Toronto – TennisReporters.net

The finals in Canada: Jessica Pegula, Jannik Sinner, Alex de Minaur

August 12, 2023 by Matthew Cronin

The American Jessica Pegula has been around the block, for a very long time, but finally, she is very intense, and when the match is almost done, then you have to really go for it. Or, if she is very steady, during the points, when she is feeling it, then she can hit it harder, and really mix it up.

Over the past few days, in Montreal, it looked like that Pegula could fold, but she has been so confident. She edged two of the fine players, taking down her good friend, Coco Gauff 6-2, 5-7, 7-5, and on Saturday, she out-lasted Iga Swiatek 6-2, 6-7, 6-4. Those were two huge events, as she has yet to reach into the semis is the Grand Slams, but at the 2023 U.S. Open, maybe she will finally do it for the first time.

However, right now, it is the most important event. “It’s just kind of trying to execute it at the right times and as best as possible,” she said.

Unfortunately, in Montreal, it was raining at night, so they had to cancel between Elena Rybakina and Liudmila Samsonova. They will play on Sunday.

The Aussie Alex de Minaur also said that he really can go further. He beat the former 2021 US Open champion Daniil Medvedev, and then he blasted Alejandro
Davidovich Fokina in the semis. Over the past few years ago, he would miss a lot of shots. He could back off, and he could become frustrated. Now he understands what really works. If he is way down on the court, he can continue to battle.

“I’m not going to give up at any stage. Yeah, just at those stages, I managed to put the ball in the court, play a couple good points,” de Minaur said. “And then, all of a sudden, I got my chance and was able to turn that around. So it’s often how tennis goes. It’s huge momentum swings. So you always got to stay in the present.”

He is currently ranked No. 18, and he does say that this year, he will finally reach into the top 10. The 24-year-old has won seven titles, but none in the ATP 1000s, or at the Grand Slams. But at least he won two ATP 500s, including in early March when he won Acapulco, on the hardcourts. He also reached the finals in London/Queen’s Club and a week ago, in Los Cabos, Mexico.

As he said, very soon, he wants to get into the tough top 10.

“Yeah, 100%. That’s been the goal for me for a couple years,” de Minaur said. “It’s no secret that, I haven’t really been content where I am, and I’m always trying to find my way to push more. I’ve always felt that I’ve got the level to break into that top 10. But it probably wasn’t until end of last year where I was able to get my first win against a top 5, which was Daniil in Paris, that I really was able to have that breakthrough moment of really believing in myself. And I think from that moment onwards, it’s been a completely different — it’s been a change. I’m feeling a lot better. I’ve had a great year.”

He will face against the Italian, Jannik Sinner, who beat Tommy Paul 6-4, 6-4. It was close. but Sinner missed a few odd shots, but he continued to throw with some gigantic shots. In the final, Sinner will take down de Minaur in three, massive sets.

Filed Under: Featured Bottom Left, Lead Story Tagged With: Alex de Minaur, Elena Rybakina, Iga Swiatek, Jannik Sinner, Jessica Pegula, Liudmila Samsonova, Matthew Cronin, Montreal, Tommy Paul, Toronto

In Canada: McDonald beats Raonic

August 10, 2023 by Matthew Cronin

This is the first time that Mackenzie McDonald has reached into the semis at the ATP 1000s in Toronto. On Thursday, he beat Milos Raonic 6-3, 6-3, who looked very good in his two matches, but then, he was a little bit flat, or he must have been to tired. But not the American, who had decided to win the match, and he had to really go for it. He looked very good, going cross court and down the line. McDonald can be very steady, but the reason why he has yet to crack into the top 45. Maybe he will, as long as he can add some strategic shots. He is 28-years-old, so this is a perfect time, on court, but you can pretend that you will survived, for years, but to go much further, he has to really push himself.

Another up and down competitor, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, won a very tough match, and the Spaniard outlasted Casper Ruud 7-6 (4), 4-6, 7-6 (4). They will play each other in the quarters on Friday.

Davidovich Fokina is still pretty young, but he has also lost some super close matches, and he lost. When he is locked in, then he can bash his forehand and his backhand. He is pretty fast, running, and his first serve and his return is decent. Yes, he did reach into one final, period, at Monte-Carlo last year. Then, when he did, he would continue to build and finally, win a tournament. He still isn’t, yet. If you look at this year, he has lost five super closes against the top players. For example, at Wimbledon, he lost against Holger Rune 7-6(8) in the fifth set. That was brutal, but he eventually has to be more calm. If he going to win a tournament, he must be sealed in. Davidovich Fokina, will win the match, 7-6, 7-6.

Alex de Minaur beat Taylor Fritz 7-6 (7), 4-6 6-1. He will face Daniil Medvedev on Friday, another difficult match, The Aussie 24-year-old is also extremely good, when he is on, and just like the former two time champion, Lleyton Hewitt, he can be highly consistent, but not all the time. This time, he will have to grind it, as the Russian really thinks out there, many times. Medvedev will win it in two long sets.

Each week, Jessica Pegula can look very good, early on, and then after that, she has to decided whether she can be damn loyal, or swing harder. It is hard to tell whether this season, she will win an event. She did easily beat Jasmine Paolini 6-4, 6-0, which was impressive, but last week in Washington, she went down against Maria Sakkari. She will face Coco Gauff or Marketa Vondrousova on Friday. That will be very intense.

Filed Under: Featured Bottom Right, Lead Story Tagged With: Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, Alex de Minaur, Jessica Pegula, Matt Cronin, Matthew Cronin, Toronto

Caroline Wozniacki wins first match in Montreal

August 9, 2023 by Matthew Cronin

The former No. 1, Caroline Wozniacki, is back, in Montreal, which is a little bit odd, given that she retired. It appears that she just wanted to play again and win, a lot. She has won 30 titles, which is huge and her backhand was extremely good, but the reason why she only won one Grand Slam is because her forehand was so-so, and her her second serve, too.

Today, she beat Kimberly Birrell 6-2, 6-2, and she was thrilled, as she has not play for three and half years ago, a long time.

However, the 33-year-old Wozniacki was so consistent, and fast. But why did she decide to retire, thinking that it is time to go, forever. And then, gradually, she would think sure, I can hit the ball, have some sets, have some fun, and then go home. But one day, she would wake up, and then say, alright, now I can to win another Slam. Something that is really important.

“Can I win the US Open? I think so,” said Wozniacki, who has two young children. “Can I win the Australian Open [again]? I think so. That’s why I’m doing this. And I guess we’ll see what happens.”

I would say so, but she has only won one match this week. She has to work on the shots, gradually.

Or maybe she won’t come back into the No. 1 ever again, or even into the top 10. Look at another four-times Grand Slam winner, Kim Clijsters, who came back, but she could not win a match. On court, she was a wonderful player, but then she was just too slow. So then she retired again. That it a tough pill to swallow.

However, the former Wimbledon winner, Frederik Lochte Nielsen, said about Wozniacki, “I’ve always said, never underestimate Caroline. She wouldn’t compete if she didn’t feel she could.”

How did Milos Raonic win a match on Monday in Toronto? Yes, long ago, he looked very good, winning eight titles, and he reached in the final at the 2016 Wimbledon. Even though he lost against Andy Murray, it was possible that eventually, he could grab it, and become No. 1. But he could do it, not just because he started to be injured a lot, but also, he wasn’t that fast, running, and his return was spotty.

But now, the Canadian finally came back, and the 32-year-old look very impressive when he beat Frances Tiafoe 6-7(12), 7-6(4), 6-3. He was thrilled, but it is just only one match. Or more.

Back in 2013 in Canada, Raonic reached the final, beating Juan Martin del Potro, and then he lost against Rafa Nadal. But in Canada, he was thrilled.

“I felt I was able to do my things well,” said Raonic, who won twice San Jose, in California. “I don’t feel I’m that far off from playing tennis that was reminiscent from two or three years ago. But it doesn’t mean that those things just click and transfer to matches. I still have to continue working hard in those moments and hopefully those things do come together.”

That it true, and maybe when you are more mature, then you can adjust it when you are playing in the matches. Not only did he win eight contests, in the ATP 250s and the 500s, but he reached into the 1000’s, three times. The last time was in Cincinnati in 2020, beating Stefanos Tsitsipas before he lost against the great player, Novak Djokovic, quickly. But that is how it does.

The American men had a tough day, when Gael Monfils played terrific in the third set, when he was very confident again, beating Christopher Eubanks 7-6(3) 6-7(4) 6-1. Eubanks has had a good year, but he will has to be more efficient on court.

But Monfils looked excellent, in the third set, but the former 2008 Roland Garros semifinals became injured all the time, each year. He has never won a Grand Slam before, but he is older, so to win a Slam or an ATP 1000 would be shocking. However, in the third set Toronto, the very fast runner hit some blasting shots, including his fine forehand. Whether he can stay the rest of the year, with his sore legs, is questionable, but he had a cool at night.

“Every moment are tough. When you get on the court, it’s tough,” Monfils said. “Then when you know your tactic is not working, it’s tough. And then I don’t know what is worse, to miss completely the game when I was about to serve it out [in the second set], or when I choke with this forehand on the match point, or when I couldn’t even get this double break. So are tough. And at the end, the easiest one is when I won and I shake his hand. I never take granted any moment. So I just tried to stay the most positive that I could and try to be as cool as I can. And to be honest, it’s amazing. After 20 years, I can choke in a way. It means so much for me to win one match. And it was actually fun.”

Grand Slam before, but he is older, so to win a Slam or an ATP 1000 would be shocking. However, in the third set Toronto, the very fast runner hit some blasting shots, including his fine forehand. Whether he can stay the rest of the year, with his sore legs, is questionable, but he had a cool at night.

“Every moment are tough. When you get on the court, it’s tough,” Monfils said. “Then when you know your tactic is not working, it’s tough. And then I don’t know what is worse, to miss completely the game when I was about to serve it out [in the 2nd set], or when I choke with this forehand on the match point, or when I couldn’t even get this double break. So are tough. And at the end, the easiest one is when I won and I shake his hand. I never take granted any moment. So I just tried to stay the most positive that I could and try to be as cool as I can. And to be honest, it’s amazing. After 20 years, I can choke in a way. It means so much for me to win one match. And it was actually fun.”

Filed Under: Featured Bottom Left, Lead Story Tagged With: Caroline Wozniacki, Christopher Eubanks, Gael Monfils, Kimberly Birrell, Matt Cronin, Matthew Cronin, milos raonic, Montreal, Toronto

Raonic turns back the clock to kickstart comeback tour

August 8, 2023 by Kamakshi Tandon

TORONTO–Milos Raonic not only turned back the clock but almost got to rerun his career during a memorable opening night win in his hometown of Toronto.

The 32-year-old Canadian, currently ranked No. 575, defeated No. 10 Frances Tiafoe 6-7(12), 7-6(4), 6-3, but even that eye-catching scoreline doesn’t fully capture the exuberance of the victory.

Raonic is three events and five matches into his comeback tour, having spent two years away from the game and 14 months not picking up a racquet, gaining 40 pounds during an injury break that he thought had likely finished his career. During the more than two-hour 44-minute contest played minutes from his childhood home, he hit 37 aces, almost a career-high for a three-setter, including one on match point to seal a spot in the second round against Taro Daniel.

But the statistics were secondary to the spills and thrills, especially in a tightrope walk first-set tiebreak that finished amid controversy and boos. Having fallen behind right at the start of the match, Raonic broke back to send the first set to a tiebreak that went on and on, highlighted by a scintillating Tiafoe dropshot that spun back onto his side of the court. Even the pro-Raonic crowd cheered that winner, but Tiafoe’s flicked running forehand on set point got quite a different reception. “Initially appearing to be a winner, it then seemed umpire Fergus Murphy had given the point to Raonic as Tiafoe had touched the net, followed by a long discussion between all three — and even an appearance from the tournament supervisor — before Tiafoe was given the point, and with it the set.

Though Murphy attempted to tell the crowd that Tiafoe had touched the doubles portion of the net, considered a “fixture” with which contact is allowed, there were loud boos that only amplified when Raonic walked back to the side of the court and smashed his racquet on his chair.

“So I guess the part that’s confusing is he did call it my point,” Raonic told press following the contest. “Then the change — then the issue was the amount of times the whole conversation was changed.

“Then it was, okay, which part of the net he touched.”

But though admitting he’s “not necessarily the best player involving the crowd” — largely due to his staccato play and stiffness — Raonic was energized by the atmosphere.

“I think that kind of got everybody going. That, and that game that I got fortunate to break back at when he was serving for the first set,” he said. “And I think that just kind of gave me some momentum and some force going forward.”

There were loud cheers and chants of “Let’s go, Milos” accompanying his comeback in the second and third sets, during which he slowly took control with his big serving and improving consistency off the ground.

“It wasn’t the first time a Raonic contest has involved a controversial call — ten years ago on the same court, he won a point against Juan Martin del Potro despite a double hit he eventually would say he should have admitted on court.

There was also an appearance from the trainer for a lower back injury, so frequent during all the physical problems Raonic has had during his career.

And along with that were the other hallmarks of Raonic matches — easy holds, tiebreaks, plenty of aces. But for Raonic, it was more about again having the feeling that goes with it — getting to play in front of friends and family, the roar of the local fans, all in the stadium he once watched from the stands.

He’s not sure whether he’ll retire before he can play this event again, but on this evening, it was like old times.

“For me — it’s incredibly special for it to be here,” he said. “The embrace between my mom and dad, that’s probably the thing…that means the most to me.”

And with his win, there’ll be another repeat of some of those sights and sounds.

Filed Under: Featured Bottom Right, Lead Story Tagged With: Frances Tiafoe, Matthew Cronin, milos raonic, Toronto

Nadal wins Toronto, beating Tsitsipas

August 13, 2018 by Matthew Cronin Leave a Comment

FROM TORONTO — Rafa Nadal keeps on battling, pushing himself, and he is always fighting. In the final here, he took down Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-2, 7-6(4). He has won 33 ATP Master Series, the most ever, eclipsing two of the other great competitors, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer.

We all know that he is very quick, and that he is very strong. For the most part, he is pretty efficient with his first serve and his second serve. Ten years ago, he didn’t like coming into the net. But now, he can move forward and put it away, with his forehand and backhand. He bends down low and scoops it up. He can slice, or flatten it out.
Just like Federer and Djokovic, Nadal has improved over the past two years. They keep working and improving, even though they are in the 30s.

The No. 1 can be dominant when he is locked in.

Five years ago, Nadal won 10 tournaments. He won Canada (over Milos Raonic), Cincy (over Federer in the quarters and John Isner in the final) and the US Open (over Djokovic). That was the best year, ever.

Today, not only did he defeat Tsitsipas , but he edged Marin Cilic 2-6 6-4 6-4 in the semis. It was very close, and during the first set, he thought that he had to change a few things in the second set, or he would be out of the tournament. But he began to serve pretty big and he moved it to the left, to the right and down the middle. His forehand was falling deep and bounced up pretty high. He mixed his backhand, and when he had a chance, when the tall Cilic had some second serves, he returned it deep.

Really, Cilic could have won the match and yes, he has won one Grand Slam at the 2014 US Open. Too often, he loses control. In the last game, Nadal cracked the ball, and Cilic made a couple pretty easy errors. Goodbye.

Later in the day on Sunday, Nadal announced he won’t play Cincinnati.

Here is what he said in his post-match press conference, as he was weighing his options: “For me personally it’s not the moment to think about that. For me just having this trophy with me means a lot. It’s a very important moment for me. I can’t answer the question (of whether to withdraw from Cincinnati). I need to come back to speak with my team, to speak with the people who are close to me and really make a decision about what is going on in the next week and the next couple of weeks.

“There is a tighter (schedule) too because we have the Davis Cup semifinals after the US Open. So, we need to think about the things that we can do or the things that about we can’t do, no? So, it’s all about the decisions. I only want to play. I want to be everywhere. I love this sport. I don’t like to miss events. But at some point, if I don’t stop for myself, my body stop me. So that’s the experience that I have.”

Tsitsipas’ makes his mark
Sure, the young players are coming up — gradually — but it could take them another year to win a Grand Slam.

Tsitsipas is now 20 years old. He almost came from nowhere, but now the Greek is very close to reach the top 10 in the next months. His first serve is huge, he can slap his forehand and spin it way back in the court. His return is so-so, but hopefully he will learn to concentrate. When he happens to get into the net, he hesitates, but within a second, he composes himself and puts it away.

Filed Under: Featured Bottom Left, Lead Story Tagged With: cincinnati, Matt Cronin, Matthew Cronin, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Toronto

Tsitsipas reaches the Toronto final, upsets Anderson

August 12, 2018 by Matthew Cronin Leave a Comment

FROM TORONTO – Here’s your introduction to Stefanos Tsitsipas, who has now reached the ATP 1000 Finals in Toronto. Maybe tennis fans knew that eventually he would would take his place at the top 20, but almost out of nowhere, he ha emerged.
In the last six days, he beat the No. 8 Dominic Thiem, former No. 1 Novak Djokovic, the defending titlist Alex Zverev and now, the No. 6, Kevin Anderson.

One year ago, he was ranked No. 168. On Sunday, he will be ranked No. 15 in the ATP Rankings and, if he wins the title, on Monday, he will be ranked No. 12.

“I couldn’t achieve anything better in one tournament, beating all those high-ranked players, playing amazing tennis,” Tsitsipas said. “I’m pretty sure the crowd didn’t expect that. I personally didn’t expect that.”

On Sunday, it will be happy birthday for Tsitsipas, who will turn 20 years old. He may be tired, or maybe not, but still, he will battle during the final because he is very happy that thousands of fans will come out and find out who exactly who is.
Still, there are many questions. Can he crush his first serve? Can we wallop his forehand? Can he put heavy spin in his one-hand backhand? Does he hustle? Does he think? He is pretty young, but he is showing real signs of understanding the game.

He was facing Anderson. In the third-set tiebreak, he held three match points. At 5-4, he ripped his forehand down the line for a winner. At 6-4, match point, he double faulted. Ugh. At 6-5, his forehand went long. At 6-6, he missed another forehand. He shook his head. Anderson was a point away at 7-6. But, Tsitsipas, as Anderson said, “Came up with an unbelievable backhand crosscourt winner.” Tsitsipas aced him, and in his last point, at 8-7, Anderson folded it, when he made an error. See ya.

Tsitsipas won 6-7 6-4 7-6 (7). A very happy man.

“I was very impressed with the way he played, some of the bigger points of the match. Because I felt like I quite a few opportunities,” Anderson said. “I mean, even in the third, a couple of times I was at deuce. The one game he was up 40-love, I played three really good points to get it back to deuce to sort of get a sniff in the game, and he ends up hitting two aces. So those are the kind of points that he played very well.

“I think the biggest thing I was impressed with was definitely his mental. He played pretty solid throughout the match. So today he definitely deserved to win.”

Tsitsipas is finally aggressive now but still keeping cosistent. Last year, he could get angry and lose it. However, even after he double faults, or pushing it into the net, he moves on and continues to see where he is and what he has to do. He is doing than now, here in Toronto.

“I’m never losing it. I’m always there. It doesn’t matter what the score. I’m always going to attack. I’m always going to go to the ball, maybe even approach after my shot. And I feel like my forehand is on fire at this moment,” Tsitsipas said. “Hopefully it can remain like this tomorrow because it will be super important for me, the win tomorrow.”

He will face Rafa Nadal, who took down Karen Khachanov, in the final.

Filed Under: Featured Bottom Right, Lead Story Tagged With: Kevin Anderson, Matt Cronin, Matthew Cronin, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Toronto

Zverev is maturing, Tsitsipas stuns Djokovic

August 9, 2018 by Matthew Cronin Leave a Comment

FROM TORONTO – Will it be normal, week after week, day after day, to be able to perform well on the courts? I doubt it, but perhaps Alexander (Sasha) Zverev believes in it. He is pretty good, he is alright in the top 3. He plays freely — still — but now many people are gunning for him. He knows that.

“It’s normal. I think all the top guys feel more pressure because everybody is looking for them,” Zverev said. “Everybody is more excited to play them. You saw the reaction that Stefanos [Tsitsipas] had after he beat Novak [Djokovic]. He’s not going to have that reaction beating any other player. So it’s normal. That comes with it. And I think it’s important to learn how to deal with it. I’m doing quite okay with it. After I got to the top 5, I stayed there, and hopefully I will stay there for many more years to come. But, of course, there’s a period where you go through where it changes.

“It will change for Stefanos. I think everybody will have to go through that. Right now they’re still playing freely. Right now, they’re still the youngest guys on tour. Right now, they don’t have any pressure. It’s going to be interesting to see when they start feeling that they’re the hunted and they’re the ones that everybody is looking out for, how it will affect them.”

Zverev looked pretty sufficient in besting Danill Medvedev 6-3 6-2. He is super strong, he can be patient at times and early on, he can crack his forehands and backhands. Yes, during the Slams, he stops thinking, and he overhits it. But, during through a number of marathon matches at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, he hung in there. He didn’t go far enough, but at least he continued to try.

But that was during in the Grand Slams. Right now, Zverev is in Toronto, an ATP 1000. Without a doubt, he has a legitimate change to win the title, even with No. 1 Rafael Nadal in the mix. Tsitsipas will face Zverev on Friday.

There are times when player are totally clicked in, and the 19-year-old Tsitsipas never backed off. He lost the second set to Novak Djokovic and he did not fold. Tsitsipas won 6-3 6-7(5) 6-3, with some gigantic serves.

Believe it to not, the 2018 Wimbledon champion Djokovic was unable to break him. On hardcourts, that is surprising. But the Serbian knows that Tsitsipas and other young players get better and better all the time.

“[Tsitsipas ] won against [Dominic] Thiem yesterday. He was feeling well,” Djokovic said. “I think he was serving 18 aces, last match, and then also in the first match a lot of aces. So he was just serving big. He was serving all corners. So I didn’t really read his serve that well… He’s definitely one of the leaders of NextGen without a doubt, especially this season. He’s had some terrific results and terrific wins. He’s showing a lot of commitment, a lot of discipline. He’s putting in the hours in the gym, on the tennis court, and it’s paying off. He’s very talented. He was the best junior in the world. If he keeps on going this way, he’s got a good future.”

Djokovic will play Cincy next week. While he so-so in Toronto, he should be one of the favorite with Roger Federer, who says he will play there, as well Andy Murray. Will Djokovic eventually be become No. 1 this year? He isn’t sure, but he wants it.

“Grand Slams are probably the most important tournaments for me, for many players,” he said. “But at the same time, I really want to do well in these kind of tournaments. These are the biggest events we have in ATP Tour. I’ve won 30 Master Series events so far in my career. And that stat, shows how committed I am to play well in these tournaments.

So I really want to do well. So, I mean, losing in this kind of tournament, it’s not something I don’t care about. It really frustrates me. But I have to accept it, deal with it, and move on.”

Filed Under: Featured Bottom Left, Lead Story Tagged With: Alexander Zverev, Matt Cronin, Matthew Cronin, Novak Djokovic, Sasha Zverev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Toronto

Elina Svitolina wins Toronto, smacks Wozniacki

August 14, 2017 by Matthew Cronin Leave a Comment

FROM TORONTO, THE ROGERS CUP, SUNDAY, AUGUST 13: Now Elina Svitolina is the top of the charts.

The 22-year-old blasted Carolina Wozniacki 6-4, 6-0 to win Toronto. Admittedly, she was tired, because day after day, she has to run back and forth, side to side, forward and back. She is very strong and determined. She barely slept last night, maybe three to four hours, which is incredible. She was showing the effects of beating three strong players: Venus Williams, Garbine Muguruza and Simona Halep.

During the first set, Svitolina was up and down. Her forehand and backhand were pretty good, but she was a little late. Her serve was decent, but she could not kiss the lines. She was terrific at the net, bending very low and going the other way. At 4-4, Wozniacki looked pretty tired, too, while Svitolina kept pushing. She broke taking won the first set,

In the second set, the Ukrainian was almost perfect. She woke up, her legs returned, she attacked quickly against the Dane. She rarely hit an unforced error, while Wozniacki was super frustrated. She wasn’t going anywhere, and she was totally gone.

The former No. 1 Wozniacki has reached six finals this season — which is fantastic — but lost them all. She doesn’t know why she can read her opponents’ strokes. Overall, she isn’t aggressive enough and she freezes.

Svitolina has won five titles this year and thinks she can win the US Open. She hasn’t been close, but now, she knows that if she really believes that if she can play 100 percent, then she can knock down anyone.

Incredibly, the No. 1 ranking will be up for grabs by five women, according to TV commentators. Besides the Toronto finalists, current No. 1 Karolina Pliskova, former No. 1 Angelique Kerber and the almost-there-but-can’t-convert Simona Halep could all be the top woman by Sept. 11.

She wants to sleep soon, but she is so, so happy.

“I was very, very tired after the first game of first set. And I knew that I need to give everything because Caroline doesn’t miss much,” she said. “You have to work really hard to get unforced error from her. I just decided I’m going to just play every ball and just leave everything on court. And that’s why, emotionally I was relieved when I won the first set, and then was playing better and better in the second. I really couldn’t believe that it all finished and I’m holding the trophy.”

Filed Under: Featured Bottom Right, Lead Story Tagged With: Caroline Wozniacki, Elina Svitolina, Matt Cronin, Matthew Cronin, Toronto

Svitolina: ‘The mental part is also a very stable’

August 13, 2017 by Matthew Cronin Leave a Comment

FROM TORONTO, THE ROGERS CUP, SATURDAY, AUGUST 11: Elina Svitolina is already pretty close to winning a major. But first, she has to really believe in herself. The Ukrainian has been darn good this season, she is already No. 5, winning Rome, Istanbul, Dubai and Taipei City. In Dubai, she took out Caroline Wozniacki in the final. Guess what? They will clash on Sunday, an extremely important event here at the Canadian Open.

In this event, Svitolina has beaten two terrific players here, who had great Wimbledon results: Garbine Muguruza and Venus Williams. On Saturday, Svitolina crushed Simona Halep 6-1 6-1. She was strong, and Halep was exhausted.

At Roland Garros, Svitolina thought she could go very deep and actually win it. She won the quarterfinal first set against Halep, thought she could nail it during the second set and move ahead, but she stopped, and Halep out-though her, winning 3-6 7-6(6) 6-0. She cried then. But, on Saturday, she locked in, showed her power and was ready to be patient.

“In Paris it was very difficult to have that loss, but I think it also was the experience,” Svitolina said. “So that’s why, from the first point today ‘til the last point, I was very focused and I was just 100 percent on every ball. I just learned. I learned from that experience that you need to play until the last point and, you know, just one point at a time. There will be nerves, but that’s how you need to try to manage them and to put them in the right direction. You know, to don’t push the ball, go for the shots and move your feet quickly. Because every player is different, but you need to know what happens with you when you are very stressed. So I try to learn this from the experience.”

Svitolina is very rugged, has a fast but varied serve. She can mix it up and bash it. Last year, she was pretty decent, but the 22-year-old needed to change a couple things and become substantial better. Her forehand, her backhand and the lob are forceful.

“I’m more consistent with my game. With the mental part is also a very stable,” she said. “Yeah, it’s just the small things. I’m 22 years old, so I’m always changing. And I see some things differently than, one year ago, two years ago.So just something clicked together and it’s working.”

The same goes for Wozniacki, who has now reached six final tournaments this season. Without a doubt, she has been super consistent, but when she reaches the final, she gets nervous, and then she panics. Is she the favorite here on Sunday? It is hard to say. Svitolina beat her in February, but the 27-year-old Wozniacki has been on the WTA Tour for 10 years. That is a very long time. She knows all the other players, she knows exactly what she has to do, but in the finals, she becomes too conservative.

This time, she cannot, or Svitolina can blast her and destroy her forehand. Caro is so quick, she knocks it back all the time. Her backhand is so consistent, especially crosscourt. His first serve is much better now, and occasionally, she puts away the volleys.

At the press conference, a journalist asked: “It’s your sixth final of the year and you’re still looking for your first win. Does that weigh on your mind at all?”

Caro said, “No, not unless I get asked about it (with a laughter.) So I put myself in great positions and I’m going to try and make the most of it.”

Filed Under: Featured Bottom Left, Lead Story Tagged With: Caroline Wozniacki, Dubai and Taipei City., Elina Svitolina, istanbul, Matt Cronin, Matthew Cronin, rome, Toronto

Sloane Stephens: ‘Everyone else is, like, huffing and puffing’

August 11, 2017 by Matthew Cronin Leave a Comment

FROM TORONTO, THE ROGERS CUP, THURSDAY, AUGUST 10 — Sloane Stephens is coming back strong, upsetting Petra Kvitova and Angie Kerber in Toronto. While she was off for almost a year, she increased her practicing and got better.

American Stephens was hurt last year and had foot surgery. She stopped playing in August 2016. She returned to play on the WTA Tour at the end of last June.

“It’s kind of like I’m just starting my season and everyone else is, like, huffing and puffing. I feel good,” said Stephens. “Obviously I haven’t’ played, so I’m really looking forward to getting on the court every time I step on the court and just happy to be out there. And not that the other girls aren’t happy, but they’ve already had a really long season, and it’s been tough for them. So maybe that’s a little bit of an advantage.”

The 24-year-old reached the semis at the 2014 Australian Open, upsetting Serena Williams before losing against Vika Azarenka, who won the event. She cracked the top 10 that year. She didn’t do much in 2015, but in 2016, she won Auckland, Acapulco and Charleston before her injury stopped her stellar progress.

She said that before she came back at the tour, she practiced a lot and she is trying to improve.

“There was a lot of things I needed to improve. I was on a peg leg for, like, 15 weeks, so I couldn’t do anything,” Stephens said. “I was walking on that stupid thing. And then when I first started actually hitting on the court again, like, I couldn’t run full on. I couldn’t do anything.

“So, it was just like a lot of slow feeling and working on stuff. So, I had a lot of time to work on a lot of stuff that I didn’t want to work on. I had time to improve, keep playing and you have really good results.”

She will face against Lucie Safarova, who has already beaten Dominika Cibilkova and Ekaterina Makarova, on Friday.

Filed Under: Featured Bottom Left, Lead Story Tagged With: Angie Kerber, lucie safarova, Matt Cronin, Matthew Cronin, Petra Kvitova, sloane stephens, Toronto