|
Post by Admin on Oct 1, 2014 20:52:53 GMT
Former World No. 1 Martina Hingis and Italy's Flavia Pennetta combined to win the first title of their partnership, winning the WTA Wuhan Open on Saturday in a thrilling final over Cara Black and Caroline Garcia. Hingis and Pennetta let go off four matchpoints in the second set, then saved two matchpoints in the match tie-breaker before finally emerging 6-4, 5-7, 12-10 winners over the scratch pairing of Black/ Garcia. Black's regular partner on the circuit Sania Mirza did not make the trip to Wuhan as she is participating in the Asian Games in Korea. Hingis and Pennetta were playing only their fifth tournament together as a team - they were runners-up at the recent US Open and the Eastbourne Championships in June. With the win, the duo move closer to one of the final berths at the WTA Tour Finals in Singapore, where the top eight teams of the season qualify. Hingis and Pennetta will climb to ninth place in the race to Singapore. Hingis said in her post-match interview that she loved playing at the tournament and had a fantastic week in Wuhan, which is holding a WTA event for the first time. Hingis and Pennetta now travel to Beijing for the WTA China Open and will hope to make a further push for one of the eight berths in Singapore.
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Oct 8, 2014 21:04:17 GMT
It's Martina Hingis' birthday on Tuesday - Happy Birthday Martina! Take a look back at 20 of the Swiss Miss' best moments right here in this special photo gallery. Martina Hingis turned pro in 1994 and was creeping up the rankings in the 1995 and 1996 seasons. She became a household name after her run to the 1996 US Open semifinals, falling to Steffi Graf. She would fall to Graf in the final of the WTA Championships later that year - in five tough sets. But just a matter of weeks later she would get her first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open. She was the youngest Grand Slam champion in the Open Era. In March she became the youngest No.1. Her incredible 37-0 start to that 1997 season was stopped by Iva Majoli in the French Open final.
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Nov 20, 2014 21:05:30 GMT
Riding on spirited wins from former women’s world number one Martina Hingis and veteran Australian player Mark Philippoussis, Hyderabad Aces defeated Bangalore Raptors by 27-25 margin to start their Champions Tennis League (CTL) campaign on winning note in Hyderabad. According to the league format, the team that wins more games wins the tie and not the sets. In the first rubber, Hyderabad’s Mark Phillippoussis beat Bangalore’s Thomas Enqvist in the legends category 6-5 (5-2) last night, before Hingis defeated Venus Williams 6-3 in the women’s singles category to give the hosts the upperhand. Late at night, Mikhail Youzhny combined with Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan to edge past Feliciano Lopez and Ramkumar Ramanathan 6-3 in the men’s doubles match at the Lal Bahadur Stadium in Hyderabad. Lopez and Williams combination then beat Youzhny and Hingis 6-5 (5-1) in the mixed doubles category before and Lopez beat Youzhny 8-4 in the men’s singles to give Bangalore a respectable score of 25. The CTL enthralled the lovers of tennis in Hyderabad as they got to see old rivals Martina Hingis and Venus Williams back in action in a singles match. The powerful rallies and serves between the two women, who were world number one during the heydaysof their career, were a feast to the eyes of the spectators. Hingis mixed up her game, while Williams, who is currently ranked world number 18, tried to be aggressive but in the end it was the Swiss who had the last laugh with a comfortable win.
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Nov 21, 2014 20:53:32 GMT
Impressive wins by Mark Philippoussis and Martina Hingis in their singles matches helped Hyderabad Aces take a 15-11 lead over Bangalore Raptors at the end of the third match in their Champions Tennis League group tie here on Friday. Australian Mark Philippoussis beat Bangalore's Thomas Enqvist 6-4 in the legend's singles before home team's mixed doubles pair of Mikhail Youzhny and Martina Hingis - lost to power-packed combination of Venus Williams and Feliciano Lopez. Hingis was right on money, playing with precision as she made just five unforced errors compared to Venus' 18 - far too many and unexpected of a class player she is. Venus hit five winners compared to Hingis' six and yet it was not enough to make any impression in the match. Boosting the Indian economy today! Love the pashmina #commercial street
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Dec 3, 2014 20:56:15 GMT
“I wasn’t prepared for it at all and was a bit scared of how it would turn out,” laughs Martina, who won Wimbledon aged 17. She had already retired twice though had come back in recent years in various singles and doubles tournaments. Then German player Sabine Lisicki, whom she was coaching, asked her to team up to play doubles. “We went on to win the Sony Open in Miami this year and it was a big relief to win because I felt I’d proved myself all over again. I could still win the big tournaments and who doesn’t like winning?” She says her secret was maintaining the fitness she’d built up from childhood and having a healthy lifestyle which meant she could pick up maybe not quite where she left off but still considerably higher up the ladder than many of her competitors. Tennis had always been her destiny. Her parents Melanie Molitorová and Karol Hingis were top players in the former Czechoslovakia and she was named after the other famous Martina (Navratilova). She entered her first tournament at four and in 1993 when she was 12 became the youngest player to win a Grand Slam junior title. In the intervening years I’ve been coaching tennis players but I’ve also done a lot of skiing and riding my horses. I like being active. If I spend too much time in one place I get itchy feet.” Sporting injuries are often the price that professionals have to pay for their success and it was problems with her ankle that eventually forced Martina, who emigrated to Switzerland when she was seven with her mother, to retire for the first time at the age of 22. I eat fish, meat, pasta, vegetables and salads. “I love Japanese food, a good curry or a steak. I try to have red meat once or twice a week. I also like chocolate fudge cake with a good vanilla ice cream.” Since entering her 30s Martina has adapted her diet and while she still enjoys bread and pasta, she reveals: “I now have a rule of not eating carbohydrates after 2pm. I’ve never needed to diet because I’m so active. “I weigh myself. If I’m a little bit more than 58kgs (around 9st) I just cut back on desserts for a day or two and go for a half-hour run. That usually helps me to burn off a pound or two. I’m 5ft 7in tall so I can afford to eat. I think about my health a lot more now. I want to look good when I look in the mirror. “I didn’t give it any thought at all when I was 17 and when I look back at the photos of when I won Wimbledon I laugh at my baby fat.” As well as daily chocolate Martina enjoys a glass of wine or champagne now and then. However she confesses that she drinks only water when she is training and sparkling water with dinner. “I have such a sweet tooth,” she admits. “I love iced tea and sweet drinks.” When feeling tired or stressed Martina escapes to the stables for a couple of hours. “Being around my horses, especially my favourite Ragana, calms me down. “They give me a feeling of balance. I love getting out into the countryside on a horse and being at one with nature. That’s what calms me down. “My other trick when I’m stressed is to go for a fast walk or slow jog on the beach or in the forest. That’s often when I get my best ideas.” When she’s competing Martina enjoys massages and physiotherapy. “I also look after my legs and feet. I’ve discovered Nelsons Arnicare products. Arnica cooling gel is lovely after a workout. My feet get such a pounding and the gel makes them feel good. “When I travel I love a hotel with a spa. Sauna, steam and Jacuzzi are my favourite things. I find them so relaxing and I sleep so well afterwards.”
|
|