quickly end the point, however it was clear that was Sam was much more comfortable holding serve as evidenced by his 7 aces in the first set. Victor had to save a double breakpoint midway through the first set to keep it even, and struggling to hold serve would be the theme throughout the rest of the night. Eventually Victor would bend…and actually break as Querrey finally converted his 4th break opportunity on set point to claim the 1st set.
The 2nd set got off to a shaky start for Victor, who needed every bit of the crowd cheering him on to recover from a 0-30 hole and avoid getting broken early. However his efforts would prove futile as Sam would break him the next service game while the latter continued to hold serve with ease. Querrey hit 9 aces in the 2nd set and only faced a single break point the entire match. The 2nd set was fairly routine for the American. Victor would make some noise as Sam was serving to close out the match taking him to deuce to the delight of the crowd, but a couple of big serves from Querrey and it was all over. It was quite the contrast between the mellow and nearly silent Querrey, moving like a gazelle on his returns, and the loud and undersized Estrella, who was practically screaming as he chased down the ball.
Querrey was a pleased winner on Wednesday night (photo credit: Esam Taha)
Sam will go on to face the big serving South African, Kevin Anderson in the 2nd round.
In the interim of those matches, a few of the top players were getting on the practice courts to get a feel for that nice Miami sun and the court conditions, Alexander Dolgopolov was one of the guys that seemed to enjoy it out there.
Dolgo was chill in practice (Photo Credit Esam Taha)
18 year old Chung’s maiden ATP win and a perfect sweep for American Men Headline ATP Maindraw Day 1 Results
18 year old South Korean Hyeon Chung took full advantage of his wild card and scored both his maiden ATP, and his maiden ATP Masters level main draw win today over Spanish veteran Marcel Granollers, who is rarely an easy out. Chung, who has built up his ranking near the top 100 purely due to strong results on the Challenger and Futures tour, including a challenger title and final this year already, got off to a strong start, blanking Granollers 6-0 in the opening set. Granollers proved he wasn’t ill or injured by responding in the second, forcing a much closer contest, and scoring a lone break midway 3-2 through set, to end up taking it 6-4, as Chung failed to generate any chances to break back. In the third the match became quite the battle, but Chung didn’t wilt in the slightest against the grinding Spaniard. He got an immediate break back after going 2-1 down in the third, saved another break point at 3-3 to hold serve, and broke in a game that lasted over 8 minutes for a 6-4 third set victory. Granollers got tight in the end, as errors mounted, and his serve and forehand was simply not good enough, compared to the young Korean’s raw, but powerful groundstrokes that were able to push the Spaniard back.
Americans Donald Young, Jack Sock, Tim Smyczek, and Austin Krajicek, a qualifier, were all winners and advanced into the second round, making it a perfect day for the American male contingent. Young beat Rendy Lu 5-1 via a retirement, as Lu was in poor shape going into the match, Sock rolled past Go Soeda 6-3 6-4, Smyczek had to survive qualifier Adrian Menendez-Maceiras, who was bidding for his maiden ATP main draw win at 29, 4-6 6-3 6-4, with a late break in the third set, and a hold of serve to close it out, and Krajicek got revenge over Denis Istomin, who he lost to previously in Indian Wells with a swift 6-4 6-4 victory.
Another men’s singles winner on the day was Juan Monaco, who survived multiple mentally induced collapses against Ruben Bemelmans, a qualifier, to prevail 7-5 6-7 6-4 on his fourth match point chance, and his second of the third set. What saved Monaco was the fact his opponent Bemelmans was even more fragile in the mental department than he was, throwing up tense errors when it counted in the third set, as Monaco threw away his chance to close out the match in straights.
Young guns Kyle Edmund and Thanasi Kokkinakis were denied further Masters level victories, Robin Haase and Carlos Berlocq took them out, 6-2 6-2 for Haase, and 6-4 3-6 6-2 for Berlocq. Kokkinakis, who was coming off a round of 16 showing in Indian Wells, had high expectations going into this tournament, but got off to a slow start, perhaps struggling to adjust to new conditions, and never really seemed to recover in his match.
Jan-Lennard Struff saved match points to take out Benjamin Becker 3-6 7-6(10) 6-4, the Davis Cup teammates battled it out for over two hours as Becker had three match points in the second set tiebreak, and was at one point 4-1 up in the third set, but Struff would battle back each time, converting his lone match point opportunity to break serve and finish the match off 6-4.
Nicolas Almagro, similar to Monaco avoided a mental collapse in a match he appeared to have in the bag, the final scoreline over Sergiy Stakhovsky was 6-3 6-7 6-4, but Almagro was at one point 6-3 3-1 up. Stakhovsky employed an aggressive gameplan throughout, but Almagro’s compact strokes and great passing backhands proved to be an effective foil for it, as he was returning the ball before the Ukrainian had time to properly react.
In men’s action on the outer courts, Albert Ramos won yet again on a hard court, 6-2 6-2 over Joao Sousa, dashing Portugese hopes this tournament, Jarkko Nieminen scored a comfortable 6-3 6-3 win over Marinko Matosevic, James Duckworth did better than his Aussie countryman and beat Damir Dzumhur 6-3 3-6 6-3, and fellow qualifier Filip Krajinovic got the better of his Serbian compatriot Dusan Lajovic 2-6 7-6 4-2 ret. as Lajovic came down with an arm injury.
Watson, Vaidisova, Azarenka among WTA singles winners on the day
British hope Heather Watson got past Evgeniya Rodina, the world number 96 3-6 6-1 7-5, as she saved 10/14 of the break points she faced, and nearly half of the points on Rodina’s serve.
25 year old Nicole Vaidsova of the Czech Republic continued her comeback on the WTA tour, the former Top 10 player won her first WTA level main draw match, in just her second WTA tournament since returning to tennis in 2014 after a four year absence. Vaidsova, who qualified in Monterrey recently, won 6-1 7-6 over the world number 87 Timea Babos, as her ranking will now surely rise back into the top 300.
Victoria Azarenka, who is looking to complete her own mini comeback, and surely get back into the top 20 in the world, got off to a good start in Miami with a 6-1 6-3 win over Silvia Soler-Espinosa. Other participants in the second round will include four Americans, as Christina McHale beat Sorana Cirstea 7-5 6-4, qualifier Irina Falconi beat Monica Puig 7-6 7-6, Alison Riske beat Mirjana Lucic-Baroni 6-4 6-0 in less than an hour, and in the nightcap, Sloane Stephens dominated Yania Wickmayer 6-1 6-3, winning 70% of her service points, compared to just 45% for the Belgian.
Daria Gavrilova setup a meeting with Maria Sharapova, a fellow Russian, in round 2 as she beat Marina Erakovic 5-1 ret., Germans Annika Beck (6-4 4-6 6-4 over Shuai Zhang), Tatjana Maria (7-6 6-3 over Roberta Vinci), and Julia Goerges (6-1 6-0 over Jana Cepelova) will also be participating in round 2. American Lauren Davis continued her struggles with a loss to Sesil Karatantcheva 6-3 7-6, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova beat her countrywoman Vera Zvonareva 6-2 3-6 7-5 in a battle that lasted over two hours, with the 23 year old Pavs outlasting an opponent seven years her senior.
Alison Van Uytvanck added to the success of qualifiers wth a 7-5 2-6 6-0 win over Magdalena Rybarikova, Pauline Parmentier beat Kiki Bertens 4-6 6-2 6-3, Urszula Radwanska setup a meeting with Venus Williams with a 6-4 6-7 6-3 win over CoCo Vandeweghe, and Swiss Stefanie Voegele beat junkballer Kirsten Flipkens 6-2 6-2
Wonderkid Belinda Bencic beat Daniela Hantuchova 6-1 7-6, and Elina Vesnina (6-4 6-2 over Alexandra Dulgheru) and Tsvetana Pironkova (6-4 6-3 over Kateryna Kozlova) were two of the players who did have success over their qualifier opponents.
2015 WTA Indian Wells (@BNPParibasOpen) Preview and Predictions Niall Clarke, Tennis Atlantic
After an eventful first two months of the 2015 season, we reach the almost month long American hard court series, with back to back Premier tournaments in Indian Wells and Miami.
The first stop will be in the beautiful state of California for the BNP Paribas Open. The Indian Wells Tennis Garden will play host to the world’s best players from both the men’s and women’s tour with the main court holding over 16,000 spectators.
The BNP Paribas Open was originally a men’s only event in 1976. Thirteen years later the Garden would also host the women, albeit a week after the men’s tournament. In 1996, the decision was made to have the men’s and women’s tournaments run simultaneously, and it has since become one of the most prestigious tournaments in the world.
Among Indian Wells’ many accolades are being named the WTA’s Premier Tournament Of The Year five times – in 1997, 2005, 2006, 2009 and 2013 – and the Premier Mandatory Tournament Of The Year in 2014; becoming the first event in the world to offer the Hawk-Eye challenge system on every match court in 2011; and becoming the first ATP/WTA combined tournament to distribute $1 million in prize money to each of its singles champions in 2012.
Previous champions include the likes of Steffi Graf, Martina Hingis, Martina Navratilova, Maria Sharapova and Monica Seles. Flavia Pennetta is the defending champion, as she overcame Agnieszka Radwanska in last year’s final.
Despite all the history, and the prestige of the event, the big story is the return of Serena Williams to Indian Wells.
The world number one hasn’t played in the tournament for 14 years, after the crowd heckled her and her sister Venus after alleged match fixing. It was also alleged that the reaction was also racially motivated. This led to the Williams sisters boycotting the event for 14 years; until now. Serena announced earlier this year that she will be returning to Indian Wells in an exclusive with TIME Magazine where she discussed both the happy and sad experiences from the event.
“It has been difficult for me to forget spending hours crying in the Indian Wells locker room after winning in 2001, driving back to Los Angeles feeling as if I had lost the biggest game ever – not a mere tennis game but a bigger fight for equality,” Williams wrote in her exclusive piece for TIME.
“I’m fortunate to be at a point in my career where I have nothing to prove. I’m still as driven as ever, but the ride is a little easier. I play for the love of the game. And it is with that love in mind, and a new understanding of the true meaning of forgiveness, that I will proudly return to Indian Wells in 2015.”
Venus however, will not return to the BNP Paribas Open this year.
For more information on the Williams sisters’ boycott of Indian wells and Serena’s return, please read my article posted yesterday.
BNP Paribas Open
Tier: Premier Mandatory
Location: Indian Wells, USA
Surface: Hard
Prize Money: $ 5,381,235
Date: March 11th- March 22nd
Top eight seeded players (Ranking)
1. Serena Williams (1)
2. Maria Sharapova (2)
3. Simona Halep (3)
4. Caroline Wozniacki (5)
5. Ana Ivanovic (6)
6. Eugenie Bouchard (7)
7. Agnieszka Radwanska (8)
8. Ekaterina Makarova (9)
The notable exception is Petra Kvitova who withdrew from the tournament due to fatigue. Otherwise the top players are all in action, which should lead to an exciting tournament.
Note: There are 32 seeded players in the draw, all of which receive a first round BYE
Julia Goerges vs Heather Watson:
Britain’s Heather Watson made a fantastic start to 2015 by winning the Hobart International tournament just before the Australian Open. However, the 22 year old hasn’t been able to capitalise on that momentum, only winning one match since. Goerges on the other hand has had a good start to the year, winning more often than not. That includes a round four appearance at the Australian Open where she lost to Ekaterina Makarova. These two previously met on the clay courts of Roland Garros three years ago, and it was The German who came out on top in straight sets. Watson’s form since Hobart hasn’t convinced me, but this is tennis and anything can happen. Expect the Brit to try counter Goerges’ power and remain consistent. The German will look to use her power to overwhelm Watson, forcing short balls and errors. It’s hard not to back Goerges given their respective forms, but if The 26 year old is spraying errors, except Watson’s consistency to shine through.
Anna Schmiedlova vs Lauren Davis
Two youngsters ranked within two places of each other, both looking to play their way into form, and one of them is American? Sounds like an enticing Indian wells opener to me. Schmiedlova vs Davis might be a match-up you see more of in the future, but this is their first ever meeting, meaning we have little to go by when it comes to deciding the winner. Schmiedlova recently made the final of Rio, but lost to Sara Errani in straight sets. The 20 year old hasn’t won a match since the clay court event in Brazil, losing both her opening round matches in Mexico. Davis hasn’t won since the Australian Open, albeit she has only played two matches since the first Grand Slam of the year. No matter which way it ends up going, this match should be close and will likely go the distance. The reward will be a round two clash with Jelena Jankovic.
(WC) Taylor Townsend vs (WC) Bethanie Mattek-Sands
One for you American fans out there. Taylor Townsend is younger than yours truly, and is in the top 100, making her one of the brightest prospects on tour. Mattek Sands is 11 years older and vastly more experienced, and she’s much better than her 187 ranking suggests. The 29 year old suffered an injury last year, which saw her ranking plummet from top 50 to outside the top 100. Townsend is still very young and learning her way around the tour, therefore the 18 year old isn’t yet the complete product. I expect Mattek-Sands’ experience to shine through as I don’t believe Townsend is ready to handle the pressure of the big crowd at Indian Wells yet.
Serena’s Quarter
The world number one’s triumphant return to Indian Wells will be met by the crafty Monica Niculescu or Aleksandra Krunic. The focus here won’t be on the tennis, but on how the crowd will react to Serena Williams after her 14 year boycott of the event. If the crowd is gracious, and Serena displays her usual form, there should be little to no trouble in her opening matches. Youngster, Zarina Diyas will await in round three, but that shouldn’t be a problem for Williams, who should over-power the Kazakh with ease.
Serena’s draw gets interesting in round four, where Angelique Kerber or Svetlana Kuznetsova should be awaiting her. Both players are in need of wins after failing to really set the world alight in 2015. At this point they should both have a win under their belt to give them somewhat of a confidence boost heading into their third round clash. Interestingly, the head to head is tied at 3-3, but Kerber has a win this year on the hard courts of Dubai. The German overcame Kuznetsova in straight sets on that occasion, and I can see the same happening here.
Kerber has beaten Serena on American soil before three years ago in Cincinnati, but apart from that straight sets win, she has failed to take a set off the world number one. Serena’s record here speaks for itself, so I’ll be shocked if she doesn’t make it to the quarter finals.
Serena’s return might dominate the headlines, but on the court, the fight for the right to face the world number one might just be the show-stealer. This section features two in-form players, who right now are at their career high ranking. Lucie Safarova is just shy of the top 10 following her triumph in Doha. The Czech is dangerous and in excellent form. I wouldn’t want to draw her at Indian Wells.
Timea Bacsinszky is coming off a double title salvo in Mexico, making her perhaps the most in-form player heading into the tournament. The Swiss is at a career high ranking of 26, and is 11th in the race, such is her good form this year. Bacsinszky has in an interesting round three prospect against the eighth seeded Russian Ekaterina Makarova. Bacsinszky leads the head to head 2-1, including a straight sets win in Wuhan last year. However, Makarova brings her best on the big occasion, and that makes her extremely dangerous. The Swiss’ good form will make a lot of people lean towards her, and I understand why, but Makarova is still overall the better player and I favour her in this match-up despite the stats saying otherwise.
The Makarova vs Safarova match will decide who faces Serena in the quarter finals. The battle of the lefties should be close, with both Safarova and Makarova currently in the form of their careers. The Czech should be full of confidence after her exploits in Doha, where she beat Makarova in the round of 16 in three sets. With the head to head and form book in the favour of the world number 11, I will back Lucie to be Serena’s opponent in the quarter finals.
The world number three doesn’t have it easy in Indian Wells, with some dangerous seeded players being drawn into her section. Halep was forced to withdraw from Doha with a rib injury, so her fitness might be in question. There isn’t any news heading into the tournament about tis injury, so I presume she’ll be healed up enough to make a good go of this.
The Romanian’s first test will come in the form of Vavara Lepchenko in the third round. The American has suffered from an illness this season, but she’s very dangerous with her powerful ground strokes being her main weapon. The home crowd could inspire Lepchenko, but the chances are Halep will be too consistent for the American.
The third round clash between Karolina Pliskova and Garbine Muguruza is mouth-watering, with the winner facing Halep for a quarter final place. Both Plsikova and Muguruza have been tipped to be the future of the WTA, making this a match-up we could be seeing a whole lot more of in the future. The Czech has been in awesome form this year, climbing towards the top 10 in the rankings with some big wins along the way. Muguruza has played well too, earning some big wins of her own. These two have met twice before, and on both occasions they have been tight three setters. Expect more of the same here, with some huge hitting from both sides of the court. I have a feeling Muguruza will be the victor this time around. She was close in Dubai without playing well and looking tired, so I believe The Spaniard will edge out the Czech on this occasion.
With The Spaniard likely going long with Plsikova, look for Halep to take advantage of a tired Muguruza. The world number three has been prone to being blown off the court by the likes of Garbine, but on this occasion she’ll weather the storm. Muguruza will come out flying, but eventually will slow down as fatigued starts to kick in allowing Halep to complete a three set win.
Seventh seed Agnieszka Radwanska isn’t in the best of form at the moment and could find herself facing an early exit. Camila Giorgi is projected to meet in round three, and with the Italian’s power, The Pole could find herself being blown away. The Italian however is vastly inconsistent, especially with the serve, and could easily fall in the second round to Goerges or Watson. Radwanska might not be in the best form, but she was a finalist here last year, so she has proven she can play well here. I will predict the world number eight to make round four.
The likely opponent will be the winner of the interesting Carla Suarez Navarro vs Barbora Zahalova Strycova round three clash. These two players aren’t known for their power, but they show a lot of variety and bring experience to the table. The Spaniard leads the head to head 6-1, but they have never met on a hard court. Despite the lack of hard court meetings it’s difficult not to back Suarez Navarro in this match, with the 12th seed being overall the better player, in better form and leading the head to head.
Suarez Navarro will therefore face Radwanska in round four with a quarter final place at stake. The seventh seed leads the head to head 2-0, but these two haven’t faced each other since the 2012 US Open. In the two and a half years that have passed, Radwanska has somewhat regressed, whilst Suarez Navarro has improved to become a solid top 20 player. The Spaniard heads into the tournament in better form, and therefore I see her overcoming Radwanska in three sets.
The fourth seeded Caroline Wozniacki will be coming into Indian Wells in good spirits after claiming the Kuala Lumpur title last week; her first of 2015. Wozniacki should make round four, but there are some tricky matches along the way. Kaia Kanepi may await in the second round, and the Estonian is always dangerous. Rising star Belinda Bencic is projected to meet the former world number one in the third round, but the teen isn’t in the best of form this year possessing a 2-5 singles record. I wouldn’t be shocked to see the Swiss fall in the second round to Jovanovski or Bertens, albeit these two aren’t in the best of form either. Either way, Wozniacki should defeat either of those three players without too much trouble.
Come the fourth round, her possible opponents include Madison Keys, Jelena Jankovic or 2007 winner Daniela Hantuchova. Keys will be the favourite given her exploits in Melbourne, but the big hitting American may struggle under the pressure of the home crowd. Madison is still young, and with the weight of expectation on her shoulders it will be interesting to see how she copes. The first test will likely be in the form of Hantuchova, who since her 2007 triumph is 1-7 at this event. Hantuchova got some decent for under her belt by winning the Patteya open but has since struggled. Jelena Jankovic is a shell of her former self, and has a tough round two against the winner of Davis vs Schmiedlova. Jankovic bowing out early wouldn’t be much of a shock, but the winner of the second round match-up will likely lose to Keys or Hantuchova in round three.
Keys vs Wozniacki should be the fourth round match, setting up an interesting clash of styles. Keys is pure power, swinging hard and hitting powerful strokes off both wings. Wozniacki is one of the best movers and tour, and her retrieving could frustrate the American. The 16th seed has the power to blow the world number five off the court, but on this occasion on a fairly slow court, I expect Wozniacki to pull through. The Dane has a great record here, being a former champion and finalist.
Could we be in for an all blonde showdown in the quarter finals? Sixth seed Eugenie Bouchard will certainly hope so. The Canadian’s first test will come in round three against big serving American Coco Vandeweghe. Bouchard’s form is unknown as she’s only played one match since the Australian Open, losing to Mona Barthel in Antwerp. Given that she’s fully fit, Bouchard’s early ball striking could get Vandeweghe on the move, making the American less effective. If the 30th seed can get the upper-hand in the rallies with her forehand, then Bouchard could be in trouble. It’s still difficult not to back the sixth seed on this occasion, but this one could be tricky.
Bouchard’s fourth round opponent will likely come down to the winner of Andrea Petkovic vs Alize Cornet. Petkovic might have a difficult time getting past Annika Beck in the second round, but realistically it shouldn’t be too much of a problem. The German is in better form than Cornet, but the Frenchwoman leads to head to head 3-1, including a victory in Miami last year. Petkovic is now a top 10 player, and therefore should be more confident this time around, and that will be enough to see her past the 20th seed.
Bouchard’s biggest problem is handling the big hitters, and Petkovic doesn’t really fall into the category. However, you have to consider that Bouchard’s fitness and form is unknown. The world number seven has only played one match since Melbourne. Petkovic hasn’t set the world alight since Antwerp, but she’s hardly looked awful. Knowing where the German’s fitness and form is at, I feel she’s the safer bet to make the quarter finals.
Sharapova’s Quarter
With Azarenka’s injury woes causing the former world number one to fall down the rankings, she was always going to create a tough draw for a top player. This time it’s Maria Sharapova. The pair are scheduled to meet in the third round with Azarenka only just claiming a seeding position due to Kvitova’s withdrawal. Providing nothing gets in their way, this will undoubtedly be the match of the early rounds. Azarenka boasts a 6-1 record on hard courts against the world number two, but their last meeting on this surfaced was over two years ago. Azarenka is slowly building her ranking back up, but she isn’t at the level she displayed in 2012 and 2013 just yet. Maria Sharapova pulled out of Acapulco with illness 2 weeks ago, but that shouldn’t be problem now surely? Expect a tight, (and loud match) with both players wrestling momentum from each other during the match. It will likely come down to mental strength, which is where Sharapova thrives. How many times have we seen the Russian pull through tight matches where she hasn’t played too well? You can’t count them on your fingers that’s for certain. I feel this will be another one of those matches where Sharapova sneaks the win despite being outplayed throughout the majority of the match.
She will then go on to likely face the defending champion Flavia Pennetta. Her victory here last year proved that she likes these courts, and is capable of showing a high level here. Unfortunately for the Italian she won’t reach a high enough level to topple the second seed, and she’ll likely go down in straight sets.
Fifth seed Ana Ivanovic will look to use this tournament to rebuild some confidence after a disappointing defeat to Caroline Garcia last week. These two are on the collision course this week too, with the Serb looking to extract her revenge. Ivanovic will almost certainly make the third round, but Garcia’s participation at this stage isn’t set in stone. Former Wimbledon finalist Vera Zvonareva is the Frenchwoman’s likely second round opponent. The Russian is continuing her comeback from injury, and despite not being at her 2010 level, she’s still a dangerous unseeded player to draw. Garcia reached back to back finals in Mexico, but lost twice to the surging Timea Bacsinszky. It will be interesting to see how the Frenchwoman responds after being only a win away from a title two weeks in a row. These losses can dent your confidence or make you hungry to go that one further. It’s interesting to see which path Garcia will end up going down.
Sara Errani is the projected fourth round opponent of Ivanovic/Garcia/Zvonareva, but the Italian consistency can often leave her prone to being overpowered. Speaking of power, Sabine Lisicki has it in abundance, but the German struggles for consistency outside of Wimbledon, making her an upset target for unseeded players. Jarmila Gajdosova and Roberta Vinci will be looking to take advantage of that, but first they must battle each other in an intriguing round one match. Vinci is experienced, crafty, and a former top 20 player, but you feel her singles form is declining as she reaches her advanced years. The 32 year old seems more focused on doubles nowadays with her partner Sara Errani. Gajdosova has shown some good form this year, and as she closes in on the top 50, I expect her to take advantage of a decent draw and make the fourth round. I don’t feel she can go any further though.
Round of 16:
Serena def. Kerber in 2
Safarova def. Makarova in 3
Halep def. Muguruza in 3
Suarez Navarro def. Radwanska in 3
Petkovic def. Bouchard in 3
Wozniacki def. Keys in 3
Ivanovic def. Gajdosova in 2
Sharapova def. Pennetta in 2
Quarter Finals:
Serena def. Safarova in 3
Halep def. Suarez Navarro in 2
Wozniacki def. Petkovic in 2
Sharapova def. Ivanovic in 3
Safarova’s good form will allow her to hand Serena her first set loss in the tournament, but Serena’s power and mental strength will be too much for the Czech to handle. Suarez Navarro will have a good run to the quarter finals, but Halep will prove too consistent, and too good for the Spaniard. Wozniacki loves playing at Indian Wells, and that will show with another deep run here. She shouldn’t have too many problems dispatching Petkovic like most of their previous meetings.
Sharapova vs Ivanovic will be dramatic, and will be very similar to the world number 2’s clash with Azarenka in round two. Sharapova will pull through in another battle of grit and determination. Make sure to check your blood pressure whilst watching this one.
Semi Finals:
Serena def. Halep in 2
Wozniacki def. Sharapova in 3
Serena had her troubles with Halep at the Tour Championships last year, but I hardly expect a repeat. The world number one will be determined and that will see her through in one tight and one dominant set. Wozniacki vs Sharapova is an interesting match-up. The head to head is close at 5-4 in The Russian’s favour, but the Dane has won their past two meetings, both of hard courts. With that in mind, I am predicting Wozniacki to grind her way through in 3 tight sets.
Final:
Serena def. Wozniacki in 2
The battle of best friends will decide the championship at Indian Wells, and as usual Williams will be the victor. The American leads the head to head 10-1, and has a good record at this tournament despite not playing here since 2001. The world number one will cap her return to Indian Wells with another Premier title.
Tennis Maryland is pleased to announce that we’ll be providing on-site coverage of the first half of the Family Circle Cup in Charleston, South Carolina from March 31-April 3, 2012. We’ll be there for all 36 qualifying matches and the first two days of main draw play. If there’s a player you’d like to see featured, speak up now. The draw ceremony will also be covered next Saturday afternoon.
Unfortunately, Anna Chakvetadze, Romina Oprandi and Bethanie Mattek-Sands have withdrawn from the tournament due to injuries. Chakvetadze was also forced to throw in the towel at Indian Wells and Miami due to back pain and Oprandi previously took a pass in Miami with a right knee injury. Mattek-Sands announced her intention to withdraw on Twitter last week due to a “hip/back injury”.
Though she won't be doing the Charleston, Bethanie did sing Danny Boy on St. Patrick's Day
In the case of Mattek-Sands, she was a Tennis Maryland interview waiting to happen. Alas, it will not. She was even set to take part in a charity auction whereby one lucky bidder would practice with her, lunch with her, toss the coin at her first match and walk off with a signed racquet. All proceeds were to benefit MUSC Children’s Hospital in Charleston. There’s been no word yet on whether Mattek-Sands will be replaced by another WTA player in the charity auction.
The withdrawals don’t exactly weaken the field. 16 of the top 35 players in the world remain in the draw, including notable top 20s Agnieszka Radwanska (#4), Sam Stosur (#5), Marion Bartoli (#7), Vera Zvonareva (#10), Serena Williams (#11), Sabine Lisicki (#13), Jelena Jankovic (#15) and Julia Georges (#17).
Tennis Atlantic 