|
Post by Admin on Oct 25, 2019 21:24:22 GMT
World number one Ashleigh Barty has been drawn in the same group as Naomi Osaka at the WTA Finals in Shenzhen. French Open champion Barty and Australian Open winner Osaka will be joined by Petra Kvitova and Belinda Bencic in the Red Group. The Purple Group includes US Open champion Bianca Andreescu, Wimbledon winner Simona Halep, Karolina Pliskova and Elina Svitolina. The tournament in China takes place from 27 October to 3 November. Barty, who won her first Grand Slam title at the French Open, heads the field on her maiden appearance, having becoming the first Australian since 1976 to be ranked world number one. The 23-year-old is one of three debutants, alongside Canadian teenager Andreescu, who has won 37 of her 42 matches in an incredible breakout year, and Swiss 22-year-old Bencic. Defending champion Svitolina, 25, and two-time Wimbledon champion Kvitova, 29, are the only players in the field to have previously won the title. The tournament, which also includes a doubles event featuring the year's top eight teams, has a record total prize fund of £10.8m. Chinese city Shenzhen is hosting the season-ending event for the first time after it moved from Singapore in a 10-year deal. British number one Johanna Konta fell short of a first appearance in the season-ending finals, despite a fine year that saw her reach the French Open semi-finals, along with runs to the Wimbledon and the US Open quarter-finals. Konta, 28, finished 11th in the Race to Shenzhen to earn a place in this week's WTA Elite Trophy in Zuhai - the second-tier finals tournament - but pulled out of the event after having some pain in her knee. American great Serena Williams is also missing after being overtaken in the standings by Bencic following the Swiss player's victory at the Kremlin Cup in Russia.
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Oct 27, 2019 18:13:57 GMT
No.3 seed Naomi Osaka kicked off Red Group action in the inaugural Shiseido WTA Finals Shenzhen in superb style, stemming the tide of a peaking Petra Kvitova, defeating the No.6 seed 7-6(1), 4-6, 6-4 in two hours and 39 minutes.
The Japanese player reprised the result of this January's classic Australian Open final, where she lifted her second Grand Slam trophy, in another thrilling three-setter - this time winning the first set from a break down, losing the second from a break up and dominating the third. Osaka also equals the longest winning streak of her career at 11 victories in a row, previously set in 2018 when she won the US Open and followed it by reaching the Tokyo final.
"I'm not great at first rounds," said Osaka self-deprecatingly afterwards on how the round-robin format affected her. "It takes me a little bit to warm up. I think that this tournament forces you to do well early." However, after going 0-3 in her WTA Finals debut last year, Osaka also revealed that a source of motivation in Shenzhen was to "redeem [herself] a little bit."
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Oct 28, 2019 7:17:43 GMT
SHENZHEN, China — Top-ranked Ashleigh Barty of Australia rebounded from a set down to win her debut match 5-7, 6-1, 6-2 over Belinda Bencic of Switzerland at the WTA Finals on Sunday.
Barty’s victory is her 53rd of the season, second most this season after Kiki Bertens with 54.
The 5-foot-5 Barty is a surprisingly potent server and ended her first career encounter against Bencic, also playing in her first year-end final, with her 10th ace of the match.
Earlier, Naomi Osaka extended her winning streak to 11 matches after defeating Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic 7-6 (1), 4-6, 6-4 in the first of three round-robin matches on the day.
Osaka, the Australian Open champion, arrived in Shenzen having won the last two tournaments she played – in Osaka, Japan, and Beijing.
“Given that I do feel I’m a big-match player, there are some times when I play higher-ranked people and I don’t do that great,” said Osaka. “So I feel like this tournament is a big challenge for me.
“I think I’m not even really thinking of this tournament as the Finals, I’m just trying to continue on from where Beijing left off.”
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Oct 28, 2019 23:58:16 GMT
The encounter between the teen phenom and her idol didn't disappoint as the drama continued at the women's WTA year-end championships.
In this case it was the elder superstar in Simona Halep who downed the ailing Canadian trailblazer Bianca Andreescu 3-6 7-6 (8-6) 6-3, saving a match point in the process. Halep didn't enjoy the greatest of preparation for the elite tournament due to a lingering back complaint, but it was Andreescu's back that ultimately gave way in the grueling two-and-a-half hour thriller.
The earlier match in the Purple Group went into the record books, with defending champion Elina Svitolina winning the longest ever tiebreak at the WTA Finals 14-12 as part of a 7-6 (14-12) 6-4 triumph over Karolina Pliskova.
The first two days in the event's new home of Shenzhen, China haven't disappointed -- both matches Sunday went to a third set.
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Oct 29, 2019 8:01:38 GMT
World No.3 Naomi Osaka has withdrawn from the 2019 Shiseido WTA Finals Shenzhen due to a right shoulder injury. Osaka, who began her WTA Finals campaign with a 7-6(1), 4-6, 6-4 win over No.6 Petra Kvitova on Sunday, was set to play World No.1 Ashleigh Barty on Tuesday night. Osaka will be replaced by first alternate Kiki Bertens in the Red Group.
Osaka will be replaced by first alternate Kiki Bertens in the Red Group. “I’m disappointed to have to withdraw from the Finals,” Osaka said in a statement. “It has been a great event in Shenzhen, and it’s the biggest WTA event of the year. This is not how I wanted to end this tournament or my season. I look forward to getting healthy and hope to be back here in Shenzhen next year.”
The reigning Australian Open champion finishes the season on an 11-match win-streak, having gone undefeated since the US Open. She tallied back-to-back titles at the Toray Pan Pacific Open and China Open, and secured her first career-win at the WTA Finals against Kvitova.
|
|