Moscow Win Sends Svetlana Kuznetsova To Singapore - Mondays with Bob Greene

Mondays with Bob Greene

STARS

Pablo Carreno Busta beat Fabio Fognini 4-6 6-3 6-2 to win the VTB Kremlin Cup in Moscow, Russia

Svetlana Kuznetsova beat Daria Gavrilova 6-2 6-1 to win the Kremlin Cup women’s singles in Moscow, Russia

Richard Gasquet beat Diego Schwartzman 7-6 (4) 6-1 to win the European Open in Antwerp, Belgium

Juan Martin del Potro beat Jack Sock 7-5 6-1 to win the If Stockholm Open in Stockholm, Sweden-

Monica Niculescu beat Petra Kvitova 6-4 6-0 to win the BGL BNP Paribas Luxembourg Open in Luxembourg, Luxembourg

Lu Yen-Hsun beat Hiroki Moriya 6-3 6-1 to win the 2016 International Challenger Ningbo in Ningbo, China

Norbert Gombos beat Yannik Reuter 7-5 6-2 to win the Open Brest Arena Credit Agricole in Brest, France

Donna Vekic beat Sara Sorribes Tormo 6-2 6-7 (7) 6-3 to win the Soho Square Egypt Women’s Tournament in Sarm El Sheikh, Egypt

SAYING

“I don’t really mind the rankings or the numbers. I just want to play better. When I’m 100 percent I know I can be dangerous.” – Juan Martin del Potro, after winning in Stockholm, Sweden.

“His serve is massive and very tough to read, which put more pressure on my serve. He just played well.” – Jack Sock, who lost to Juan Martin del Potro in Stockholm.

“When you win your first title, it’s a really special one, but this one is special also.” – Pablo Carreno Busta, who won the VTB Kremlin Cup.

“I was trying not to think about Singapore all week. I was playing match by match and I’m so happy to win and reach Singapore. It is a great feeling.” – Svetlana Kuznetsova, who qualified for the WTA Finals in Singapore by winning the Kremlin Cup in Moscow.

“I think tennis is safely the number two sport in our country after cricket, and cricket is not even considered a sport here. It’s a religion.” – Mahesh Bhupathi of India, former doubles star and founder of the Asian-based International Premier Tennis League.

“My father’s come with me to American tournaments because he really likes America. My mom travels more with me in Europe, but it doesn’t happen often that they come to tournaments together because they sometimes stress each other out and make each other even more nervous at my matches. But it’s the WTA Finals, so I wanted them both here.” – Dominika Cibulkova.

“The previous two years I had my family here (at the WTA Finals), but now I’m not that important any more. My niece is the most important person in my family. They are home, so I’m alone, just with my team.” – Simona Halep, talking about her newborn niece, Tania.

STOCKHOLM KING

Juan Martin del Potro won his 19^th ATP World Tour title 33 months after is 18^th. The Argentine stopped Jack Sock to capture the If Stockholm Open. “I’ve been trying to fix my problems for the past two years and I didn’t expect to win a title at this moment in my career,” del Potro said. “I am so happy to get the trophy here. It’s motivation for looking forward to the future.” After missing huge sections of several seasons with wrist problems, del Potro had very little problem winning in the Swedish capital. He didn’t lose a set the entire week and was broken just twice, both times by Grigor Dimitrov in the semifinals. Del Potro raised his game to grab the first break in the 11^th game of the opening set. Sock appeared fatigued after that and the American only held serve once more as del Potro wrapped up the title in 80 minutes. “It was a tough match,” Sock said.

SPANISH REIGN

Rafael Nadal isn’t the only Spanish champion; he simply was the leader of the Iberian charge to the big trophies. Pablo Carreno Busta added his second career title by outlasting Fabio Fognini of Italy at the VTB Kremlin Cup in Moscow. Carreno Busta’s first ATP World Tour title came in August when he captured the Winston-Salem crown. “In both finals I lost the first set,” Carreno Busta said. “But then I continued fighting and I continued believing in myself. And at the end I won the match and the tournament.” The Spaniard won nearly 70 percent of his first-serve points and he benefitted from six double faults by Fognini.

SET FOR SINGAPORE

With a partisan Russian crowd cheering her on, Svetlana Kuznetsova won not only the Kremlin Cup, but also a spot in the season-ending WTA Finals in Singapore. Kuznetsova overcame a nervous start to dominate Daria Gavrilova, winning in straight sets. “Before the match, when I was warming up, my body hurt. I felt tired, didn’t really know how I was going to play.” Kuznetsova said. … “I wanted to show good tennis and I am happy I succeeded.” Gavrilova won the first two games, then lost 12 of the next 13.

SWEET WIN

Frenchman Richard Gasquet is the first European Open winner, stopping Diego Schwartzman in straight sets. “I’m very happy with the week,” Gasquet said. “All the matches were tough and there were a lot of great players here. It’s always nice to have a title.” It was Gasquet’s 14^th career title and his second of the year. But this was the inaugural European Open. With Gasquet serving at 5-4, 40-0, Schwartzman won seven consecutive points to break back and take a 6-5 lead. But it was Gasquet taking the tiebreak and gaining confidence. “It was important for me to win the tiebreak, and I took a lot of confidence into the second set,” the Frenchman said. “It was a great match for me and I was the favorite to win, so it’s important for me.”

SEE YOU NEXT YEAR

Saying he needed to fully recover from the left wrist injury he suffered midway through the year, former world number one Rafael Nadal has decided to not play any more tournaments until next year. Instead, the 30-year-old Spanish left-hander said he would begin “preparing intensively” for 2017. Nadal withdrew from this year’s French Open before his third-round match because of the injury. He then missed Wimbledon. Nadal did come back and win the doubles gold medal at the Rio Olympics, teaming with Marc Lopez. However, his singles play has been a disappointment. In his last tournament, the Shanghai Masters, Nadal lost his opening match to Viktor Troiki. “It is no secret that I arrived to the Olympic Games short of preparation and not fully recovered, but the goal was to compete and win a medal for Spain,” Nadal said. “This forced recovery has caused me pain since then and now I am forced to stop and start preparing the 2017 season.” Nadal won two titles this year, on clay in Monte Carlo and Barcelona. He was seeking his 10^th French Open crown when he was injured.

SWEDISH DELIGHT

They entered the If Stockholm Open as wildcards. The finished as champions. Brothers Elias and Mikael Ymer became the first Swedish duo to win in Stockholm since 1998. “I don’t think me or Mikael expected our first ATP title to come in doubles, especially here in our hometown of Stockholm,” Elias said. “We had a great time and I really enjoyed playing with my brother.” The brothers saved three match points in their first-round victory over the third-seeded team of Marcin Matkowski and Jean-Julien Rojer, ripping off five straight points from 6-9 down in the match tiebreak. The Ymers knocked off the second seeds Rohan Bopanna and Treat Huey in the semifinals and the fourth seeds Mate Pavic and Michael Venus for the title. “It’s been unreal,” said Mikael, who missed nearly a year with a hip injury and was making his ATP World Tour doubles debut. “We clicked really well and played some great doubles. I’m really happy with this win and I’m excited for our future together in doubles.” Elias, at 20 years older than his brother, was competing in doubles on the ATP World Tour for just the second time.

SWITCHING SPORTS

Nick Kyrgios will take part in an all-star NBA celebrity game in February instead of the Rotterdam Open. “Unfortunately this all-star weekend is the same weekend as the final in Rotterdam,” tournament director Richard Krajicek said. “For that reason Kyrgios has asked us if there was a possibility to allow him to play there. Since basketball is his biggest passion, we understand his dilemma, as this is truly a unique opportunity for him.” The 21-year-old Kyrgios announced his intentions just a week after he was handed an eight-week ban for “tanking” a match in China. His suspension ends the day before the Australian Open begins.

SENIOR PLAY

Six players from India have withdrawn from the International Tennis Federation (ITF) Seniors World Ranking Tennis Championships being held in Pakistan. The secretary of the Pakistan Tennis Federation (PTF), Khalid Rehmani, said the Indian seniors had withdrawn from the Oct. 30-Nov. 6 grass-court event in Lahore. Rehmani said India’s Paffth Aggarwal had also withdraw from the USD $5,000 Federal Cup ATT Tennis Championships to be played this week in Islamabad, Pakistan. Rehmani said the PTF had anticipated the Indian players pulling out. Rehmani and four other Pakistani players had recently pulled out of an event scheduled to be held in India beginning Nov. 1. “There is tension at every level, even in sports, cinema and arts” between India and Pakistan, Rehmani said.

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Antwerp: Daniel Nestor and Edouard Roger-Vasselin beat Pierre-Hughes Herbert and Nicolas Mahut 6-4 6-4

Brest: Sander Arends and Mateusz Kowalczyk beat Marco Chiudinelli and Luca Vanni 6-7 (2) 6-3 10-5 (match tiebreak)

Luxembourg: Kiki Bertens and Johanna Larsson beat Monica Niculescu and Patricia Maria Tig 4-6 7-5 11-9 (match tiebreak)

Moscow (men): Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah beat Julian Knowle and Jurgen Melzer 7-5 4-6 10-5 (match tiebreak)

Moscow (women): Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka bear Daria Gavrilova and Daria Kasatkina 4-6 6-0 10-7 (match tiebreak)

Ningbo: Jonathan Eysseric and Sargiy Stakhovsky beat Stefan Kozlov and Akira Santillan 6-4 7-6 (4)

Sharm El Sheikh: Irina Maria Bara and Alona Fomia beat Guadalupe Perez Rojas and Jil Teichmann 6-2 6-1

Stockholm: Elias Ymer and Mikael Ymer beat ate Pavic and Michael Venus 6-1 6-1

SURFING

Singapore: www.wtafinals.com/

Basel: www.swissindoorsbasel.ch/de-de/