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Surprise Winners in Beijing and Tokyo – Mondays with Bob Greene

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Mondays with Bob Greene

 

STARS

Caroline Wozniacki beat Anastasija Sevastova 6-3 6-3 to win the China Open women’s singles in Beijing, China

Nikoloz Basilashvili beat Juan Martin del Potro 6-4 6-4 to win the China Open men’s singles in Beijing, China

Daniil Medvedev beat Kei Nishikori 6-2 6-4 to win the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships in Tokyo, Japan

David Ferrer beat Ivo Karlovic 6-3 6-4 to win the Abierto GNP Seguros in Monterrey, Mexico

Lloyd Harris beat Marc Polmans 6-2 6-2 to win the Stockton Challenger in Stockton, California, USA

 

SAYINGS

“I’ve been having a really good season this year, especially (in the) past three or four months. I’m playing very good … I’m feeling really well on the court lately. A lot of respect to my coach Jan, he’s helping me a lot. With him, we can see a big difference.” – Nikoloz Basilashvili, after upsetting Juan Martin del Potro to win the China Open men’s singles.

“The serve is the most important thing in tennis right now.” – Daniil Medvedev, who rode his booming serve to the Japan Open title.

“He’s serving great. I didn’t have any chance on his first serve, even second serve.” – Kei Nishikori, after losing the Japan Open final to Daniil Medvedev.

“I believe at this stage when I’m relaxed I can do better. I do not want to focus on ranking or victories, I just want to be relaxed and enjoy the matches.” – Wang Qiang, after crushing Jelena Ostapenko 6-0 6-0 at the China Open.

“It was a very important tournament for us, especially right now with the ATP Doubles Race to London. It gives us a lot of confidence. We had four great matches here in Beijing.” – Lukasz Kubot, who teamed with Marcelo Melo to win the China Open men’s doubles.

“Winning a title and actually holding up a trophy is an amazing feeling.” – Ben McLachlan, who won the Japan Open doubles with partner Jan-Lennard Struff.

“It will be my first time back there (the WTA Finals) since I came back to tennis, so it means a lot to me and has always been one of my big goals for the season.” – Petra Kvitova, who has qualified for the season-ending WTA Finals in Singapore.

“They know I am a tennis player. I don’t think they know how good I am. Once I told them what my ranking was and they were like, ‘OK’” – Roger Federer, noting his twin nine-year-old daughters aren’t impressed by his tennis skills.

“The way I have been raised, the way I feel. Like is short and we just have to enjoy.” – Gael Monfils, when asked to explain his character.

 

STUNNER

With a stunning upset of Juan Martin del Potro, Nikoloz Basilashvili of Georgia captured his second title of the year and the second of his career. He broke del Potro in the third game of the opening set, then closed out the victory on his third match point. “Playing against Juan, he was sick today for sure, I could see that,” Basilashvili said. “But he put me in really tough situations. I needed to really work it, to work hard to win the points.” The winner dominated baseline rallies, saved all seven break points he faced and withstood 11 aces from del Potro. “I had my chances in the first set and then in the second,” del Potro said. “Nikoloz played smart points in the important moments. He didn’t miss any easy balls in that moment. I think he deserves to win because I couldn’t play at my best level.” Basilashvili became the first Georgian to reach the US Open fourth round last month. He won his first title earlier this year in Hamburg, Germany. Del Potro reached the final without playing when Italy’s Fabio Fognini pulled out of their semifinal with an ankle injury.

 

SHOCKER

Qualifier Daniil Medvedev surprised home favorite Kei Nishikori to win the Rakuten Japan Open in straight sets. “I was playing amazing and I am so happy to come out on top,” said Medvedev. “This is my biggest title, so I’m just really happy.” The winner took just 25 minutes to wrap up the opening set, combining his consistent serving with 11 unforced errors by Nishikori. In the second set, Nishikori could win just one point on the Russian’s serve. “His ball was skipping a lot on this surface, and he was hitting good enough flat shots and he was serving great, so it was tough to play again Daniil today,” said Nishikori, who was attempting to win his third Japan Open title. Nishikori has now lost eight ATP finals since his last victory at the Memphis Open in February 2016.

 

SHINES IN BEIJING

Caroline Wozniacki thoroughly dominated the China Open final to win her third title of the season. Against Latvia’s Anastasija Sevastova, Wozniacki hit 12 winners and converted four of her eight break point chances to come away with her second Beijing title. “I feel great being here,” the Dane said. “Having won again … eight is my lucky number and it is eight years ago I won here, so I felt like it was my year.” After winning the first set, Wozniacki raced to a 4-1 lead in the second. Sevastova broke back, but Wozniacki saved three break points in her next service game to move in front 5-3. She then closed out the victory as Sevastova, who committed 35 unforced errors in the match, including 21 in the second set, lost her serve yet again. “It was one of my best tournaments ever,” Sevastova said. “Caroline played amazing today. It’s always tough playing against her and I have never won.”

Because of injuries, Sevastova retired from tennis in May 2013 and studied leisure management. She returned to the sport in January 2015 and is currently ranked in the Top 20.

 

STRESSED OUT

The expectations that come after winning the US Open has stressed out Japan’s Naomi Osaka. The 20-year-old admits she is not comfortable since her big win in September. “I think definitely as the weeks go by, I have this feeling of wanting to prove myself,” Osaka said. “I think that sort of takes a toll on me a little big because I stress myself out in a way. If you don’t win a tournament, then people will say, ‘Oh, she hasn’t won a tournament.’ If you haven’t won a Slam, they’ll say, ‘She hasn’t won a Slam.’ Then if you win one Grand Slam, they’re like, ‘Oh, she only won one Grand Slam.’ I know it’s bad, but I sort of read the comments. I’m just like, ‘Oh, I guess I have to do more, to be better.’”

 

SUFFERS BACK INJURY

There’s a question mark about Simona Halep’s year. The top-ranked woman underwent tests after being forced to retire from her first-round match at the China Open. “I had an MRI on my back and they found out I have a disk hernia,” Halep said on Twitter. “I will discuss with doctors in the next few days but hope to be back soon and will keep you updated.”  Halep, who won her first Grand Slam title, the French Open in June, was the first player to qualify for the season-ending WTA Finals in Singapore, which will be held later this month.

 

SEES OLYMPICS IN FUTURE

There are exceptions to most rules, and one just might allow Roger Federer to compete in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The rules stipulate that playing Davis Cup or Fed Cup is necessary to qualify for the Olympics. But ITF President David Haggerty said: “Within the rules are things about past champions, past Olympians and Grand Slam winners. I have been talking to Roger’s team and they’re aware of things. He may or may not play Davis Cup, it hasn’t been decided one way or another, but all that will be factored in. Certainly, someone like Roger would be great to have at the Olympics.”

 

SPORTSMANSHIP?

Two top players had to be restrained from going at each during a China Open match. With Sloane Stephens ready to serve for the second set, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova called for the trainer. When play resumed, Stephens lost her serve and, they the two approached each other, the American complained about her opponent’s tactics. “That’s the sport we play. Right? Sportsmanship. That’s really important,” Stephens told umpire Jenny Zhang. The umpire then stood between the two players as Pavlyuchenkova called Stephens disrespectful. “I’m disrespectful? What’s disrespectful? You called the physio at 5-2. You’re not even injured,” Stephens said. Pavlyuchenkova replied: “How do you know I’m not injured?” Midway through the third set, Pavlyuchenkova had an easy put away at the net. Instead, she hit the ball right at Stephens. The American managed to return the shot and eventually won the point. Returning to the baseline, Stephens was heard saying Pavlyuchenkova had tried to hit her.

 

STABBING SUSPECT CHARGED

A 33-year-old man has been charged with assault in a knife attack on December 20, 2016, in the town of Prostejov, Czech Republic. Although the Czech state prosecutor gave no names, the date and location match those of the attack on two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova. If found guilty, the man could be sentenced to 5 to 12 years in prison. Kvitova had the tendons in her fingers and thumb of her left hand severely cut when the attacker stabbed her in her apartment. She underwent complex surgery and was sidelined for several months. Kvitova is scheduled to compete in the WTA Finals in Singapore the last week of October.

 

SET FOR MOTHERHOOD

Another WTA player is joining the mother club. Elena Vesnina announced she is expecting her first child. Vesnina, who has been married to Pavel Tabuntsov since 2015, revealed her pregnancy on social media. She has not played since the French Open when she and doubles partner Ekaterina Makarova secured the number one ranking. The 32-year-old did not say whether she plans to resume playing following the birth. Several players have returned to the tour after giving birth, including Serena Williams, Victoria Azarenka, Mandy Minella and Olga Govortsova.

 

SINGAPORE-BOUND

All four 2018 Grand Slam tournament champions have qualified for the season-ending WTA Finals which will be held later this month in Singapore. US Open champion Naomi Osaka was the latest to secure a berth in the elite eight-player field, joining French Open winner Simona Halep and Wimbledon champion Angelique Kerber and Australian Open winner Caroline Wozniacki, who won the WTA Finals last year. “Winning the WTA Finals last year was a huge accomplishment for me and helped my confidence leading into this season,” Wozniacki said. Two-time Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova has qualified for the first time since a stabbing in 2015 severely injured her left playing hand. The top eight singles players will compete in a round-robin format with the winner taking home the Billie Jean King Trophy. The top eight doubles teams will compete for the Martina Navratilova Trophy.

 

SINGING FOR A PURPOSE

Performing in a video that took her out of her “comfort zone,” Serena Williams promoted breast cancer awareness month with a video in which the tennis star goes topless and sings “I Touch Myself.” The video is part of the I Touch Myself Project, which is dedicated to Divinyls singer Chrissy Amphlett, a 53-year-old Australian who died of breast cancer in 2013. Williams said she wanted to make the video because early detection saves so many lives. Williams said Amphlett “gave us her hit song to remind women to put their health first.”

 

SETTLES COMPLAINT

Iowa State University will pay tennis player Erin Freeman USD $100,000 to settle her civil rights complaint against the Big 12 school. Freeman’s attorney told the Des Moines Register newspaper the settlement “does not constitute any admission of wrong-doing or any admission of violations of applicable law, rule, regulation or policy by either party.” The settlement bars either party from commenting further on the case. The complaint, filed last May with the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights, said Freeman, one of two African-Americans on the Iowa State tennis team, had been “subjected to repeated acts of racial discrimination and sexual discrimination in violation of Title IX.” Freeman, who is from Downey, California, USA, charged that university representatives created a hostile educational environment and enlisted other student-athletes “in their efforts to drive me (and the only other African-American team member) out of the women’s tennis program and … deprive me of educational opportunities based on my race.” Now a senior, Freeman competed for Iowa State after transferring from Utah State. She was suspended from the Iowa State team on April 11 and was reinstated on May 8, the same day the school announced that it had not renewed the contract of Armando Espinosa as tennis coach.

 

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Beijing (men): Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo beat Oliver Marach and Mate Pavic 6-1 6-4

Beijing (women): Andrea Sestini Hlavackov and Barbora Strycova beat Gabriela Dabrowski and Xu Yifan 4-6 6-4 10-8 (match tiebreak)

Monterrey: Marcelo Arevalo and Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan beat Leander Paes and Miguel Angel Reyes-Varela 6-1 6-4

Stockton: Darian King and Noah Rubin beat Sanchai Ratiwatana and Christopher Rungkat 6-3 6-4

Tokyo: Ben McLachlan and Jan-Lennard Struff beat Raven Klaasen and Michael Venus 6-4 7-5

 

SURFING

Shanghai: http://en.shanghairolexmasters.com/

Tianjin: www.tianjinopen.com/

Hong Kong: www.hktennisopen.hk/en/

Linz: www.ladieslinz.at/de/

Moscow: https://kremlincup.ru/tickets/scheme/

Antwerp: http://europeanopenatp250.com/

Stockholm: http://www.stockholmopen.se/

Luxembourg: http://www.bglbnpparibas-open.lu/

 

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

 

MEN

$9,219,970 Rolex Shanghai Masters, Shanghai, China, hard

 

WOMEN

$750,000 Tianjin Open, Tianjin, China, hard

$500,000 Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open, Hong Kong, China, hard

$250,000 Upper Austria Ladies Linz, Linz, Austria, hard

 

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

 

MEN

$936,435 VTB Kremlin Cup, Moscow, Russia, hard

$789,775 European Open, Antwerp, Belgium, hard

$789,775 Intrum Stockholm Open, Stockholm, Sweden, hard

$150,000 Yinzhou International Men’s Tennis Challenger 2018, Ningbo, China, hard

 

WOMEN

$702,900 VTB Kremlin Cup, Moscow, Russia, hard

$250,000 BGL BNP Paribas Luxembourg Open, Luxembourg, Luxembourg, hard

$100,000 ITF Women’s Circuit Suzhou, Suzhou, China

 

Nikoloz Basilashvili and Juan Martin del Potro
Nikoloz Basilashvili and Juan Martin del Potro

Bernard Tomic Ends Three-Year Title Drought – Mondays with Bob Greene

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Mondays with Bob Greene

STARS

Aryna Sabalenka beat Anett Kontaveit 6-3 6-3 to win the Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open in Wuhan, China

Bernard Tomic beat Fabio Fognini 6-1 3-6 7-6 (7) to win the Chengdu Open in Chengdu, China

Yoshihito Nishioka beat Pierre-Hugues Herbert 7-5 2-6 6-4 to win the Shenzhen Open in Shenzhen, China

Margarita Gasparyan beat Anastasia Potapova 6-2 6-1 to win the Tashkent Open in Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Aljaz Bedene beat Antoine Hoang 4-6 6-1 7-6 (6) to win the Open d’Orleans in Orleans, France

Michael Mmoh beat Marcel Granollers 6-3 7-5 to win the Wells Fargo Tiburon Challenger in Tiburon, California, USA

 

SAYINGS

“For me to win here is huge, one of the biggest (ATP World Tour) 250 tournaments in the world and it means that I’ll rise back up the ATP Rankings.” – Bernard Tomic, who won his first tournament in three years.

“It was my time to be unlucky today. I’ve had a great run this year. It was a great week, but for sure I’m sad I lost the final after I had four match points. Well done to him. I fought until the end.” – Fabio Fognini, after losing the Chengdu final to Bernard Tomic.

“My goal was to play a lot of matches. I didn’t expect I would go far here.” – Margarita Gasparyan, after winning the Tashkent Open.

“I injured my ankle in my match in Shenzhen last night and there is no way I can compete effectively next week.” – Andy Murray, announcing his withdrawal from this week’s China Open and ending his 2018 season.

“The reason I made 2018 my final year was my view that eight years was the right amount of time for me to lead the team.” – Jim Courier, announcing he is stepping down as captain of the Untied States Davis Cup team.

 

SABALENKA VICTORIOUS

Aryna Sabalenka is for real. The Belarusian won the Dongfeng motor Wuhan Open to go along with her Connecticut Open title she captured in August. At 20 the youngest player in the Top 50, Sabalenka has won 25 of her last 32 matches and has reached a career-high ranking of 16th in the world. “It’s a lot of things,” Sabalenka said of her play this summer. “I just start to be more calm on the court, don’t try to go aggressive with every shot, try to find a way.” Her success wasn’t that obvious at the start of the final against Estonia’s Anett Kontaveit. Sabalenka committed six unforced errors in the first two games before settling down and using her power to take control. She didn’t face a break point in the match.

 

SECURES INDOOR CROWN

Bernard Tomic trailed 3-0 in the third-set tiebreak in qualifying. Not only did he survive that, but the Australian ended up winning the Chengdu Open, beating top-seeded Fabio Fognini of Italy in the final. “I should have lost five times,” Tomic said. “In the second round in qualifying to (Egor) Gerasimov, I was down love-40 at 4-4 in the third set and I somehow got through that match. Against (Bradley) Klahn in the first round I was down 7-6 3-1, and in the second round I was down a match point as well against (Lloyd) Harris. It’s been a rollercoaster, but I played more aggressive in the quarterfinals and semifinals. I don’t know how many match points I saved today.” Tomic saved four match points to claim his first title since July 2015 and halt Fognini’s bid to become the first Italian man to win four titles in a season.

 

SHENZHEN SURPRISE

A Japanese qualifier, Yoshihito Nishioka, won his first career title by stopping Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert in Shenzhen, China. After winning the first set and the first two games of the second set, Nishioka lost seven straight games before regaining his winning ways. “I don’t know what was going on,” Nishioka said of the up-and-down nature of his game. “Maybe I was tight for the win. I am not sure, but sure I was a little bit nervous because I almost got to the trophy. … After I lost the second set I changed my mentality, to fight.” It was Nishioka’s first ATP World Tour final and just the second for Herbert, a doubles specialist who is still seeking his first singles title. Herbert has won three Grand Slam tournament doubles titles.

 

SECOND TITLE

In a battle of Russian doubles partners, Margarita Gasparyan rolled past Anastasia Potapova to capture her second career singles title, this time the Tashkent Open. The 24-year-old Gasparyan, ranked 299th in the world, is the second-lowest ranked title-winner in WTA history. With the victory, she will move into the Top 200 in the rankings. “When I entered this event, I wanted to just play a tournament,” Gasparyan said. “I didn’t think I will win the title.” Gasparyan won the now-defunct Baku Cup in 2015 and reached a career-high ranking of 41st in the world in 2016. But her career was derailed by an injury that required several knee operations. Seven years younger than the champion, Potapova lost the first four games of the match. Still, the 17-year-old was thrilled with her week. “It’s been an amazing week for me,” she said. “Most importantly I got to play many matches and I feel more confident. I have had a busy week playing singles and doubles, and really feel tired.” Gasparyan and Potapova lost in the doubles semifinals to the top-seeded Romanian team of Irina-Camelia Begu and Raluca Olaru 4-6 6-2 10-6 (match tiebreak).

 

SHE DID WHAT?

Talk about a turnaround. Aleksandra Krunic of Serbia lost 10 of her first 11 games before upsetting sixth-seeded Elina Svitolina in the first round of the China Open in Beijing. Svitolina won the first nine games before Krunic rallied to take the second set. The Serbian then won the third-set tiebreak 7-4.

 

SEASON OVER

After suffering an ankle injury during his quarterfinal defeat the Shenzhen Open, Andy Murray has decided to end his season earlier than expected. The former world number one pulled out of this week’s China Open in Beijing and is heading home. Currently ranked 311th in the world, Murray had previously said the China Open would be his final tournament of the year. “I was sincerely looking forward to returning to Beijing, where I won the championship just two years ago,” Murray said. Fernando Verdasco of Spain defeated Murray 6-4 6-4.

 

STOPPED BY INJURY

A back injury caused top-ranked Simona Halep to retire from her first-round match at the China Open. The Romanian had injured herself in training last week during the Wuhan Open. In Beijing, Halep lost the first set to Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur 6-1 before pulling out of the match. “There is a pain,” she said. “I don’t know exactly what it is. … I will have an MRI and I will see. I’m just worried now. I feel sad I couldn’t finish. That’s why I stopped, because I felt like it’s getting worse if I continue.”

 

STEPPING DOWN

Jim Courier has ended his eight-year stint as captain of the United States Davis Cup team. He was the second longest-serving American captain after Patrick McEnroe, who was on the bench for 10 years. “It’s been my honor and privilege to represent the USTA and USA as a player and captain,” the former world number one said. “I look forward to cheering the team on as they pursue the Cup in its new format next year and beyond.”  A new captain has not yet been chosen.

 

SHOCKED

A 27-year-old player from Oman has accused a chair umpire and officials of racism because of her outfit. Fatma Al Nabhani said before her match in an International Tennis Federation (ITF) Futures event in Clermont-Ferrand, France, umpire Elsa Jacquemot of France told her she had to remove her leggings. “Being a Muslim player ad from an Arab country, I wear leggings under my skirt respecting my religion and feeling comfortable to compete and continue playing tennis,” Al Nabhani said. “The ITF attire rule allows us to play with leggings under the knee length and I have been playing like this for the past 12 years, competing in ITF and WTA (events) and I never had an issue with my attire.” When told to remove the leggings, Al Nabhani said she refused and told the umpire to check with the tournament director, who agreed with the player. “So, the chair umpire asked me to pull my leggings higher two inches so I can play because those two inches for him was a big deal,” she said. “I pulled my leggings and didn’t say anything and played my match.” Afterward, Al Nabhani blasted the umpire’s actions. “I have been playing tennis since (I was) a little kid and participating in tournaments around the world,” she said. “I have never faced racism in my life. I know this is a very sensitive topic to speak about, but what I faced in Clermont, France, was not acceptable.”

 

SHE’S EXPECTING

Martina Hingis is going to be a mother. The world former number one announced she is expecting. “Thanks for all the birthday wishes,” Hingis said after turning 38. “Happy to share that this will be the last time we’ll celebrate as a couple … excited to announce that we will become a family of three.” She didn’t say when the baby was due. The youngest player to win a Grand Slam tournament, Hingis retired for the second time in 2017 and in July this year married former Swiss team doctor Harald Leemann.

 

SKIN CANCER

Boris Becker says doctors are treating him for a type of skin cancer. He was asked about after photos of the 50-year-old Hall of Famer showed him with a small bandage under his sunglasses. “I went to the dermatologist … where I had a basal cell carcinoma cut off,” Becker told he German publication Image. “It was a routine examination and it looks worse than it is.” Basal cell carcinoma is the most common form of skin cancer. If detected early, the patient has a good chance of recovery.

 

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Chengdu: Ivan Dodig and Mate Pavic beat Austin Krajicek and Jeevan Nednchezhiyan 6-2 6-4

Orleans: Luke Bambridge and Jonny O’Mara beat Yannick Maden and Tristan-Samuel Weissborn 6-2 6-4

Shenzhen: Ben McLachlan and Joe Salisbury beat Robert Lindstedt and Rajeev Ram 7-6 (5) 7-6 (4)

Tashkent: Olga Danilovic and Tamara Zidansek beat Irina-Camelia Begu and Raluca Olaru 7-5 6-3

Tiburon: Hans Hach Verdugo and Luke Saville beat Gerard Granollers and Pedro Martinez 6-3 6-2

Wuhan: Elise Mertens and Demi Schuurs beat Andrea Sestini Hlavackov and Barbora Strycova 6-3 6-3

 

SURFING

Beijing: www.chinaopen.com/

Tokyo: www.rakutenopen.com/index.php

Monterrey: www.abiertognpseguros.com/

Shanghai: http://en.shanghairolexmasters.com/

Tianjin: www.tianjinopen.com/

Hong Kong: www.hktennisopen.hk/en/

Linz: www.ladieslinz.at/de/

 

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

MEN

$4,658,510 China Open, Beijing, China, hard

$1,928,580 Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships, Tokyo, Japan, hard

$150,000 Abierto GNP Seguros, Monterrey, Mexico, hard

$100,000 Stockton Challenger, Stockton, California, USA, hard

 

WOMEN

$4,720,380 China Open, Beijing, China, hard

 

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

 

MEN

$9,219,970 Rolex Shanghai Masters, Shanghai, China, hard

 

WOMEN

$750,000 Tianjin Open, Tianjin, China, hard

$500,000 Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open, Hong Kong, China, hard

$250,000 Upper Austria Ladies Linz, Linz, Austria, hard

 

Bernie Tomic
Bernic Tomic

Daring Daria Will Make Kasatkina A Household Name

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The winds of change in the professional tennis world haven’t blown for quite some time. In the last 15 years, both the men’s and women’s games have been dominated by a select few with the rest left to fight it out over any scraps that were accidentally dropped. This is beginning to change and, all of a sudden, a slight breeze has started to blow as some of the sport’s top names are being uprooted by a surge of young stars.

Daria Kasatkina is breathing life into the women’s games after the domination of the likes of Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova. This versatile 21-year-old has the world talking again after her victory over Caroline Wozniacki at the French Open. A lot of the headlines have described that result as an upset but, in fairness to the Russian, it has been a result she has grown accustomed to over the season.

Those that have been keeping an eye on Kasatkina’s young career by monitoring her progress wouldn’t have been surprised by the result on the famous Philippe Chatrier court on Sunday the third of June. There have been many upsets on this historic court over its 90-year history but this can’t be put into the same category given that Kasatkina has beaten Wozniacki twice before this season on hard courts.

The first victory in the St Petersburg Open in Russia this season may have had mitigating circumstances surrounding it, given that Wozniacki was suffering from jet lag, but the Russian has beaten the Dane twice since then. The following two victories were at the BNP Paribas Open, with the latest one occurring at Roland Garros.

A hat-trick of wins against Wozniacki, who is the second-highest ranked female player in the world, is no small feat and more than suggests we are witnessing the emergence of yet another young sensation. The manner of Kasatkina’s victory at the French Open illustrated how dynamic her game is and would have left no one in the dark about the potential she possesses, even if the natural light deteriorated to the point where the players had to stop the game and come back the day after to finish.

Glory at the French Open would have to wait another year for Kasatkina, after losing to Sloane Stephens in the quarter-finals signaled the end of the road for her at Roland Garros. Stephens would eventually lose to Simona Halep in the final as the Romanian won her first French Open title. For Kasatkina, it would have been a disappointing end as all losses in the knockout stages are but after some reflection, the 21- year old would have come to the conclusion that she’s very close to something big happening.

Kasatkina has claimed more than one big scalp during her career and has proven she is more than capable of mixing it with the best. The Russian has beaten Angelique Kerber three times already as well as getting the better of former world number one Venus Williams and current number one Simona Halep. The creativity she possesses is without a doubt the strongest weapon in her arsenal and Wozniacki admitted as much after her defeat.

Speaking after the defeat at Roland Garros, Wozniacki said she didn’t think she played that badly; carrying on, the Dane said of Kasatkina that “she didn’t miss one ball and was playing very close to the lines”. The most revealing quote was when Wozniacki said: “I was trying what I could, but it just wasn’t enough today”. That will send shivers down the spines of fellow competitors who have to play Kasatkina in the future.

The ability to win so convincingly even when your opponent is playing well is what all great tennis champions have in common and it seems Kasatkina has the game to do just that. When players like Wozniacki begin to pay you glowing endorsements like that, others begin to sit up and take note. After all, Wozniacki along with Simona Halep have surpassed Serena Williams at the top and are now the players to beat. If you begin doing that with the consistency and ease that Kasatkina has been doing it with, then there is a very good chance you’re on your way to surpassing them.

After the French Open, Kasatkina finds herself at number 14 in the official WTA rankings and is currently Russia’s number one ranked female player. The rankings are a good indication of where she is now but certainly don’t reflect where she will be in a couple of seasons. By the age of twenty-three, it is very plausible to think she could have won her first Grand Slam.

The Russian is a student of tennis and has a comprehensive understanding of her abilities in the game and what makes her the player she is. That’s very evident when you watch her play and as she dictates the tempo of the game by forcing her style onto the contest. You can only play that way by having a detailed knowledge of your opponent’s strengths and weaknesses, and that is what Kasatkina has. The number 14 in the world will never arrive on a court without having done her due diligence on the player she’s coming up against, which automatically gives her a clearer view of the task at hand.

When hearing about tales of professional sports stars getting to the top, the underlying feature will be that talent alone isn’t enough. Examples of having had the desire and will to get to the top are driven home every time a new face appears at the summit of any sporting code. It’s no coincidence this is the common denominator of success and, as old and worn as the message is, it rings true every time. Kasatkina is a work in progress but is showing through her extensive background knowledge of tennis that she’s intent on going places.

When you combine guile and talent, as well as a whopper of a forehand, the results normally speak for themselves. Tennis has a new competitor on the block who’s likely to put some very prestigious tennis names out to pasture as she brings in a new dawn of domination. If the winds of change are blowing ever so softly now, they will have turned into a howling gale force over the next two years.

Daria Kastkina
Daria Kastkina

Who Will Win The Hungarian Ladies Open?

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The Hungarian Ladies Open in Budapest is a hard-court indoor event played in the beautiful city of Budapest. It is the 22nd edition of the event, which has seen itself as a clay-court event back in the day.  Here we share with you players to look out for during the tournament rated as favorites by several bookmakers including NetBet Sport.

Dominika Cibulkova

Dominika is the top-seed and one of the fastest players on the WTA Tour. Her quick feet and aggressiveness have enabled her to enjoy remarkable success on the global stage. She has eight WTA singles titles and reached the final of the 2014 Australian Open. Dominika has been an incredible performer over the past 12 months reaching the quarterfinals or better in all four Grand Slam tournaments she participated in. In addition to her run to the final of the Australian Open , she won the year-end WTA Finals in 2016 becoming the fourth player after Petra Kvitova (2011), Maria Sharapova (2004), and Serena Williams (2001) to win the tournament on debut.

 

Zhang Shuai

The current second highest ranking female Chinese singles Player, Zhang Shuai has had a stellar career that includes 20 ITF Women’s Circuit titles, two WTA 125s, and two WTA Tour titles, both of which came at the Guangzhou International Women’s Open. In 2016 at the Australian Open, Zhang won her first Grand Slam tournament match en route to the quarterfinals. Alongside Peng Shuai, Zheng Jie, and Li Na, she is one of only four Chinese tennis players to reach the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam tournament.

Tímea Babos

Hungary will be represented at the Hungarian Tennis Open by one of their own, Timea Babos. Babos was born and bred in the town of Sapron in Hungary. Babos is one of the most decorated Hungarian tennis players of all time, recently she won the doubles at the 2018 Australian Open adding to 17 doubles wins and 3 singles wins on the WTA Tour. She also has 12 singles and 9 doubles titles on the ITF Women’s Circuit. Babos’ first game at the Hungarian Tennis Open will be against Tatjana Maria from Germany at the Kormoczy Court in the Round of 32.

Dominka Cibulkova
Dominka Cibulkova

Timea Babos Continues Her Strong 2018 Beginning – Mondays with Bob Greene

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Mondays with Bob Greene

 

STARS

                                  

MEN

Petra Kvitova beat Kristina Mladenovic 6-1 6-2 to win the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy in St. Petersburg, Russia

Timea Babos beat Kateryna Kozlova 7-5 6-1 to win the Taiwan Open in Taipei, Taiwan

Kei Nishikori beat Mackenzie McDonald 6-1 6-4 to win the RBC Tennis Championships in Dallas, Texas, USA

Madison Brengle beat Jamie Loeb 6-1 6-2 to win the Dow Tennis Classic in Midland, Michigan, USA

 

DAVIS CUP

(First Round)

 

WORLD GROUP

France beat Netherlands 3-1 at Albertville, France

Italy beat Japan 3-1 at Morioka, Japan

Spain beat Great Britain 3-1 at Marbella, Spain

Germany beat Australia 3-1 at Brisbane, Australia

Kazakhstan beat Switzerland 4-1 at Astana, Kazakhstan

Croatia beat Canada 3-1 at Ostjek, Croatia

United States beat Serbia 3-1 at Nis, Serbia

Belgium beat Hungary 3-2 at Liege, Belgium

 

GROUP I

Americans Zone: Chile beat Ecuador 3-1 at Santiago, Chile; Colombia beat Barbados 5-0 at St. Michael, Barbados; Brazil beat Dominican Republic 3-2 at Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

Asia/Oceania Zone: China beat New Zealand 3-1 at Tianjin, China; Pakistan beat Korea 4-0 at Islamabad, Pakistan

Europe/Africa Zone: Israel beat South Africa 3-2 at Centurion, South Africa; Sweden beat Ukraine 3-2 at Dnipro, Ukraine; Austria beat Belarus 5-0 at St. Polten, Austria

 

GROUP II

Americas Zone: Venezuela beat Guatemala 3-1 at Guatemala, Guatemala; Uruguay beat El Salvador 4-1 at San Salvador, El Salvador; Mexico beat Puerto Rico 5-0 at Tijuana, Mexico; Peru beat Bolivia 4-0 at La Paz, Bolivia

Asia/Oceania Zone: Thailand beat Sri Lanka 3-2 at Colombo, Sri Lanka; Philippines beat Indonesia 4-1 at Jakarta, Indonesia; Hong Kong beat Iran 4-0 at Hong Kong; Lebanon beat Chinese Taipei 3-2 at Beirut, Lebanon

Europe/Africa Zone: Romania beat Luxembourg 4-1 at Piatra Neamt, Romania; Morocco beat Georgia 3-1 at Marrakech, Morocco; Poland beat Slovenia 3-2 at Maribor, Slovenia; Zimbabwe beat Turkey 3-1 at Harare, Zimbabwe; Egypt beat Norway 4-0 at Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt; Denmark beat Ireland 4-1 at Birkerod, Denmark; Finland beat Tunisia at Tunis, Tunisia; Lithuania beat Estonia 3-1 at Siauliai, Lithuania

 

GROUP IV

Asia/Oceania Zone at Muscat Oman, hard: Oman and Singapore promoted to Group III in 2019

SAYING

“All week I played unbelievable matches and I really had to fight to make the final. It is not easy at the beginning of the year.” – Petra Kvitova, after winning the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy event.

“It’s been five-and-a-half weeks, amazing five-and-a-half weeks.” – Timea Babos, who continued her Australian Open doubles successes by winning the Taiwan Open singles title.

“It was so close. I went through all the emotions the whole weekend.” – Yannick Noah, Davis Cup coach whose French team defeated the Netherlands 3-1 when Adrian Mannarino edged Robin Haase in five sets.

“I am super positive and excited to follow my recovery through so I can come back to the place I love the most. The court.” – Novak Djokovic, announcing he has undergone elbow surgery.

“It’s awesome, it’s an amazing feeling, and without my teammates it wouldn’t have been possible.” – Alexander Zverev, whose straight-set win over Nick Kyrgios gave Germany a Davis Cup World Group victory over Australia.

ST. PETERSBURG TROPHY

Entering the tournament with a wild card, Petra Kvitova wound up winning the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy, stomping defending champion Kristina Mladenovic in the final. “This was a special tournament for me,” Kvitova said after winning her first title of 2018. The title match was all Kvitova, who slammed seven aces and saved all three break points she faced in becoming the first left-hander to win a singles title in Russia. The victory extends Kvitova’s streak of winning at least one WTA title since 2011. “I fought very hard every single match,” Mladenovic said, “but Petra had an amazing week.” It was Kvitova’s 21st career singles title, fifth highest among active players and snapping the tie she had with Victoria Azarenka and Agnieszka Radwanska.

 

SURGERY ON ELBOW

Novak Djokovic underwent surgery to cure an elbow injury that has troubled him for the past two years. “I agreed with my team that I would try different methods after I finish in Australia and a few days ago I accepted to do a small medical intervention on my elbow,” the 30-year-old Serb said. “I’ve been carrying this injury for the past two years, and during this time I’ve been seeing many doctors. I took six months off last season, hoping to come back fully recovered, but unfortunately I still felt pain.” Once ranked number one in the world, Djokovic has won 12 Grand Slam tournament singles titles.

 

STRONG RETURN

Playing in his second tournament since missing nearly six months with a wrist injury, Kei Nishikori of Japan captured his first title in two years by winning the RBC Tennis Championships, an ATP Challenger Tour event in Dallas, Texas, USA. It was Nishikori’s sixth Challenger circuit title and his first since 2010. The Japanese star was ranked as high as fourth in the world. But he was one of several players who saw their 2017 seasons cut short by injury. The 28-year-old Nishikori has used the Challenger Tour to rediscover his rhythm and find confidence in his return to the court. In the Dallas final, Nishikori easily beat American Mackenzie McDonald, turning aside all four break points he faced.

 

SURGING

It has been the best year of her career so far for Timea Babos. The Hungarian won the Taiwan Open singles title by beating Ukraine’s Kateryna Kozlova in straight sets. And that comes right after Babos teamed with Kristina Mladenovic to win the Australian Open women’s doubles and finished runner-up in the mixed doubles with Rohan Bopanna. “Starting with a quarterfinal (at the Shenzhen Open), winning my first Slam in doubles, beating a Top 10 player in singles (CoCo Vandeweghe in the first round of the Australian Open), and here winning another title in singles, it’s been amazing,” Babos said. “So far this season, in all my matches I’ve played, I’ve played good, I fought hard, and this is what happened all week here.” Kozlova took a 4-2 lead in the first set, breaking Babos twice. “It was not easy. She played really well and really aggressive in the first set,” Babos said. “But I stayed there, I got all the important moments, and I really fought hard.” Babos won five of the next six games to grab the first, and six of the next seven to capture the title.

 

STRONG SHOWING

Alexander Zverev’s 6-2 7-6 (3) 6-2 win over Nick Kyrgios gave Germany an unbeatable 3-1 victory over Australia in their Davis Cup World Group tie in Brisbane, Australia. Besides serving well throughout, only facing two break points in the match, Zverev also returned well in beating Australia’s top player. “(To win) against a very strong Australian team makes us very confident for the next round, for the upcoming years,” German captain Michael Kohlmann said. “We showed we have a lot of good players, a lot of strong players. We showed that we are able to go further than this.” It was a different Zverev than the player who needed five sets to stop 18-year-old Alex de Minaur. But after the Germans won the doubles to take a 2-1 led, Zverev broke Kyrgios twice to win the opening set in 23 minutes. The Australian appeared troubled by his elbow and often shook his right arm between points. Still, Kyrgios played much better and twice reached set point, only to have Zverev save them both, then take the tiebreak 7-3. It was all Germany after that.

 

SICK CALL

The blisters that forced him to retire from his semifinal against Roger Federer at the Australian Open are continuing to keep Hyeon Chung sidelined. The young Korean pulled out of next week’ New York Open because his feet have not fully recovered. The 21-year-old Chung became the first Korean to reach the semifinals of a Grand Slam tournament last month, beating Novak Djokovic along the way. But he had to stop during the second set against eventual champion Federer because of blisters on his feet.

 

STEP BACKWARDS

Australia’s troubled Bernard Tomic has entered two Challenger tournaments in Europe as his first steps back to a tennis career. That’s against the advice of several members of the Australian tennis community, who suggest Tomic step away from the game for at least 12 months. The Courier-Mail newspaper said Tomic has entered a Challenger level tournament in Lille, France, that begins March 19, and a second Challenger event in Alicante, Spain, that begins April 2.

 

SO COSTLY

Marcelo Rios, a member of Chile’s player support personnel team, was fined USD $2,500 by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) for verbal abuse toward a group of journalists covering Chile’s Davis Cup Americas Zone Group I tie against Ecuador. The referee reviewed video footage of the incident and determined that Rios’ comments were abusive and in violation of the Davis Cup Code of Conduct.

 

STAYING AWAY

Israel’s 3-2 Davis Cup Group I Europe/Africa Zone victory over South Africa was tense both on and off the court. The Israelis won both reverse singles after South Africa led 2-1 following the doubles. Dudi Sela began the final day by beating Lloyd Harris 7-6 (2) 6-1 before Eden Leshem downed Nicolaas Scholtz 6-3 7-5 in the decisive fifth match. While the two nations battled on the court, anti-apartheid activists protested outside the event over what they claim is Israeli racism against Palestinians. South African Sports Minister Thusal Nxesi also boycotted the event. The protests did not interfere with the play.

 

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Dallas: Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan and Christopher Rungkat beat Leander Paes and Joe Salisbury 6-4 3-6 10-7 (match tiebreak)

Midland: Kaitlyn Christian and Sabrina Santamaria beat Jessica Pegula and Maria Sanchez 7-5 4-6 10-8 (match tiebreak)

St. Petersburg: Timea Bacsinszky and Vera Zvonareva beat Alla Kudryavtseva and Katarina Srebotnik 2-6 6-1 10-3 (match tiebreak)

Taipei: Duan Ying-Ying and Wang Yafan beat Nao Hibino and Oksana Kalashnikova 7-6 (4) 7-6 (5)

 

lavackov

SURFING

Sofia: https://sofiaopen.bg/en

Quito: www.ecuadoropen.com.ec/

Montpellier: www.opensuddefrance.com/

Fed Cup: www.fedcup.com

Doha: www.qatartennis.org/tournaments/index/123

Rotterdam: www.abnamrowtt.nl/en/

New York: www.NewYorkOpen.com

Buenos Aires: https://argentinaopenatp.com/atp/es/

 

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

 

MEN

$697,930 Diema Xtra Sofia Open, Sofia, Bulgaria, hard

$697,930 Open Sud de France, Montpellier, France, hard

$561,345 Ecuador Open, Quito, Ecuador, clay

$100,000 Kunel Patel San Francisco Open, San Francisco, California, USA, hard

 

FED CUP

First Round

WORLD GROUP

Belarus vs. Germany at Minsk, Belarus, hard

Czech Republic vs. Switzerland at Prague, Czech Republic, hard

France vs. Belgium at La Roche-sur-Yon, France, hard

United States vs. Netherlands at Asheville, Tennessee, USA, hard

 

WORLD GROUP II

Slovakia vs. Russia at Bratislava, Slovakia, hard; Australia vs. Ukraine at Canberra, Australia, grass; Romania vs. Canada at Cluj-Napoca, Romania, hard; Italy vs. Spain at Chieti, Italy, clay

 

GROUP I

Americas Zone at Asuncion, Paraguay, clay: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Guatemala, Paraguay, Venezuela

Asia/Oceania Zone at New Delhi, India, hard: China, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Kazakhstan, Korea, Thailand

Europe/Africa Zone at Tallinn, Estonia, hard: Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia, Georgia, Great Britain, Hungary, Latvia, Poland, Portugal, Serbia, Slovenia, Sweden, Turkey

 

GROUP II

Asia/Oceania Group at Isa Town, Bahrain, hard: Bahrain, Indonesia, Iran, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Malaysia, New Zealand, Oman, Pacific Oceania, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Uzbekistan

 

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

 

MEN

$2,485,960 ABN Amro World Tennis Tournament, Rotterdam, Netherlands, hard

$748,450 New York Open, New York, New York, hard

$648,180 Argentina Open, Buenos Aires, Argentina, clay

 

WOMEN

$710,900 Qatar Total Open, Doha, Qatar, hard

 

Timea Babos
Timea Babos

Angelique Kerber Is a Winner Again – Mondays with Bob Greene

by

Mondays with Bob Greene

 

STARS                       

Angelique Kerber beat Ashleigh Barty 6-4 6-4 to win the Sydney International women’s singles in Sydney, Australia

Roberto Bautista Agut beat Juan Martin del Potro 6-1 4-6 7-5 to win the ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand

Daniil Medvedev beat Alex de Minaur 1-6 6-4 7-5 to win the Sydney International men’s singles in Sydney, Australia

Elise Mertens beat Mihaela Buzarnescu 6-1 4-6 6-3 to win the Hobart International in Hobart, Australia

 

SAYING

“I am playing amazing tennis again and feeling just great.” – Angelique Kerber, after winning her first title since the 2016 US Open.

“I played some of my best tennis this week and it wasn’t enough.” – Ashleigh Barty, after losing to Angelique Kerber in the Sydney International women’s final.

“I’m the kind of person the more emotions I feel, the less I show them, actually, especially if they are good ones.” – Daniil Medvedev, who won his first ATP World Tour title.

“It’s been a roller coaster, and I honestly wouldn’t have it any other way. I have enjoyed every second of it. It’s been a thrill, and I just want it to keep on going.” – Alex de Minaur, after reaching the Sydney International men’s singles final, losing to Daniil Medvedev.

“Today I felt really good on the court and I played very good tennis throughout the match. Juan Martin is a great champion, he’s very tough to beat and I played two amazing games in the last two games of the match.” – Roberto Bautista Agut, after being Juan Martin del Potro to win the ASB Classic.

“It rained like three or four times, so I am really thankful everybody stayed, actually.” – Elise Mertens, thanking the Hobart crowd after winning a rain-delayed final that lasted seven hours.

“I should have been more patient and not complain that much.” – Mihaela Buzarnescu, upset with her high number of unforced errors in her Hobart final loss to Elise Mertens.

“Even if it’s 100 percent healed, after six months of no competition you never know how you’re going to react.” – Novak Djokovic, seeking his seventh Australian Open title while playing in his first tournament since Wimbledon because of an elbow injury.

 

SNAPS STREAK

Former world number one Angelique Kerber won her first title in more than year when she defeated Ashleigh Barty to capture the Sydney International women’s singles. It was the German’s first title since she won the US Open in 2016 and her 11th career title. Counting the Hopman Cup exhibition, Kerber has now won eight consecutive matches to begin the season. “It feels very good to win my first title in my first tournament this year,” Kerber said. “I feel like I am getting closer to my 2016 level.” Her Australian opponent also was pleased with her play, despite the loss. “It would have been nice to get a win for them today,” Barty said of her home crowd, “but it was a hell of a week. Perfect preparation for next week (the Australian Open). I feel like if I play like that, I’ll probably beat most of the people in the draw.”

 

SECURES FIRST TITLE 

Daniil Medvedev had to work overtime, but he didn’t mind. The Russian qualifier won seven matches to win up with his first ATP Tour title at the Sydney International. Medvedev finished his off his victorious week with a three-set win over young Australian Alex de Minaur. “I’m really happy,” Medvedev said. “I mean, to make it through the quallies, there were so many circumstances.” At first it appeared Medvedev had run out of steam. He held to begin the match before de Minaur ripped off the next six games for the opening set. Medvedev leveled the contest by winning the second set and served for the match at 5-4 in the third. De Minaur, however, broke his Russian foe before the 18-year-old began to show signs of fatigue. Three years older, Medvedev used de Minaur’s errors to break right back, then served for the title again at 6-5. This time, he prevailed. It was the youngest ATP World Tour Final since Rafael Nadal defeated Novak Djokovic at the 2007 BNP Paribas Open.

 

STUNNER

Roberto Bautista Agut apparently didn’t get the message that Juan Martin del Potro was the better player. After all, del Potro reached the Auckland Classic final without dropping a set. His Spanish opponent, however, proved to be the better player this day. Bautista Agut dominated the opening set before del Potro rallied to capture the second. The two held serve in the final set until Bautista Agut broke at 5-5. He then served out the match. “It feels wonderful,” the winner said. “It was an unbelievable match today. I’ve been fighting a lot on the court and I couldn’t believe I was playing my best tennis.” Del Potro said he had problems playing in the humid condition in the daytime after playing his previous matches at night. “When I had to play in the sun it was very tough for me,” said del Potro, who still was pleased with his week. “It’s a good start of the year for me,” he said. “I didn’t expect to reach a final in my first tournament of the year, but I played well.”

 

SWEEP

Forget the rain delays, Hobart, Australia, is a very special place for Belgium’s Elise Mertens. Not only did she become the first player in history to win the Hobart International more than once, she also teamed with Demi Schuurs to capture the doubles crown as well. “My first title last year, and I think to repeat for a second title, I think I’m most proud of that for the consistency and to prove that I can win again,” said Mertens. The match took more than seven hours to complete, due to a delayed start and three suspensions of play for rain, the last after first-time WTA finalist Mihaela Buzarnescu had saved two match points. “It’s been a wonderful week and to come back to Hobart is such a great feeling,” Mertens said. “My level was there during the whole week, so I’m really happy with the trophy.”

 

STILL HURTING

Seeking his seventh Australian Open title, former world number one Novak Djokovic admits he’s still hurting as he begins the year’s first Grand Slam tournament. “It hasn’t been 100 percent yet healed,” Djokovic said of his right elbow. The right-hander hasn’t played competitively since Wimbledon last July. But he said doctors have convinced him that playing in the Australian Open will not cause more damage to the elbow. “Right now, it’s at a level where I can compete, and every day is getting better,” he said. “I’m hoping that it can be 100 percent at the start of the tournament. I don’t know how it’s going to behave.” Djokovic said the injury had been bothering him for about 18 months before the pain became too much. He played an exhibition match last week, defeating Austria’s Dominic Thiem in straight sets.

 

SIGNALS LONGEVITY

Max Mirnyi just keeps going. The 40-year-old Belarusian played in his 1,000th overall match win, counting singles and doubles, when he and partner Philipp Osward reached the final of the ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand. Mirnyi has won 756 matches in doubles and 244 in singles. He didn’t add to his total however as he and Oswald fell to Oliver Marach and Mate Pavic in the final. In 1998, Mirnyi teamed with Serena Williams to win the mixed doubles at both Wimbledon and the US Open.

 

SELECTED

James Blake has been selected as the new tournament director of the Miami Open. Ranked as high as fourth in the world, Blake said: “As a player, I always loved playing in Miami and I am excited for the opportunity to take the tournament experience to a higher level for the players, sponsors and fans.” In announcing Blake’s selection, the tournament, in a release, said he will focus on player relations, media, broadcast as well as tournament improvements and innovations. This year’s Miami Open will be played on Key Biscayne, Florida, USA, from March 19 to April 1.

 

SIGNAL HONOR

By capturing the Hobart International, Elise Mertens became the first winner of the new Angie Cunningham Trophy. The award was named in honor of the late Angie Cunning, who died in 2016 after a long battle with Motor Neurone Disease. Cunningham was ranked second in the world as a junior and reached the Australian Open and Wimbledon junior girls’ doubles finale. She competed in the first Hobart International in 1994 and later became the WTA Tour’s vice president of Player Relations and On-Site Operations. “To coincide with the 25th edition of our event, we felt there was no greater way to honor a legendary Tasmanian tennis identity who was respected globally,” tournament director Darren Sturgess said.

 

SAYS NEW NAME

Billie Jean King has joined the call for Margaret Court’s name to be removed from one of Australian Open’s main venues. A trailblazer for equality and diversity in tennis, King said she had been a proponent for having Margaret Court Arena named in 2003 in recognition of the 24-time Grand Slam tournament singles winner’s contributions to the sport. But recently Court, now a minister, has made disparaging remarks about the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities. “I was fine until lately when she said so many derogatory things about my community – I’m a gay woman – about the LBGTIQ community,” King said. “That really went deep in my heart and soul.” King has been honored by having the US Open played at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York City. But she said if she was still competing, she wouldn’t play on Margaret Court Arena nor would she promote a boycott of the stadium. “It’s really important if you’re going to have your name on anything that you’re hospitable, you’re inclusive, you open your arms to everyone that comes,” King said. “It’s a public facility.”

 

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Auckland: Oliver Marach and Mate Pavic beat Max Mirnyi and Philipp Osward 6-4 5-7 10-7 (match tiebreak)

Hobart: Elise Mertens and Demi Schuurs beat Lyudmyla Kichenok and Makoto Ninomiya 6-2 6-2

Sydney (men): Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo beat Jan-Lennard Struff and Viktor Troicki 6-3 6-4 

Sydney (women): Gabriela Dabrowski and Xu Yifan beat Latisha Chan and Andrea Sestini Hlavackov 6-3 6-1

 

SURFING

Melbourne: https://ausopen.com/

Newport Beach: http://oraclechallengerseries.com/

 

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

MEN and WOMEN

$15,090,977 Australian Open (first week), Melbourne, Australia, hard

 

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

 

MEN

Australian Open (second week), Melbourne, Australia, hard

$150,000 Oracle Challenger Series Newport Beach, Newport Beach, California, USA, hard

 

WOMEN

Australian Open (second week), Melbourne, Australia, hard

$140,000 Oracle Challenger Series Newport Beach, Newport Beach, California, USA, hard

 

Angelique Kerber Forehand
Angelique Kerber Forehand

Tennis History And Instructional Books Available For The Holidays From New Chapter Press

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“The Greatest Tennis Matches of All Time” by 2017 International Tennis Hall of Fame inductee Steve Flink highlights many New Chapter Press tennis book offerings that make for excellent gift ideas this holiday season.

“The Greatest Tennis Matches of All Time” features profiles and rankings of the greatest matches of all time dating from the1920s featuring Bill Tilden and Suzanne Lenglen up through the modern era of tennis featuring contemporary stars Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova. Flink breaks down, analyzes and puts into historical context the sport’s most memorable matches, providing readers with a courtside seat at these most celebrated and significant duels. Flink also includes a fascinating “greatest strokes of all-time” section where he ranks and describes the players who best executed all the important shots in the game through the years.

The book is published by New Chapter Press, the premier global publisher of tennis books.

The hard-cover book, that makes for a centerpiece of a coffee table or at your local tennis club, retails for $28.95, and can be purchased here on Amazon.com https://www.amazon.com/dp/0942257936/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_x_Qj-rybVBRK7ZW or at www.NewChapterMedia.com and where ever books are sold.

Flink, one of the most respected writers and observers in the game, is currently a columnist for TennisChannel.com. A resident of Katonah, N.Y., he is the former editor of World Tennis magazine and a former senior columnist at Tennis Week. The book has received high praise from some of the most respected names in the sport, including Chris Evert, a winner of 18 major singles titles in her career, who wrote the foreword to the book. Said seven-time Wimbledon champion Pete Sampras, “Steve Flink was there reporting on almost every big match I played in my career. He has seen all of the great players for the last 45 years. I encourage you to read this book because Steve is one of the most insightful writers on the game that I have known and he really knows his tennis.”

The Secrets of Spanish Tennis ($19.95 for sale here https://www.amazon.com/dp/1937559491/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_U_x_2DUjAb11C47RB by New York City elite tennis teaching professional Chris Lewit, is the culmination of years of study on the Spanish way of training by Lewit, who visited many of the top Spanish academies and studied and interviewed some of the leading coaches in Spain to discern and distill this unique and special training methodology.

The Greatest Jewish Tennis Players of All Time ($19.95 for sale here https://www.amazon.com/dp/193755936X/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_U_x_WKUjAbQJMXVJG) by tennis journalist Sandra Harwitt is unique among other books on tennis as it is a guide to the best and most influential Jewish tennis players in the history of the sport. It includes features and biographies of the greatest players, stories of both break-out success and anti-Semitism. This history also discusses the ways in which Jewish individuals have been instrumental behind the scenes, playing key roles in the growth of tennis into one of the world’s most popular sports.

Other recommended tennis titles are as follows;

The Wimbledon Final That Never Was ($19.95 for sale here https://www.amazon.com/dp/0942257847/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_U_x_6LUjAb1CNQJSG) tells of one of the most dramatic and unusual episodes in tennis history told by 1931 Wimbledon champion Sidney Wood. The volume also features tales of a by-gone era of sports and society via a compilation of short stories that deliver fascinating anecdotes of the 1930s and a signature document of the play and styles of 20th-century tennis legends.

Titanic: The Tennis Story ($19.95 for sale here https://www.amazon.com/dp/1937559041/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_U_x_FNUjAbV8X1V9K) by Lindsay Gibbs is the stirring and remarkable historical novel that tells the story of the intertwined life of Dick Williams and Karl Behr who survived the sinking of the Titanic and went on to have Hall of Fame tennis careers. Two years after both had harrowing escapes from the famous disaster, the two met in the quarterfinals of the modern-day U.S. Open. An emotional and touching work, this novel brings one of the most extraordinary sports stories to life in literary form. This real-life account – with an ending seemingly plucked out of a Hollywood screenplay – weaves the themes of love, tragedy, history, sport and perseverance.

On This Day In Tennis History ($19.95, 528 pages, for sale here https://www.amazon.com/dp/0942257421/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_U_x_HOUjAbD91C0SF) is a fun and fact-filled, this compilation offers anniversaries, summaries, and anecdotes of events from the world of tennis for every day in the calendar year written by Randy Walker. Presented in a day-by-day format, the entries into this mini-encyclopedia include major tournament victory dates, summaries of the greatest matches ever played, trivia, and statistics as well as little-known and quirky happenings.

Macci Magic: Extracting Greatness From Yourself And Others by Rick Macci ($19.95 for sale here https://www.amazon.com/dp/1937559254/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_U_x_XPUjAbS7M86V5) offers the secrets to success both on and off the tennis court by master coach and motivator Rick Macci, who coached tennis superstars Venus and Serena Williams, Jennifer Capriati, Andy Roddick and Maria Sharapova among others. Through anecdotes and more than 100 sayings that exemplify his teaching philosophy, this inspirational manual helps pave the way to great achievement not only in tennis, but in business and in life.

Founded in 1987, New Chapter Press (www.NewChapterMedia.com) is also the publisher of “Andy Murray, Wimbledon Champion: The Full Extraordinary Story” by Mark Hodgkinson, “The Bud Collins History of Tennis” by Bud Collins, “Sport of a Lifetime” by Judy Aydelott, “Macci Magic: Extracting Greatness From Yourself And Others” by Rick Macci with Jim Martz, “How To Permanently Erase Negative Self Talk So You Can Be Extraordinary” by Emily Filloramo, “Acing Depression: A Tennis Champion’s Toughest Match” by Cliff Richey and Hilaire Richey Kallendorf, “Your Playbook For Beating Depression” by Cliff Richey and Mary Garrison, “The Education of a Tennis Player” by Rod Laver with Bud Collins, “Roger Federer: Quest for Perfection” by Rene Stauffer, “The Days of Roger Federer” by Randy Walker, “Jan Kodes: A Journey To Glory From Behind The Iron Curtain” by Jan Kodes with Peter Kolar, “Tennis Made Easy” by Kelly Gunterman, “On This Day In Tennis History” by Randy Walker (www.TennisHistoryApp.com), “A Player’s Guide To USTA League Tennis” by Tony Serksnis, “Court Confidential: Inside The World Of Tennis” by Neil Harman, “A Backhanded Gift” by Marshall Jon Fisher, “Boycott: Stolen Dreams of the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games” by Tom Caraccioli and Jerry Caraccioli (www.Boycott1980.com), “Internet Dating 101: It’s Complicated, But It Doesn’t Have To Be” by Laura Schreffler, “How To Sell Your Screenplay” by Carl Sautter, “The Lennon Prophecy: A New Examination of the Death Clues of The Beatles” by Joe Niezgoda, “Bone Appetit: Gourmet Cooking For Your Dog” by Suzan Anson, “The Rules of Neighborhood Poker According to Hoyle” by Stewart Wolpin among others.

 

"The Greatest Tennis Matches of All Time"
“The Greatest Tennis Matches of All Time”
"The Greatest Tennis Matches of All Time"
“The Greatest Tennis Matches of All Time”

 

Bosnia’s Damir Dzumhur Wins Second Russian Title – Mondays with Bob Greene

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Mondays with Bob Greene

 

STARS

Damir Dzumhur beat Ricardas Berankis 6-2 1-6 6-4 to win the VTP Kremlin Cup men’s singles in Moscow, Russia

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga beat Diego Schwartzman 6-3 7-5 to win the European Open in Antwerp, Belgium

Juan Martin del Potro beat Grigor Dimitrov 6-4 6-2 to win the Intrum Stockholm Open in Stockholm, Sweden

Julia Goerges beat Daria Kasatkina 6-1 6-2 to win the VTP Kremlin Cup women’s singles in Moscow, Russia

Carina Witthoeft beat Monica Puig 6-3 7-5 to win the BGL BNP Paribas Luxembourg Open in Luxembourg, Luxembourg

Mikhail Youzhny beat Taro Daniel 6-1 6-1 to win the Yinzhou International Men’s Tennis in Ningo, China

 

SAYING

“I was a bit lucky, but that’s tennis. We need to be lucky to win some games.” – Damir Dzumhur, after winning the VTP Kremlin Cup.

“I played the best match of the week against Grigor today. Unlucky for that, sorry Grigor.” – Juan Martin del Potro, following his straight-set win over Grigor Dimitrov in Stockholm.

“Unfortunately, I couldn’t bring a lot more fight today. But again, Juan totally deserved it.” – Grigor Dimitrov.

“It’s been six years now and I’ve been working hard for this moment here, and I’m just so happy and so emotional now.” – Julia Goerges, following her first WTA title since 2011.

“To play the last tournament of the season and finish the season winning your first title is just perfect.” – Carina Witthoeft, after becoming a WTA titlist for the first time.

“To the people of Puerto Rico, this tournament is for you.” – Monica Puig, after reaching the final in Luxembourg.

“Before I started to be a professional I saw him on TV, and now I am playing against him. It’s very nice for me. I am learning a lot and playing good tennis.” – Diego Schwartzman, talking about his opponent in the European Open final, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

“Qualifying for an elite year-end event is a great reward at the end of what has been an incredible year for me. I can’t wait to compete hard against those other great players and try and end this season on a high.” – Sloane Stephens, who has qualified for WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai in Zhuhai, China.

“London is my priority now and I really want to win the World Tour Finals. I am very excited to have had the year that I have had and everything that comes from here is a bonus.” – Roger Federer

“Just the depth in the game. The competition is so much greater. It’s a beautiful change, in fact.” – Venus Williams, when asked what has been the biggest change in women’s tennis during her career.

 

SPECIAL COUNTRY

“There’s something special here in Russia,” Damir Dzumhur said after winning his second ATP title, outlasting Ricardas Berankis of Lithuania in three sets in Moscow. Last month, the 25-year-old Damir became the first Bosnian to win an ATP Tour title when he won in Saint Petersburg. He added the Kremlin Cup men’s singles title in one hour, 39 minutes. “Today I tried to make good serves and it worked well,” Dzumhur said. “I also made some amazing backhands.” The victory was Dzumhur’s second in four career meetings with Berankis. The Kremlin Cup was his third final in his last seven tournaments as he has climbed to a career-high ranking of 31st in the world. After the two split the first two sets, Dzumhur trailed love-40 at 3-4 in the deciding set. But he won the next five points to hold serve, broke Berankis in the next game, then fell behind love-40 again. Again, Dzumhur won the next five points, this time to clinch the title.

Lightning didn’t strike twice in Moscow for Dzumhur, however. He and partner Antonio Sancic lost the doubles final to veteran Max Mirnyi and Philipp Oswald.

It was an extraordinary week for Bosnia and Herzegovina in Moscow when Dzumhur and Mirza Basic played in the first all-Bosnian ATP World Tour semifinal.

 

STOCKHOLM TRIUMPH

The Stockholm Open proved to be just the place for Juan Martin del Potro to find his game. The Argentine beat Grigor Dimitrov in straight sets to successfully defend his title. “It’s amazing to come back and hold this big trophy. And hopefully I can come next year as well. I love to be in Stockholm,” del Potro said. This was his first title since the Stockholm Open a year ago. He used his power game to stop the top-seeded Dimitrov, serving nine aces and dominating with his big forehand. He saved all four break points he faced. It was del Potro’s 20th career title and his first victory over Dimitrov in three meetings this year. Overall, del Potro leads their head-to-head 6-2. “I couldn’t have lost to a better gentleman on and off the court,” said Dimitrov, who won the Stockholm title in 2013.

 

SIX-YEAR WAIT OVER

It took six years after Julia Goerges won her last WTA singles title to triumph again. This time the German clobbered Daria Kasatkina in the Kremlin Cup women’s singles final. Goerges’ last title was in 2011 in Stuttgart, Germany. Before her Moscow triumph, she had lost six straight finals. Goerges jumped on top of her opponent to begin the match, winning the first five games. Kasatkina put up more resistance at the start of the second set, but couldn’t convert three break points as Goerges continued her domination. “It just feels amazing,” Goerges said of her long-awaiting victory. The win also qualifies Goerges for the WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai. The German finished with four aces, making her only the third player to serve over 400 aces in a season since 2008. Goerges also becomes the top-ranked German on the WTA tour, surpassing former world number one Angelique Kerber.

 

SECURES FIRST TITLE

Carina Witthoeft captured her first WTA tournament, the BGL BNP Paribas Luxembourg Open, by stopping Olympic champion Monica Puig in straight sets. “Winning my first WTA title feels unbelievable,” the German said. “I’m so happy now. It’s been a tough week, a tough final today. I’m just happy.” Puig, who rocketed to fame when she was the surprising gold medalist at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics, appeared to be in control of the match with a break to go up 3-2. But the big-serving Witthoeft reeled off four straight games to take the opening set. The 22-year-old German, taking advantage of Puig’s mistakes, led the second set 4-1 before Puig won three consecutive games and was two points away from forcing a third set. Serving for the match for a second time, Witthoeft finally closed out the victory. “It was so close in the second set and I was really struggling with my serve,” Witthoeft said. “But I just told myself to focus and be aggressive, and I was happy to win it in two sets.”

 

STRONG YEAR

For Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, 2017 has been a very good year. The Frenchman won his fourth ATP World Tour title of the year – a career best – by beating Argentina’s Diego Schwartzman at the European Open. “It’s always good to win tournaments,” Tsonga said. “I played really good tennis this week.” The title was Tsonga’s 16th of his career. It was the second straight year Schwartzman has reached the final in Antwerp, only to lose. Last year he fell in the title match to Frenchman Richard Gasquet.

 

SHARAPOVA STUMBLES

Maria Sharapova’s trip home was cut short by Magdalena Rybarikova. Playing in Moscow for the first time since 2007, Sharapova looked tired and committed several unforced errors as she fell in the first round to her Slovakian opponent 7-6 (3) 6-4. With the large crowd chanting “Masha! Masha,” Sharapova played the Kremlin Cup just two days after she won her first WTA title in more than two years. She returned to the WTA tour in April after serving a 15-month ban after testing positive for meldonium at the 2016 Australian Open. While some players have criticized the WTA for allowing her to play, Sharapova in Russia has been portrayed as a victim of unfair targeting of the country by international sports bodies that regulate anti-doping.

 

SECURES SPOT

China’s top player, Peng Shuai, will be staying at home to play in the WTA Elite Trophy Zhuhai, a tournament for the eight players ranked outside the top eight in the world. “It’s a great honor for me that I will be able to represent China at the tournament and play in front of the Chinese fans and I will give my best on court,” said Peng, who was awarded a wildcard into the 12-player event. “It will be my first time competing in Zhuhai and I am really looking forward to playing at this great event.” Last year, Peng was in Zhuhai as an alternate, but never played.

US Open champion Sloane Stephens has also qualified for the season-ending tournament in Zhuhai, along with Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Elena Vesnina and Anastasija Sevastova.

 

SET FOR LONDON

Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut have qualified for the season-ending doubles competition at the Nitto ATP Finals in London next month. The Frenchmen join the teams of Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo; Henri Kontinen and John Peers; Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau; Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares; brothers Bob and Mike Bryan; and Ryan Harrison and Michael Venus. It is the third time Herbert and Mahut have qualified for the event. One spot remains open for the doubles play.

 

SKIPPING BASEL

Top-ranked Rafael Nadal is skipping this week’s Swiss Indoors because of a knee injury. “I am suffering from an over-stressing of the knee, and the problems were already present at the tournament in Shanghai, which now forces me to take a time off on advice of my doctor,” Nadal said. Nadal’s withdrawal giver Roger Federer a boost in his bid to end the season ranked number one in the world. “Finishing the year as world number one is a long shot, and I don’t think it will happen, but if I play like this, who knows? Maybe I will get close again,” Federer said. Besides the Swiss Open in Basel, Federer is expected to play an indoors Masters event in Paris and the season-ending ATP Finals in London.

 

SEASON ENDED 

Great Britain’s top WTA star, Johanna Konta, has split with her coach and shut down her season. “After careful thought and discussion, Wim Fissette and I have mutually decided to end our working relationship,” Konta said in a statement. “Things ended very amicably and I wish Wim all the best.” After reaching the semifinals at Wimbledon in July, Konta won just four matches the rest of the season. She was hampered by a loss of form and a foot injury. Under Fissette’s guidance, Konta raised her ranking to fourth in the world. Going into last week, she had dropped to ninth.

STOPPING

Two more top players are stopping their seasons because of injuries. Nick Kyrgios of Australia has been struggling with a hip injury, while Czech Toms Berdych has an injured back. “I have been playing with back pain since Wimbledon and in my last match in Beijing I felt like it was getting worse,” Berdych said in announcing his plans. “I was advised by my medical team to give it a few weeks rest and to have treatment in order to be completely healthy and pain-free and to be ready to compete at the start of 2018.” The 22-year-old Kyrgios failed to get past the second round in all four Grand Slam tournaments this year. “This year hasn’t been as successful as I would have liked, especially at the Slams, although it has been positive in some other areas,” Kyrgios said. “I will do all I can to improve for 2018.

Five players who were ranked in the Top 10 this year – Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Stan Wawrinka, Kei Nishikori and Milos Raonic – have shut down their 2017 seasons because of injuries.

 

SAN JUAN-BOUND

Maria Sharapova will join Monica Puig in Puerto Rico this week to help with recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria. The two will distribute portable stoves, medicine and other supplies to the island. Sharapova is a five-time Grand Slam tournament champion while Puig won Puerto Rico’s first Olympic gold medal in any sport at the Rio de Janeiro Games last year.  The agency that represents both players said Puig has raised more than USD $125,000 to help storm victims, while Sharapova is donating proceeds from her candy company for the rest of 2017.

 

STARS

Wimbledon champion Garbiñe Muguruza of Spain is the WTA Player of the Year, while US Open winner Sloane Stephens has been named Comeback Player of the Year. The annual awards, voted on by members of the media, were announced by the women’s tour. Others winner were French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko, Most Improved Player; Catherine (CiCi) Bellis, Newcomer of the Year; and Martina Hingis and Chan Yung-Jan, Doubles Team of the Year.

 

STARTING AGAIN

Canada’s Rebecca Marino, who quit tennis almost five years ago because of depression, has returned to the sport. Now 26 years old, Marino of Canada hoped to play this week at a USD $60,000 International Tennis Federation (ITF) tournament in Saguenay, Quebec, Canada. She also is entered in another USD $60,000 ITF event in Toronto next week. “I made the decision to return to professional tennis a couple of months ago and started training again during the first week of September,” Marino said. “I’m doing it because I enjoy it. I don’t have any ranking goals or result goals right now. I just want to go in and enjoy the process and come at it from a different place than I was before. I want to be happy to be on court and compete. That’s all that matters to me.” In 2011, Marino reached a career-high WTA ranking of 38th in the world. The following year, she reached the final of a WTA event in Memphis, Tennessee, USA, and the third round at Roland Garros.

 

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Antwerp: Scott Lipsky and Divij Sharan beat Santiago Gonzalez and Julio Peralta 6-4 2-6 10-5 (match tiebreak)

Luxembourg: Lesley Kerkhove and Lidziya Marozava beat Eugenie Bouchard and Kirsten Flipkens 6-7 (4) 6-4 10-6 (match tiebreak)

Moscow (men): Max Mirnyi and Philipp Oswald beat Damir Dzumhur and Antonio Sancic 6-3 7-5

Moscow (women): Timea Babos and Andrea Hlavackova beat Nicole Melicher and Anna Smith 6-2 3-6 10-3 (match tiebreak)

Ningbo: Radu Albot and Jose Statham beat Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan and Christopher Rungkat 7-5 6-3

Stockholm: Oliver Marach and Mate Pavic beat Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi and Jean-Julien Rojer 3-6 7-6 (6) 10-4 (match tiebreak)

 

SURFING

Vienna: www.erstebank-open.com/

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

Brest: www.openbrestarena.fr/

Singapore: www.wtafinals.com/

Poitiers: www.lfv86.com

Paris: www.rolexparismasters.com/

Zhuhai: www.wtaelitetrophy.com/

 

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

 

MEN

$3,099,020 Erste Bank Open 500, Vienna, Austria, hard

$2,708,970 Swiss Indoors, Basel, Switzerland, hard

$125,292 Open Brest Arena Credit Agricole, Brest, France, hard

 

WOMEN

$7,000,000 BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global, Singapore, hard

$100,000 Internationaux Feminins de la Vienne, Poitiers, France, hard

 

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

 

MEN

$5,705,930 Rolex Paris Masters, Paris, France, hard

 

WOMEN

$2,280,935 Hengqin Life WTA Elite Trophy, Zhuhai, China, hard

 

Damir Dzumhur
Damir Dzumhur

Rising British Tennis Talents Aiming for the Top 100

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On the face of things, British tennis appears to be quite rosy considering the success of Andy Murray. The Scot remains one of the top three men in the ATP singles rankings despite a frustrating year with injury problems.

Meanwhile, Johanna Konta continues to make good progress in her career, particularly in 2017 by winning two women’s titles and heading into October, featuring seventh in the overall WTA singles rankings.

Beyond this pair, you have to look much further down the respective rankings to find the remaining British pro tennis talents. Amongst the men, there are some who have the potential to keep climbing and are making signs of positive progress, with Kyle Edmund and Aljaz Bedene remaining inside the top 50. Only Heather Watson remains among the top 100 women, while Naomi Broady and Laura Robson have fallen well outside that stratosphere of tennis talent.

These names still fall short of that of Andy Murray, of course, and Britain’s tennis favourite is tipped at odds of +350 to win the Australian Open in 2018. A glance at emerging British players suggests that compared to other leading countries, producing top tennis professionals who consistently break into the top 100 of the respective men’s and women’s rankings, is increasingly difficult.

Producing players with enough talent and potential to win tournaments or even reach finals, seems to be an even more monumentally difficult task, amidst suggestions there is a shortage of young players coming through in the British game. A lack of affordable facilities, or players not possessing the same mental strength and determination compared to compatriots of Spain or France, Russia or the USA, are some of the reasons mentioned.

However, there are some up and coming British talents who have broken into the professional game already, that are well worth keeping an eye on over the next couple of years; some of whom were handed wildcard entry at the 2017 Wimbledon tournament and have since continued to make positive progress.

Amongst the men, whilst 22-year-old Kyle Edmund remains the leading young British prospect within the ATP top 50, there are others who have continued to develop their game well in 2017. Beyond Johanna Konta in the WTA rankings, although there are currently no British women in the top 100, there are several prospects making steady progress.

Twenty-two-year-old Cameron Norrie headed into October at a career high of 136 after climbing 140 places in 2017, winning the Binghampton Challenger and the Tiburon Challenger. As one of the top 5 British men, his swift rise is expected to continue and in 2018, and it would be no surprise to see him break into the ATP top 100 some time soon. Meanwhile, 23-year-old Liam Broady could finish 2017 inside the top 200, plus 19-year-old Jay Clarke began October having shot up 253 places in the rankings, to 282nd, inside a year.

Amongst the best young British women at present, 21-year-old Katie Boulter is considered the best prospect around, and for good reason. In 2017, she climbed 148 ranks and heading into October, was 214th in the classifications, and is expected to keep climbing in 2018. Although much further down the current rankings, consistent progress is being made by young British women, with more genuine prospects compared to men.

Twenty-two-year-old Katy Dunne and 21-year-old Harriet Dart are two who could push towards the top 200 in 2018. Meanwhile, 19-year-old Gabriella Taylor and 18-year-old Katie Swan aren’t far behind, plus 18-year-old Jodie Anna Burrage in her first pro season is widely considered one to watch.

Cam Norrie
Cam Norrie

Federer Beats Nadal Again; Sharapova Wins Again – Mondays with Bob Greene

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Mondays with Bob Greene

 

STARS

Roger Federer beat Rafael Nadal 6-4 6-3 to win the Shanghai Rolex Masters in Shanghai, China

Maria Sharapova beat Aryna Sabalenka 7-5 7-6 (8) to win the Tianjin Open in Tianjin, China

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova beat Daria Gavrilova 5-7 6-3 7-6 (3) to win the Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open in Hong Kong

Barbora Strycova beat Magdalena Rybarikova 6-4 6-1 to win the Upper Austria Ladies Linz in Linz, Austria

Guillermo Garcia-Lopez beat Kamil Majchrzak 6-1 7-6 (1) to win the Tashkent Challenger in Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Mackenzie McDonald beat Bradley Klahn 6-4 6-2 to win the Northbay Healthcare Men’s Pro Championship in Fairfield, California, USA

 

SAYING

“You can’t win them all against Rafa, to be honest. He’s too good of a player.” – Roger Federer, after beating Rafael Nadal in the Shanghai Masters final.

“Of course, was not the best match of the week for me … but when someone plays better than you in most of the things that really matter in this sport, then it’s tough.” – Rafael Nadal.

“We didn’t think maybe we were going to have the year we did. I definitely didn’t.” – Roger Federer, 36, looking at Rafael Nadal after beating the 31-year-old Spanish left-hander. The two won all four Grand Slam tournaments in 2017.

“Such a special, special tournament, and victory for me, one that I’ll remember forever. Sometimes you never know when it will all come together, but it happened to me this week in Tianjin.” – Maria Sharapova, after winning her first tournament title in two years.

“I just won a title, so I’m extremely happy with that. It was a really, really tough match.” – Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, who won a typhoon-delayed tournament in Hong Kong.

“I’m very happy. It’s the second title of my career. It’s sweet. It feels nice.: — Barbora Strycova, after winning in Linz, Austria.

“The thing about Serena is that she has won 23 Grand Slams before she had her baby. I only had one. So she has that under control, she knows what to do.” – Kim Clijsters, when asked what advice she would give Serena Williams on returning to tennis after having a baby.

“’Serena will be back. We look forward to welcoming her and again go on that journey of breaking the all-time record for the most number of Grand Slams.” – Craig Tiley, Australian Open tournament director, saying Serena Williams is returning to the year’s first Grand Slam tournament, which she won last January before giving birth to her daughter.

 

SHANGHAI MASTER

Reprising the form that carried him to two Grand Slam tournament titles earlier this year, Roger Federer knocked off his old rival Rafael Nadal to win the Shanghai Masters. It was Federer’s 94th career title, pulling him even with Ivan Lendl and second only to Jimmy Connors. It also closed the gap on Nadal at the top of the rankings. “I was pretty clear about how I wanted to play the match,” Federer said. “And then I came out and started off very well. Felt relaxed from then on.” The Swiss master broke Nadal’s serve to begin the match and never trailed after that. Nadal still leads their rivalry 23-15, but Federer has won their last five meetings. It was a dominant display by Federer, who won a second Shanghai title and 27th ATP World Tour Masters 1000 level crown. It was his 700th match victory on hard courts and improved his record to 10-1 against Top 10 players this year. The 36-year-old has won six titles this year, three of them Masters 1000 events. “I always know that Rafa can come back at any moment if he connects well, picks the right sides and does the right things,” Federer said. Nadal didn’t do any of those things this time.

 

SHARAPOVA TRIUMPHANT

Maria Sharapova won her first WTA title in more than two years, beating teenager Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus in Tianjin, China. “It’s a special title, a special victory,” the five-time Grand Slam winner said. “It has been a couple of years since I have held the winner’s trophy. It is a great feeling, a team effort.” Sharapova served a 15-month ban for doping, returning to the WTA tour in April. And while she wound up capturing the crown, she had a hard time holding her serve against Sabalenka. Sharapova trailed 4-1 in the first set before taking six of the next seven games. Playing in her first WTA final, the Belarusian opened up a 5-1 lead in the second set before Sharapova again rallied. Still, Sabalenka staved off three match points in the tiebreak before double-faulting at 8-8. This time, Sharapova cashed in for the trophy. Sharapova’s last title came at the Italian Open in May 2015.

 

SURVIVES WEATHER AND FOE

Not sure when or whether she would play because of a typhoon lashing the area, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova finally took to the court and outlasted Daria Gavrilova to win the Hong Kong Tennis Open. The final started much later than scheduled due to nearly constant precipitation from a typhoon just off-shore. Then there was a half-hour rain delay with the two knotted at 5-5 in the third set. “It was not easy mentally as this morning we were not sure if we were going to play or not,” the 26-year-old Russian said. “But it’s the final day, so I knew there is just one match today, so I gave everything I had out there.” The two struggled with the late-night conditions – the match ended at 1 a.m. local time – as they combined for 103 unforced errors, 62 of those by the eventual winner. After they held serve through the first four games of the third set, the final eight games all went against serve. Gavrilova jumped out front in the tiebreak 3-1 before Pavlyuchenkova won six straight points to capture her third title of the year.

 

STRYCOVA WINS SECOND TITLE

It’s been a long time since Barbora Strycova held a winner’s trophy aloft. Six years, to be exact. But the Czech knocked off top-seeded Magdalena Rybarikova in straight sets to win her second WTA career title and first since 2011. “I know that we’ve had huge matches against each other, especially the one three weeks ago in Tokyo,” Strycova said of her matchup against Rybarikova. “I knew it would be a hard one because we have a little bit tricky, similar games. We serve and volley, we go a lot to the net. But I felt like I handled the game on the same level, and sometimes I stepped it up a little bit.” Strycova now leads the head-to-head 5-1, winning their last four meetings. Strycova was dominant throughout, breaking Rybarikova in the opening game of the match. She led 5-0 in the second set and served for the match only to be broken. Strycova broke right back to gain the title.

 

SECURES SPOT

When Great Britain’s Johanna Konta withdrew from this week’s Kremlin Cup, it gave Caroline Garcia of France the eighth and final berth in the WTA Finals. Konta reached a career-high ranking of fourth in the world in July after reaching the Wimbledon semifinals, but since then has lost her first match at her last five tournaments. Garcia, meanwhile, has won her last two tournaments, in Beijing and Wuhan. Garcia is the first Frenchwoman to qualify for the season finale since Amelie Mauresmo in 2006. Others in the elite field are Simona Halep of Romania, Garbiñe Muguruza of Spain, Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic, Elina Svitolina of Ukraine, American Venus Williams, Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia. The BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global begins October 22 in Singapore.

 

SLAMMED WITH FINE

For walking off the court after losing the first set of his Shanghai Masters match, Nick Kyrgios has been fined USD $10,000. He also defaulted his first-round loser’s check of USD $21,000. The ATP World Tour, in making the decision, said Kyrgios was being punished for “unsportsmanlike conduct” for failing to complete a medical visit to explain his actions. The 22-year-old Australian later said on Twitter that he had been suffering with a stomach bug and a shoulder problem. After losing the first-set tiebreak to Steve Johnson, Kyrgios shook hands with his American opponent and left the court. Last year, Kyrgios was fined USD $16,500 and banned for eight weeks for deliberately throwing a game during a second-round loss in Shanghai.

 

SUSPENDED, PERHAPS

Italy’s Fabio Fognini has been provisionally suspended for two Grand Slam tournaments and fined USD $96,000 for directing vulgar language towards a chair umpire at this year’s US Open. The outburst was directed toward Swedish chair umpire Louise Engzell during Fognini’s first-round loss to fellow Italian Stefano Travaglia. He also was subsequently disqualified from the men’s doubles at the US Open. The Grand Slam Board said it found Fognini guilty of “aggravated behavior and conduct contrary to the integrity of the game.” One of the two Grand Slam tournaments the Italian will not be allowed to play will be the US Open, although the sanction will only be imposed if he is found guilty of another Grand Slam Major Offense during the next two years. The fine will also be halved if Fognini stays out of trouble over the next two years. “Mr. Fognini accepts and will not appeal this decision and he has expressed remorse for his admitted misconduct,” the Grand Slam Board said in a statement. “He has confidence that he will meet the conditions necessary to reduce his financial penalty and to lift his Grand Slam tournament suspensions in the future.”

 

SET FOR ATP FINALS

Dominic Thiem has qualified for the Nitto ATP Finals for the second straight year. Thiem joins Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Alexander Zverev in the select field for the tournament, which will be held November 12-19 in London. “It is not easy to qualify once, but even more so to repeat the following year,” Thiem said. “I look forward to competing with the best players in the world at The O2.”

Three doubles teams – Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares, Ryan Harrison and Michael Venus, and brothers Bob and Mike Bryan – have clinched spots for the elite eight-team doubles competition. Other teams who have qualified are Henri Kontinen and John Peers, Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo, and Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau.

 

SENT PACKING

Serena Williams once called Naomi Osaka a “very dangerous” player. Venus Williams now knows exactly how dangerous. The Japanese right-hander upset Venus Williams 7-5 6-2 in a second-round match at the Hong Kong Open. The elder Williams was up a break and serving for the opening set at 5-4 when Osaka found the range with her big ground strokes to win the next three games and take the set. “She played well,” the 37-year-old Williams admitted. “You know, I made a few errors at 5-4 and after that she played pretty flawless. I can only give her credit.” Osaka won the first five games in the second set before Williams rallied briefly. “I felt like I played offensively and hit really deep hard balls, but she had the luck today and could return those balls even harder and deeper,” Williams said.

 

STAYING HOME

Russia’s Maria Sharapova will play the Kremlin Cup in Moscow for the first time in a decade. The tournament organizers announced Sharapova accepted a wild card entry. She has played the Kremlin Cup only three times in her career, but not since 2007. She was a quarterfinalist in both 2005 and 2006.

Two other Russians are returning to play the Moscow event. Alisa Kleybanova, who has overcome Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and a series of knee and foot injuries, is making yet another comeback attempt. Margarita Gasparyan is returning to action after undergoing a series of knee surgeries.

 

SERENA TO MELBOURNE?

Australian Open officials believe Serena Williams will defend her title at next year’s opening Grand Slam tournament. Williams beat her sister Venus in the final last January, then announced she was pregnant and would take time off to have her baby. She gave birth to Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr. on September 1. Tournament director Craig Tiley said Williams was planning on playing the January 15-28 Australian Open.

Tiley also announced the 2018 Australian Open singles champions will receive about USD $3.1 million. The tournament’s overall prize pool will increase about 20 percent to USD $4.7 million.

 

SUIT FILED

Rafael Nadal has filed a lawsuit against former French sports minister Roselyne Bachelot, seeking USD $118,000 in damages. Nadal is suing Bachelot for accusing the Spanish star of a dope test cover-up. Appearing on French television in March 2016, Bachelot alleged that Nadal faked an injury in 2012 in order to hide a positive drug test. Nadal missed the final six months of that year due to knee problems. The 16-time Grand Slam tournament winner has never failed a drugs test and vehemently denies ever using a banned substance.

 

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Fairfield: Luke Bambridge and David O’Hare bat Akram El Sallaly and Bernardo Oliveira 6-4 6-2

Hong Kong: Chan Hao-Ching and Chan Yung-Jan beat Lu Jia-Jing and Wang Qiang 6-1 6-1

Linz: Kiki Bertens and Johanna Larsson beat Natela Dzalamidze and Xenia Knoll 3-6 6-3 10-4 (match tiebreak)

Shanghai: Henri Kontinen and John Peers beat Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo 6-4 6-2

Tashkent: Hans Podlipnik-Castillo and Andrei Vasilevski beat Yuki Bhambri and Divij Sharan 6-4 6-2

Tianjin: Irina-Camelia Begu and Sara Errani beat Dalila Jakupovic and Nina Stojanovic 6-4 6-3

 

SURFING 

Moscow: http://kremlincup.ru/

Antwerp: www.europeanopen.be/en/

Stockholm: www.stockholmopen.se/

Luxembourg: www.bglbnpparibas-open.lu/main_en.html

Vienna: www.erstebank-open.com/

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

Brest: www.openbrestarena.fr/

Singapore: www.wtafinals.com/

Poitiers: www.lfv86.com

 

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

 

MEN

$823,600 VTP Kremlin Cup, Moscow, Russia, hard

$774,740 European Open, Antwerp, Belgium, hard

$774,740 Intrum Stockholm Open, Stockholm, Sweden, hard

$125,000 Yinzhou International Men’s Tennis, Ningbo, China, hard

 

WOMEN

$702.900 VTP Kremlin Cup, Moscow, Russia, hard

$226,750 BGL BNP Paribas Luxembourg Open, Luxembourg, Luxembourg, hard

 

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

 

MEN

$3,099,020 Erste Bank Open 500, Vienna, Austria, hard

$2,708,970 Swiss Indoors, Basel, Switzerland, hard

$125,292 Open Brest Arena Credit Agricole, Brest, France, hard

 

WOMEN

$7,000,000 BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global, Singapore, hard

$100,000 Internationaux Feminins de la Vienne, Poitiers, France, hard

 

Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal
Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal

Caroline Garcia Topples New No. 1 Simona Halep In Beijing – Mondays with Bob Greene

by

Mondays with Bob Greene

 

STARS

Caroline Garcia beat Simona Halep 6-4 7-6 (3) to win the China Open women’s singles in Beijing, China

Rafael Nadal beat Nick Kyrgios 6-2 6-1 to win the China Open men’s singles in Beijing, China

David Goffin beat Adrian Mannarino 6-3 7-5 to win the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships in Tokyo, Japan

Evgeny Donskoy beat Marius Copil 7-6 (0) 7-5 to win the Kaohsiung OEC Open in Kaohsiung, Taiwan

Cameron Norrie beat Darian King 6-1 6-3 to win the Stockton Challenger in Stockton, California, USA

Maximilian Marterer beat Bradley Klahn 7-6 (3) 7-6 (6) to win the Abierto GNP Seguros in Monterrey, Mexico

 

SAYING

“It was such an amazing two weeks. It went so fast I have the feeling I started these tournaments yesterday or two days ago.” – Caroline Garcia, after adding the China Open women’s singles title to the crown she won the week before at the Wuhan Open.

“Today, I think my serve worked well, and I was returning a lot of balls, putting a lot of balls inside, then taking the advantage from the baseline a little bit more often than him. I was a little bit more aggressive and that was the key.” – Rafael Nadal, after winning the China Open.

“I obviously didn’t react professionally. Obviously, that’s why I got a warning. But I mean, that didn’t really matter today. He played well, I played terrible.” – Nick Kyrgios, after losing to Rafael Nadal.

“It’s important for me to stay fresh physically and mentally with potentially the ATP Finals ahead and then playing for Belgium in the Davis Cup final. I am ready to fight and I want to keep winning.” – David Goffin, following his second title in successive weeks.

“It’s been a difficult and frustrating year. I obviously wish I could have focused on tennis more rather than chasing help all the time.” – Milos Raonic, who pulled out of yet another tournament, this time with a right calf injury.

“Tennis is very demanding. When I came on tour 15 years ago the 100th-ranked player was not so difficult to beat. Now they are very good, so it’s a big difference.” – Richard Gasquet

“I’ve had success at China Open in the past, so it’s always nice to come back and relive the past memories, and create new ones by winning the trophy once again.” – Martina Hingis, who teamed with Chan Yung-Jan to win the China Open women’s doubles, their ninth title of the year.

“It’s a third title for us this year. Not as many as last year, but I feel like we’re playing even more solid. To get another one in the bag is great.” – Henri Kontinen, after partnering with John Peers to win the China Open men’s doubles.

“In being selected for Japan in the Davis Cup a few weeks ago, I improved and learned to believe in myself. It helped me with my confidence. So this week I was able to believe in myself at important points and didn’t get tight.” – Ben Mclachlan, who with Yasutaka Uchiyama became the first all-Japanese team to win the Japan Open doubles in 12 years.

“It hasn’t really sunk in. We have been the challengers all week and today as well, but I noticed that they were feeling the pressure. and at that point we were able to play well and push our way to a victory. It showed us that if we play at our best, we can beat anyone.” – Yasutaka Uchiyama.

 

SIXTH TITLE OF 2017

Chalk up yet another trophy for Rafael Nadal. The Spaniard won his sixth title of the year, the China Open, by demolishing Nick Kyrgios. The Australian was able to win just three games in the lopsided contest. “I played, in my opinion, a great level of tennis,” Nadal said after capturing his 75th career title. “Of course, I think one of the best matches of the year.” Kyrgios was upset with a call in the opening game and appeared unable to let it go after that, earning a warning and then a penalty point. “I don’t know, I just got super frustrated,” Kyrgios said. Nadal had break chances in six of Kyrgios’ seven service games. The 22-year-old Australian had to stave off five break points just to hold serve to begin the match. He lost his serve for the first time in the sixth game when he netted a drop shot, then hit consecutive double faults to give Nadal the opening set. Nadal would break Kyrgios twice more in the second set and close out the victory after 92 minutes. “Every title later in your career is more special than when you were younger,” said Nadal, who also won the China Open in 2005.

 

SPANKS NUMBER ONE

Simona Halep is the new number one player on the WTA tour. But it is Caroline Garcia of France who is a champion for the second straight week. Garcia defeated her Romanian opponent to add the China Open to the Wuhan Open title she collected the previous week. “It was six matches in a row in Wuhan and five in a row here in five days,” Garcia said. “After every match I tried to forget about it and refocus on the present and on the next match. So, I actually can’t remember how my tournament went.” It went well – very well. The two battled evenly until Garcia broke Halep in the 10th game to grab the first set. The second set was closer. Garcia was down love-40 on her serve before holding to go up 4-3. Garcia prevailed in the tiebreak to advance to ninth in the world rankings. Halep refused to let the defeat spoil her week. “I couldn’t sleep very well” after winning her semifinal and ensuring the world number one ranking, Halep said. “It was very good (getting to the top ranking). It was very good step, important step. But still inside I was too happy. … I just felt a little bit over inside because of the happiness.”

 

SECOND STRAIGHT

David Goffin loves the winning feeling. So much so, he has done it two weeks in a row. This time, the fourth-seeded Belgian captured the Japan Open, beating Frenchman Adrian Mannarino in straight sets. The 26-year-old Goffin was dominant from the start, taking a 3-1 lead in the opening set. After Mannarino moved in front 4-2 in the second set, Goffin broke back in the seventh and 11th games to grab his fourth career title and second of the season. “It’s a really special trophy for me, as I won the tournament last week and now have again today,” Goffin said. “It’s a special feeling at a tournament I like. I have a lot of happy memories in Tokyo. It’s difficult to describe my feelings.” Mannarino has yet to win in four ATP World Tour finals. But the 29-year-old Frenchman pulled off the biggest victory of his career in the semifinals when he upset top-seeded Marin Cilic. “David played really well,” Mannarino said. “The quality of the game was really good, but I wasn’t good enough compared to him.”

 

SERVING FOR PUERTO RICO

Every time Nick Kyrgios serves an ace, Puerto Rico will be the beneficiary. The Australian has pledged USD $50 for the storm-laced island every time he blasts an ace. The 22-year-old had first said he would give USD $10 for each ace toward emergency relief on the island following Hurricane Maria. But in a tweet, Kyrgios wrote: “You know what? I’m upping my offer … to $50 per ace. Let’s help Puerto Rico.” In his first match after announcing his pledge, Kyrgios pounded 11 aces in beating Germany’s Mischa Zverev at the China Open.

 

SUSPENDED

Great Britain’s Dan Evans has been suspended for one year after testing positive for cocaine. Currently ranked 108th in the world, Evans failed the drug test at the Barcelona Open in April. He went public with the result in June. The 27-yearp-old’s ban began with the positive test, meaning he will be eligible to play again on April 24, 2018. The International Tennis Federation (ITF), in a statement, said it “accepted Mr. Evans’ account of how the cocaine got into his system and that he bears no significant fault or negligence for the violation.” Evans said the cocaine got into his system via a permitted medication that he had stored in the same pocket of his washbag in which he had previously kept the cocaine. Evans reached the fourth round at the Australian Open in January and reached a career-high 41 ranking earlier this year.

 

STOP AT THE TOP

This time it was Simona Halep who came away with the victory and the top spot in the WTA world rankings. Halep avenged her French Open final defeat by beating Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko 6-2 6-4 in the semifinal of the China Open. That win boosted Halep to the world number one spot, replacing Spain’s Garbiñe Muguruza and becoming the first Romanian to head the rankings. “It’s very emotional, I think it’s the first time I cried on court,” Halep said. “It’s amazing that I could do this. … It’s my special day.” Halep had come close to topping the rankings on three different occasions earlier this year, but each time lost the match that would have clinched the top spot. WTA CEO Steve Simon and tour president Micky Lawler presented Halep with a memento after the match as she became the 25th player in WTA history to rise to the world number one ranking.

 

SPANIARD BANNED

The Tennis Integrity Unit (TIU) said Spain’s Samuel Ribeiro Navarrete has been banned for eight months and fined USD $1,000 for “betting-related corruption offenses.” The TIU said an investigation revealed the player made 28 bets on matches between January and March 2013, although none of the bets were on matches in which he played. The 24-year-old Spaniard reached a career-high singles ranking of 72 in July 2016. Four months of his eight-month ban is suspended on condition he commits no further breaches of the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program.

 

SHOCKED BY SHOOTING

Great Britain’s Laura Robson was attending the Las Vegas concert where a gunman opened fire, killing 58 and wounding nearly 500. The player tweeted: “I’m okay. We were right there … sounded like fireworks at first, then everyone started running. Scary ****. My friend who was deeper in the crowd has been helping people who were shot. We’re all in shock.” Robson teamed with Andy Murray to win the silver medal in mixed doubles at the 2012 London Olympics.

 

SINO SUCCESS

Her Imperial Highness Princess Mako was on hand to see the first all-Japanese doubles team in 12 years to win the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships. Ben Mclachlan and Yasutaka Uchiyama defeated Jamie Murray of Great Britain and Brazil’s Bruno Soares in straight sets for their first ATP World Tour team title. The New Zealand-born Mclachlan has a Japanese mother. The winning team received a wild card into the tournament. Mclachlan was playing in his first ATP World Tour event. The last all-Japanese duo to win in Tokyo were Satoshi Iwabuchi and Takao Suzuki in 2005.

 

SICK CALL

Milos Raonic has suffered yet another injury. The Canadian, who has withdrawn from five events this year and pulled out of two others, retired from his second-round Japan Open match against Yuichi Sugita after dropping the opening game. “I picked up a strain to the (right) calf,” Raonic said. “It’s hard to know the extent of it … It happened when the score was deuce. I felt a sharp pain at the back of my leg. I will head home now and get medical attention.” Raonic just returned to tennis after missing seven weeks after having surgery on his left wrist. He beat Viktor Troicki in his Japan Open opener before facing Sugita. Following his win over Troicki, Raonic complained that the tennis tour was too demanding. “I believe out of those of us that finished top five last year, I’m the only guy still trying to play this year, and none of the five played the US Open,” the Canadian said. “Maybe it’s testament to some kind of reform being needed for the sake of players’ careers and being able to provide a certain caliber of tennis for spectators.”

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga has pulled out of this week’s Shanghai Masters because of a knee injury. Ranked 18th in the world, Tsonga is set to lead France in next month’s Davis Cup final against Belgium. Tsonga said he first felt pain in his knee in mid-September at the St. Petersburg Open. The injury also caused Tsonga to miss last week’s China Open.

Garbiñe Muguruza retired during her China Open first-round match against unseeded Barbora Strycova of the Czech Republic. The Spaniard called it quits while trailing 6-1 2-0. Going into the tournament ranked number one in the world, Muguruza called a medical timeout after losing the first two games of the second set. After having her pulse taken, she retired from the match, her fifth retirement this year. “It’s very tough,” Muguruza said. “I got a virus in Wuhan. I couldn’t perform today. … I want to feel like giving the last chance, going on the court, just hit (a) few balls, see how I’m going to feel, try to turn things around. I don’t want to retire before the tournament starts.”

 

SET FOR CHANGES

Changes in Davis Cup play will occur next year in a bid to make the international team competition more attractive to top players. The changes will be applied only to matches in Zonal Groups I and II, the tiers below the World Group. The best-of-five-matches competition will be held on two days instead of three: Group I ties will be played on Friday and Saturday, with Group II ties on Saturday and Sunday. The change is on the second day when the doubles and two “reverse” singles will be contested. And Group I and II matches will be best-of-three sets instead of best-of-five. David Haggerty, president of the International Tennis Federation (ITF), said the changes could eventually be applied to World Group matches if the trial is deemed a success.

 

STADIUM MOVE?

The Miami Open is getting closer to moving from Key Biscayne to the stadium where the Miami Dolphins play. “I do think it’s imminent,” Key Biscayne Mayor Mayra Peña Lindsay said of an agreement for the tournament to leave its longtime home. “But it hasn’t been officially made.” The tournament, a major hard-court stop on both the men’s and women’s tours, will apparently be played at the Crandon complex on Key Biscayne next year, with the possibility of the event moving to Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens in 2019. IMG, which owns the tournament, wanted to spend USD $50 million to upgrade the Crandon complex, but lost a court decision that would give the tournament space to expand.

 

SELLING TROPHIES?

Boris Becker is reportedly selling his Wimbledon trophies to raise money to pay off his debts. Three months ago, the three-time Wimbledon champion was declared bankrupt over money owed to a bank. Becker now faces having his homes and personal property repossessed. Two German magazines, Stern and Bunte, claim the British bankrupt declaration was merely the start.

 

SOCIAL ACTIVISM

UCLA alumni Arthur Ashe will have a scholarship named for the late tennis star at the Los Angeles school. Thanks to gifts from his widow, Jeanne Moutoussamy-Ashe, and the Arthur Ashe Learning Center, an Arthur Ashe Scholarship will be awarded to students who exemplify the ideals Ashe displayed as a UCLA student. The scholarship will be awarded based on merit and need. In addition, the Arthur Ashe Legacy Fund will administer programming and exhibit materials highlighting Ashe’s contributions in four main areas: sport and tennis; service and citizenship; health and wellness; and youth and education. “This is a truly special moment for UCLA, and we are grateful to have been entrusted with Arthur Ashe’s towering legacy,” said Patricia Turner, dean and vice provost of undergraduate education. “The scholarship and exhibit materials are tangible reminders of his transformative impact on the world.”

 

SANS INTIMIDATION?

Hall of Famer Chris Evert says Serena Williams may lack some of her trademark intimidation when she returns to tennis. Williams, who gave birth to a daughter in September, has said she plans on defending her Australian Open title in January. Evert thinks things could be different for the woman who has won 23 Grand Slam tournament singles titles. “I think this whole year the level has gone up because Serena hasn’t been dominant and the other players have all felt that they had a shot at it, at the number one ranking,” Evert said. “I think that because of that challenge, they have improved in the physical and the mental part of it because they’ve all had a shot at it and they’ve pushed each other, and that’s why there have been so many different winners. So, I think the level will have improved by the time Serena comes back.” Since Williams beat her sister Venus in the Australian Open final, there have been four players who have held the number one ranking: Angelique Kerber of Germany, Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic, Garbiñe Muguruza of Spain and Simona Halep of Romania.

 

STAYING AROUND

Rafael Nadal wound up winning the China Open, but he almost didn’t win his opening match. Frenchman Lucas Pouille pushed Nadal to the limit before the Spaniard narrowly won 4-6 7-6 (6) 7-5. Trailing 4-6 in the tiebreak, Nadal won four consecutive points to level the match at one set apiece. The Spaniard finally broke Pouille in the 11th game of the third set, then held serve to gain the victory. “He played well, I think,” Nadal said of his French opponent. “Very aggressive. He’s serving well. For me was little bit difficult in the beginning. Then I started to play better. But, still, I didn’t have the control of the match for almost all the time.”

 

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Beijing (men): Henri Kontinen and John Peers beat John Isner and Jack Sock 6-3 3-6 10-7 (match tiebreak)

Beijing (women): Chan Yung-Jan and Martina Hingis beat Time Babos and Andrea Hlavackova 6-1 6-4

Kaohsiung: Sanchai Ratiwatana and Sonchat Ratiwatana beat Jonathan Erlich and Alexander Peya 6-4 1-6 10-6 (match tiebreak)

Monterrey: Christopher Eubanks and Evan King beat Marcelo Arevalo and Miguel Angel Reyes-Varela 7-6 (4) 6-3

Stockton: Brydan Klein and Joe Salisbury beat Denis Kudla and Mikelis Libietis 6-2 6-4

Tokyo: Ben Mclachlan and Yasutaka Uchiyama beat Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares 6-4 7-6 (1)

 

SURFING 

Shanghai: http://en.shanghairolexmasters.com/

Tashkent: www.tennis.uz/

Hong Kong: www.hktennisopen.hk/en/

Linz: www.ladieslinz.at/

Tianjin: www.tianjinopen.com/

Moscow: http://kremlincup.ru/

Antwerp: www.europeanopen.be/en/

Stockholm: www.stockholmopen.se/

Luxembourg: www.bglbnpparibas-open.lu/main_en.html

 

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

 

MEN

$8,092,625 Shanghai Rolex Masters, Shanghai, China, hard

$150,000 Tashkent Challenger, Tashkent, Uzbekistan, hard

$100,000 Northbay Healthcare Men’s Pro Championship, Fairfield, California, USA, hard

 

WOMEN

$226,750 Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open, Hong Kong, hard

$226,750 Upper Austria Ladies Linz, Linz, Austria, hard

$227,750 Tianjin Open, Tianjin, China, hard

 

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

 

MEN

$823,600 VTP Kremlin Cup, Moscow, Russia, hard

$774,740 European Open, Antwerp, Belgium, hard

$774,740 Intrum Stockholm Open, Stockholm, Sweden, hard

$125,000 Yinzhou International Men’s Tennis, Ningbo, China, hard

 

WOMEN

$702.900 VTP Kremlin Cup, Moscow, Russia, hard

$226,750 BGL BNP Paribas Luxembourg Open, Luxembourg, Luxembourg, hard

 

Caroline Garcia
Caroline Garcia

David Goffin Captures First Title Since 2014 – Mondays with Bob Greene

by

Mondays with Bob Greene

 

STARS

Caroline Garcia beat Ashleigh Barty 6-7 (3) 7-6 (4) 6-2 to win the Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open in Wuhan, China

Denis Istomin beat Marcus Baghdatis 3-2 retired to win the Chengdu Open in Chengdu, China

David Goffin beat Alexandr Dolgopolov 6-4 6-7 (5) 6-3 to win the Shenzhen Open in Shenzhen, China

Kateryna Bondarenko beat Timea Babos 6-4 6-4 to win the Tashkent Open in Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Norbert Gombos beat Julien Benneteau 6-3 5-7 6-2 to win the Open D’Orleans in Orleans, France

Cameron Norrie beat Tennys Sandgren 6-2 6-3 to win the Wells Fargo Tiburon Challenger in Tiburon, California, USA

 

SAYING

“A title is the best thing you can have in tennis, that’s why you fight all year long. I’m over the moon for sure.” – Caroline Garcia, after winning the Dongfeng Moor Wuhan Open.

“Disappointing to not come away with it in the end, but sometimes it crumbles that way.” – Ashleigh Barty, after losing the Wuhan Open final to Caroline Garcia.

“To come back from injury to qualify my country for the Davis Cup final and then to win my third trophy, it means a lot. I cannot be happier today.” – David Goffin, who snapped a losing streak of six straight finals to win the Shenzhen Open.

“I’ve had back issues before, but not like this.” – Marcos Baghdatis, who retired from the Chengdu Open final in the opening set with severe back spasms.

“Of course I want to win the title, but not this way. I hope he gets better and will be OK for the rest of the season.” – Denis Istomin, after winning the Chengdu Open when Marcos Baghdatis retired with back spasms five games into the final.

“I just beat number one and it’s amazing.” – Jelena Ostapenka, after beating top-ranked Garbiñe Muguruza in the Wuhan Open quarterfinals.

“Right now we feel like we are the team to beat, the hot team till the end. It’s a nice position to be in.” – Martina Hingis, after she and Chan Yung-Jan won the Wuhan Open doubles, their third consecutive title.

“Martina and I have been performing very well this year. We have won many matches. We have been through many difficult matches. We were very confident. Also, we have belief in each other. I’m very happy today that we won this match.” – Chan Yung-Jan.

“I’ve been here since Wednesday last week practicing, but never thought about the title. Today, when I was leading, I thought I had a realistic chance to win the title.” – Kateryna Bondarenko, following her victory over Timea Babos to win the Tashkent Open.

“It didn’t feel like it took long at all to gel. We kind of hit the ground running.” – Rajeev Ram, who with Alexander Peya won the first tournament they played as a team, the Shenzhen Open.

 

SEVENTH TIME WORKS

David Goffin snapped a string of disappointments by outlasting Alexandr Dolgopolov to win the Shenzhen Open. The title was Goffin’s first after losing in his last six finals, a string stretching back to 2014. “This one is really special because you know it’s always tough to come back from injuries,” said Goffin, who retired from the French Open and missed Wimbledon with an ankle injury. “I cannot be happier today.” After the two split the opening two sets – Goffin rallied from a 1-5 deficit to force a second-set tiebreak, only to lose – they held serve through the first seven games of the third set before Goffin broke Dolgopolov at love to take a 5-3 lead. Dolgopolov tried to return the favor, winning the first point as Goffin served for the match. But the Belgian lost only one more point as he won his third career title. “For sure I wanted to have an easier second set, but I had some issues and overall he played better, I think,” said Dolgopolov, who was playing in his third final of the year. “I had a good week.”

 

SECOND TITLE

It didn’t come easy, but Caroline Garcia of France finally won the biggest title of her career, the Wuhan Open, with a three-set victory over Australia’s Ashleigh Barty. “It was such a fight all the week, and especially today,” Garcia said. Twice Barty rallied from a break down in the opening set to force a tiebreak, which she then dominated. The Australian served for the match twice in the second set, but Garcia refused to fold. It was Garcia who won the second-set tiebreak before breaking away in the decider. “In the beginning of the second set I was a little bit down, I couldn’t get my focus again,” Garcia said. “I just kept going, fight until the end.” When Barty’s return found the net on match point, Garcia fell to her knees in celebration. During the week, Garcia beat former world number one Angelique Kerber and seventh-seeded Dominika Cibulkova. The 21-year-old Barty, who began the year ranked outside the top 300, had a dream run to the final, knocking off former world number one Karolina Pliskova, ninth-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska, fifth-seeded Johanna Konta and French Open champion Jelena Ostapenka. “It was a hell of a week, probably the best week of my tennis career,” Barty said. It was the first time the two had played since Garcia beat Barty on her way to the 2011 US Open Junior Girls final.

 

STOPPED BY SPASMS

Uzbekistan’s Denis Istomin was the last person standing at the Chengdu Open – literally. With Istomin leading 3-2 in the first set, Marcos Baghdatis collapsed onto the court with severe back spasms and was unable to continue. He retired, giving the title to Istomin, after being gingerly helped to his chair, where he buried his head in his towel. “I was feeling a bit of pain in my back during the week, but late after my match last night I felt some spasms,” the 32-year-old Cypriot said. “This morning I woke up a bit the same. After my warmup, it got worse.” Baghdatis said his back felt OK for the first few games of the final before the spasms came back with a vengeance. It was the second career title for Istomin.

 

STOPPING FOR YOM KIPPUR

Israel’s Dudi Sela was one set away from reaching the semifinals of the Shenzhen Open when he retired from his match because of the start of Yom Kippur. The 32-year-old Sela was playing in just his second quarterfinal of the yea. He had asked that his match start as early as possible to reduce his chances of having to stop because of the Jewish holiday. But his match against Alexandr Dolgopolov was scheduled as the second match on center court. Henri Laaksonen of Switzerland edged China’s Zhang Zhizhnen 6-4 3-6 6-2 in the first quarterfinal, which lasted two hours and 16 minutes. Sela then lost the first set 3-6 before winning the second 6-4. After Dolgopolov held serve to begin the third set, Sela approached the chair umpire and told him that he needed to retire. “Dudi isn’t a religious man and he doesn’t usually fast on Yom Kippur, and for the first time in his career he was forced to make this excruciating decision which affects his ATP ranking and cost him tens of thousands of dollars,” Sela’s brother, Ofer, wrote to The Jerusalem Post newspaper. “No one forced him to retire. He didn’t do it because he was afraid of anyone, or because he was asked to. He did it only because he respects Yom Kippur and country which he represents.”

The next day, after Yom Kippur ended, Sela and his partner, Andre Sa of Brazil, lost their doubles semifinals to the top-seeded team of Nikola Mektic and Nicholas Monroe 6-3 7-6 (4).

 

STUNNER

Kateryna Bondarenko won her first WTA title in nine years by stunning second-seeded Timea Babos in the Tashkent Open. The 31-year-old Ukrainian was ranked 81 spots higher than the 52nd-ranked Babos. Because of rain delays in the Uzbekistan tournament, Bondarenko played two singles matches and a doubles match the day before the final. “I was very tired after three matches yesterday,” she said, “but I told myself it’s the last day and I need to give it all I had. “

Bondarenko was leading her semifinal 7-6 (7) 4-1 when former world number two Vera Zvonareva retired from the match. A former Wimbledon and US Open finalist, Zvonareva returned to the WTA tour this year after two years away due to injuries and motherhood.

 

SINGAPORE BOUND

With Caroline Wozniacki clinching a spot in the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore, only two spots remain in the season-ending event. Wozniacki, who will make her fifth appearance in the elite field, joins Garbiñe Muguruza, Simona Halep, Karolina Pliskova, Elina Svitolina and Venus Williams in the singles field. Wozniacki has been in seven WTA singles finals this season, winning her 26th career title at the Toray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo. The top eight singles players and doubles teams will compete in Singapore October 22-29.

 

STAYING AROUND

Andre Agassi will be Novak Djokovic’s head coach when the Serbian star returns to cation next season. “We can confirm that Agassi remains the head coach while Italian Marco Panichi will take over as the fitness coach and Argentine Ulises Badio is the new physio,” Djokovic’s office said in a statement. “The only remaining issue is appointing a second coach, and that will complete the staff accompanying Djokovic in 2018.” An elbow injury forced Djokovic to retire from his Wimbledon quarterfinal match against Tomas Berdych. He has not played since. Djokovic “is working hard to get started with tennis practice as soon as possible in order to meet his own expectations of making a comeback in Australia in 2018,” the statement added.

 

STRONG WOMEN

In a battle of Grand Slam tournament champions, French Open winner Jelena Ostapenko defeated Wimbledon winner Garbiñe Muguruza in the quarterfinals of the Wuhan Open. Ostapenka ripped through the final five games to beat Muguruza for the first time, 1-6 6-3 6-2. With Ostapenko making 15 unforced errors, Muguruza made a blazing start. But in the second set, the Latvian broke Muguruza four times to build a 5-3 lead. After the Spaniard held serve, Ostapenko evened the match with a winner down the line. Although Muguruza took the early lead, Ostapenko got her game into high gear to advance to the semifinals, where she fell to Australia’s Ashleigh Barty.

 

STEPS UP

Martina Hingis sits atop the WTA doubles rankings. No surprise there. The 37-year-old Swiss star celebrated her return to the top of the rankings by teaming with China’s Chan Yung-Jan to win their third consecutive title, the Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open, by edging Shuko Aoyama and Yang Zhaoxuan in a match tiebreak. Her latest victory came on her 37th birthday. “It’s nice to celebrate (my birthday) with a victory, obviously, and with a great partner to do it with,” Hingis said. “It’s my third time obviously here in Wuhan. It’s even more special now with Leticia (Chan) because she kind of guided me through this week. It was nice.” Chan and Hingis have now won 14 consecutive matches and have qualified for the season-ending BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore, which will be held later this month. Hingis replaced Lucie Safarova at number one in the WTA doubles rankings, while Chan moved to a career-high second. Hingis has now held the top ranking for 67 weeks, the first coming 19 years ago in June 1998.

 

SAFAROVA INJURED

Citing a wrist injury, Lucie Safarova pulled out of this week’s China Open. The 30-year-sold Czech had missed last week’s Wuhan Open. “I’m sad to announce I won’t be coming to Beijing for the China Open this year,” Safarova said. “My wrist injury still doesn’t allow me to come back on court.” While sidelined, Safarova lost her world number one spot in doubles, falling behind both Martina Hingis and her partner, Chan Yung-Jan. Safarova and Bethanie Mattek-Sands won at both Wuhan and Beijing last year. Mattek-Sands has been out since suffering a serious knee injury at Wimbledon.

 

SHOULD BE FIRED

Former tennis star James Blake says the New York City police officer who tackled him in a mistaken arrest should be fired. Blake said the police department should send a message to officers that they can’t use excessive force. The officer, James Frascatore, said he was told Blake was a suspect in a counterfeit credit card ring and may have been armed. The internal disciplinary trial is over, but the details of any punishment may never be known. City officials said that under state law officer disciplinary records are secret. Lawyers for the police watchdog group prosecuting the case recommended Frascatore forfeit 10 vacation days as punishment. Blake called for the mayor and police commissioner to fire the officer and make the decision public.

 

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Chengdu: Jonathan Erlich and Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi beat Marcus Daniell and Marcelo Demoliner 6-3 7-6 (3)

Orleans: Guillermo Duran and Andres Molteni beat Jonathan Eysseric and Tristan Lamasine 6-3 6-7 (4) 13-11 (match tiebreak)

Shenzhen: Alexander Peya and Rajeev Ram beat Nikola Mektic and Nicholas Monroe 6-3 6-2

Tashkent: Timea Babos and Andrea Hlavackova beat Nao Hibino and Oksana Kalashnikova 7-5 6-4

Tiburon: Andre Goransson and Florian Lakat beat Marcelo Arevalo and Miguel Angel Reyes-Varela 6-4 6-4

Wuhan: Chan Yung-Jan and Martina Hingis beat Shuko Aoyana and Yang Zhaoxuan 7-6 (5) 3-6 10-4 (match tiebreak)

 

SURFING

Beijing: www.chinaopen.com/

Tokyo: http//en.rakutenopen.com/

Kaohsiung: http://oecopen.com/

Monterrey: www.sierramadretennisclub.com/

Shanghai: http://en.shanghairolexmasters.com/

Tashkent: www.tennis.uz/

Hong Kong: www.hktennisopen.hk/en/

Linz: www.ladieslinz.at/

Tianjin: www.tianjinopen.com/

 

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

MEN

$4,280,460 China Open, Beijing, China, hard

$1,706,170 Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships, Tokyo, Japan, hard

$125,000 Kaohsiung OEC Open, Kaohsiung, Taiwan, hard

$100,000 Abierto GNP Seguros, Monterrey, Mexico, hard

$100,000 Stockton Challenger, Stockton, California, USA, hard

 

WOMEN

$4,720,380 China Open, Beijing China, hard

 

TOURNAMENTS NEXT WEEK

 

MEN

$8,092,625 Shanghai Rolex Masters, Shanghai, China, hard

$150,000 Tashkent Challenger, Tashkent, Uzbekistan, hard

$100,000 Northbay Healthcare Men’s Pro Championship, Fairfield, California, USA, hard

 

WOMEN

$226,750 Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open, Hong Kong, hard

$226,750 Upper Austria Ladies Linz, Linz, Austria, hard

$227,750 Tianjin Open, Tianjin, China, hard

 

David Goffin
David Goffin