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Post by Admin on Jun 15, 2014 23:51:47 GMT
Ana Ivanovic won the first grass court title of her career on Sunday, beating Barbora Zahlavova Strycova in the final of the Premier-level Aegon Classic in Birmingham. Zahlavova Strycova was definitely the Cinderella story of the tournament. Having never even made it to the quarterfinals of a Premier-level event, she made it all the way to her first Premier final on the lawns of the Edgbaston Priory Club, and as an unseeded player as well, taking out a trio of seeds - No.5 seed Lucie Safarova, No.4 seed Kirsten Flipkens and No.15 seed Casey Dellacqua - along the way. But the No.1-seeded Ivanovic was at another level than them. She didn't drop a set en route to the final - she wasn't even pushed past 6-4 in any set - and there was an extra incentive for her, never having won a grass court title on the WTA. She had never even been to a grass court final before. The Serb, world ranked 13, had won both previous meetings with Zahlavova Strycova, who lost to Heather Watson in the French Open first round last month. Ivanovic had been in excellent form all week, not dropping a set and losing only 21 games on her way to the title in Birmingham, and two breaks in each set were enough to see off the 28-year-old Czech. Looking ahead to Wimbledon, she said: "I couldn't ask for better preparation than to win my first title on grass." "Ana was playing really well - I want to wish her good luck at Wimbledon," Zahlavova Strycova said at the trophy ceremony. "For me, I enjoyed myself so much this week. The crowd was amazing." "Barbora had an amazing week too - best of luck at 's-Hertogenbosch and Wimbledon," Ivanovic replied. "The crowd really has been amazing. I enjoyed my time here and I look forward to next year." Ivanovic was then told she's adding her name to a list of Birmingham champions that includes WTA legends Martina Navratilova and Billie Jean King. "It definitely feels very special, not just to win my first title on grass, but to put my name next to champions like that," Ivanovic said. "Hopefully they can help me with my smashes!" she added, referring to a few missed overheads from the final. She then thanked everyone from the ballkids to the officials and her team. "I really had a good time on grass."
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Post by Admin on Jun 18, 2014 0:11:59 GMT
Former Wimbledon junior champion Bouchard, who pulled out of last week's tournament in Birmingham after reaching the semi-finals of the French Open, was beaten 2-6, 6-3, 6-3 by King, meaning she will arrive at next week's tournament at the All England Club with just one grasscourt match under her belt this season. The world number 13, who also made the last four of the Australian Open in January, raced through the opening set backed by a pair of service breaks. But the 20-year-old was pegged back in the second set with American King, ranked 75th, capitalising on a lone break of serve. Bouchard was forced to fend off a pair of break points at the start of the deciding set but the third seed came unstuck in her following service game as King made the vital breakthrough to take a 2-1 lead. Bouchard had opportunities to pull herself back into the match as four break points came and went with the Canadian struggling to find her rhythm before King sealed the contest after just over two hours on court. "I tried to get to the net more and take the ball earlier," King said. "I think by making myself try to come to the net more, I was more aggressive on all of my shots."
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Post by Admin on Jul 12, 2014 23:44:29 GMT
An intriguing quarter-final match-up is scheduled to take place on Friday afternoon at the Bucharest Open in Romania, as Simona Halep and Lara Arruabarrena meet for the third time on the professional tour. Halep leads the series 2-0 and will look to continue that streak en route to the semi-final round. While world No. 3 Simona Halep reached the semi-final with a straight sets victory, it was not an easy process in the second set. The Romanian breezed through the first set in just 28 minutes and led 2-1 in the second set before getting broken back for 2-all. This breakfest would proceed until 4-4 where Halep finally got the deciding break to win the match 6-2, 6-4. “It was a very difficult match today,” Halep said. “It was very warm and there was a lot of humidity too, but I’m happy I could win in two sets again and keep enjoying playing at this tournament.” Halep was particularly happy with the reception she got from her home fans at the match. “It didn’t matter that the rain came, they stayed for me, and I appreciate that a lot!” World No. 120 Lara Arruabarrena reached the quarter-final round in Bucharest following a three set win over Cagla Buyukakcay on Tuesday afternoon. It was also a contest full of breaks, as both competitors managed 8 breaks of serve. While she won only 61% of her firsts ervice points (compared to 81% for her opponent) but was more solid during the third and final set. This is the third time these two competitors will meet on the professional tour with Halep holding an undefeated 2-0 record in the series. They already met on clay once earlier this season in Madrid, which Halep won 6-4, 6-4. Unless Lara has drastically improved, this match is not likely to be much different.
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Post by Admin on Jul 13, 2014 22:56:32 GMT
World No. 3 Simona Halep of Romania picked up her second victory of the season as she won the WTA final in Bucharest with a 6-1, 6-3 win over Italy’s Roberta Vinci. The 22-year-old, who won the Doha title in February, had lost previous finals this year at Madrid and Roland Garros, was also a semi-finalist at Wimbledon and quarter-finalist at the Australian Open. “It’s the first WTA tournament organized in Romania and I’m delighted with all my heart to have won it,” beamed the 22-year-old. Halep broke her opponent’s serve to open the match and sailed through the first before Vinci, the world number 24, took an early 2-0 lead in the second set. However, Halep built her offensive behind a solid backhand and came back from an early break down to seal the match with her second match point. It was Halep’s eighth career WTA title.
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Post by Admin on Jul 14, 2014 23:41:18 GMT
Resurgent German Andrea Petkovic secured her second title of the season at Bad Gastein on Sunday afternoon. She defeated surprise finalist Shelby Rogers 6-3, 6-3 to earn her second clay court crown of the year. Petkovic, who has risen to No. 20 in the world following her impressive showings this season, simply outperformed the world No. 147 in the match. Following the match, she expressed interest in working her way back into the Top 10 in the WTA rankings. “It’s a super feeling, I am totally happy,” said Petkovic, who making strides to get back in the top 10 again, a feat she accomplished 3 years ago. “I want back into the top 10 and I am just playing good tennis. My serve and my footwork can still improve but I am playing well.” Her opponent, young American Shelby Rogers, was the true notable story this week, as she dispatched Camila Girogi, Carla Suarez Navarro and Sara Errani to pick up her first three Top 40 wins on the tour. In the second set Petkovic broke Rogers twice to go 3-0 up Rogers got one break back in the 4th game. Petkovic broke Rogers once more to go 5-2 up but could not hold her serve as Rogers made it 3-5. But the French Open semifinalist broke Rogers there to take the set 6-3 and also grabbed the trophy with it.
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