Caroline Wozniacki – Page 3 – TennisReporters.net

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

Karolina Pliskova: ‘Maybe the pressure is a little bit bigger’

August 10, 2017 by Matthew Cronin Leave a Comment

FROM TORONTO, THE ROGERS CUP, WEDNEDAY, AUGUST 9: Karolina Pliskova is now No. 1. But she hasn’t won a Grand Slam yet, the monkey also on the back Caroline Wozniacki who went years with that notorious distinction.

Obviously, this situation can be awkward, because she has come close to winning the major, like last year at the US Open, when she lost against Angie Kerber, 6-4 in the third. She didn’t choke, but she hesitated, and she got a little bit nervous, and she backed off.

Pliskova is so much more consistent now. Three years ago, when she wasn’t playing well, she would check in and out. Now, she is composed and can keep her flat shots in the court. Her consistency has increased and she can mix it up, deep and very short, and on the lines.

“I feel more experienced now,” she said.

This season, she has been pretty good, but not great. She won Brisbane, but then she lost in the quarters against Mirjana Lucic-Baroni in the Aussie Open. She won Doha, beating Wozniacki. At Roland Garros, she reached the semis, but then she went down to Simona Halep in three sets. On grass, she won Eastbourne, taking down Wozniacki. At Wimbledon, in the second round, she lost to Magdalena Rybarikova. Bye-bye.

“Everything still the same,” Pliskova asked about being No. 1. “Still going out for practices and still want to win every match. So, maybe the pressure is a little bit bigger, but that’s normal, you know. So, just counting with that and nothing has changed.”

She will play against Naomi Osaka on Thursday.

Wozniacki: ‘Clay isn’t my favorite but … I’m hitting the ball well’

June 1, 2017 by Matthew Cronin Leave a Comment

At ROLAND GARROS, DAY 4 – The former No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki crushed the Canadian Francoise Abanda 6-0, 6-0 in the second round. While she has never loved clay, she has learned to mix up her shots. She has never gone deep in Paris, but the veteran wants to shake the stigma of being No. 1 without a Grand Slam trophy in her case.

She’s 26 years old, and she has reached the final at the US Open. What has held her back? Her forehand is so-so, and her second serve is pretty weak. Beyond that, her backhand is tremendous and she is incredibly fast — still.

But can she win a major here? I doubt it, but at least she is changing her strokes. At least today.

“I played consistent, aggressive when I needed to and mixed it up,” she said.

In the past three weeks, Wozniaki’s body almost disappeared. But she has recovered so now, she could actually reach the semis for the first time.

“At the end of the day I feel good, came in here feeling comfortable and confident,” she said. “Clay isn’t my favorite surface, but at the same time, I feel like I’m hitting the ball well.”

MORE OF THE WTA WOMEN
Two days ago, Kristina Mladenovic was exhausted after she came through her first match in three hours. Today, she blew out Sara Errani 6-2 6-3. Now the Frenchwoman has a real chance to go very deep but … she has to face American Shelby Rogers, who beat Cagla Buyukakcay. Rogers has been around for a while, but without a doubt, her fine-tuned game is there and she was a shot to upended Mladenovic.

How about the 18-year-old CiCi Bellis who beat Kiki Bertens 6-3 7-6(5)? Bertens had just won a title a few days ago and she thought she could reach in the second week. Uh, uh. The American Bellis is getting better daily and she has already cracked the top 50. The top 40 is coming soon.

Before the start of the tournament, many people thought the 2016 Roland Garros champion Garbine Muguruza was going to lose early. In the past year, she has not won any tournaments at all. But when she arrived in RG, she became very excited again and on court, she ran as fast as she can and ripped the ball. She overcame Anett Kontaveit in three tough sets and now, she is finally confident again.

Is she the favorite? She is very close, but first she has to beat Yulia Putintseva in the third round, which won’t be easy.

The vetrean Bethanie Mattek-Sands upset Petra Kvitova 7-6(5) 7-6(5). This ends the fairy tale comeback of Kvitova, who won her first match here after recovering from the in-home attack that seriously injured her playing hand.

The Arizonan was very aggressive off both sides, as was Sam Stosur, who beat Kirsten Flipkens. Both the 30-years-olds will go up against each other on Friday. They know each other very well. Massive forehands will be teed up …

THE GUYS
The Canadian Milos Raonic thinks he has a chance to win RG. But, even though he has a number of big wins on the hard courts and grass, he has struggled on clay. Maybe it’s time. Raonic beat Rogerio Dutra Silva 4-6 6-2 6-3 6-4. Roanic is quite confident now, even as he could face Grigor Dimitrov, who upended Tommy Robredo 6-3 6-4 7-5. He is pretty confortable.

Rafa Nadal trounced Robin Haase 6-1 6-4 6-3. The nine-time RG champ is favored to win the event, but there are plenty of challenges ahead.

Novak Djokovic looked very steady, blasting Joao Sousa 6-1 6-4 6-3. I would be stunned if he doesn’t reach the semis again. We all know that Djokovic crushed Dominic Thiem two weeks ago, but maybe the Belgian will change everything. Perhaps.

A great win by Steve Johnson over Borna Coric 6-2 7-6(8) 3-6 7-6(6), and a bad loss by the Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who fell in four sets vs. Renzo Olivo. Tsonga should have made a statement here.

Filed Under: Featured Bottom Left, Lead Story Tagged With: Caroline Wozniacki, Kristina Mladenovic, Matthew Cronin, Petra Kvitova, roland garros

The amazing Federer wins again, Konta wins her first huge event

April 3, 2017 by Matthew Cronin Leave a Comment

THE TOP 10, April 3

PLUS: Nadal, Nick, Caro, Venus & more

Roger Federer

Yes, the 35-year-old put together his best performance to win the 2017 Aussie Open, Indian Wells and Miami. At the start of the year, no one thought that he could go back-to-back-to-back when he was aging.

But he did, and now, he is the best player of all time.

Hopefully this year, he will not get hurt again. Everyone wants to see him play. If you happen to be in Paris, go out and watch him. Eventually, he will have to retire. But not this year.

Rafa Nadal

The Spaniard has changed a little bit, being a little more aggressive with his backhand down the line and coming into the net. He is trying to mix it up more, which is good, and hopefully, the next time he plays Federer this year, he can out-hit him. In Roland Garros that it, because Federer won’t play again until late May.

Nick Kyrgios

The 20-year-old Aussie had a terrific tournament, nearly beating Federer in three very long sets. He is young and he is improving each week — if he continues to pay attention and be more focused on court.

Fabio Fognini

For the first time, the talented Italian reached the semis in Miami, looking good, mixing it up and pushing himself into the net. Hopefully, he won’t be a one-off.

PLUS 1

Alexander Zverev

The teenager is now ranked No. 20 and he is improving in every tournament he plays.

WOMEN

Johanna Konta

The 25-year-old Brit has improved so much over the past two years, which is mind blowing. In 2014, who knew who she was? But now, she looks like she has a true shot to win a major. She knocked out Simona Halep,

Venus Williams and Caro Wozniacki. That is good as it gets — except for getting a victory over Serena, who is injured.

Caroline Wozniacki

Someday soon, the No. 12 Caroline will win another big tournament again, but she needs to change it up even more. She has to continue to improve her forehand and come into the net once in a while. Regardless, Caro did well in March.

Venus Williams

The 36-year-old Venus is always out there trying as hard as she can, but her second serve is pretty weak and she isn’t as fast as she used to be. Still, she’s back in the top 10, which is admirable.

Karolina Pliskova

Pliskova is very confusing. She is so strong and aggressive; she works and plays all the time. But somedays, she gets loses her mental focus and then, she is gone.

PLUS 1

Lucie Safarova is coming back strong. The former No. 5 took out Dominika Cibulkova and reached the quarters.

Filed Under: Featured Bottom Left, Lead Story Tagged With: Alexander Zverev, Caroline Wozniacki, Johanna Konta, miami, nick krygios, rafa nadal, Roger Federer, Venus Williams

Roger Federer vs Rafa Nadal in Miami final; Konta wins title

April 1, 2017 by Matthew Cronin Leave a Comment

Roger Federer vs Rafa Nadal
It is pretty stunning that this year, Federer walked on court, stared at his backhand and said, “It is time.”

The 18-time champ knew that the only way he was going to consistent knock down the other top players (Nadal, Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic) is to go more forward, meaning that he had to leap upwards, instead of being way back behind the court.

For many, many years, the lefty Nadal would just continue to pound into his backhand with his heavy topspin. Federer really didn’t know what to do. Once in a while, he would jump up and crack it down the line and hit some winners.

But Nadal didn’t care; he was pretty sure that, eventually, he would watch Federer grow angry. Then, he would become comfortable and settle in for the win.

At the start of this year, Nadal had won 23 matches against Federer, who won only 11. Believe it or not, in 2017, Federer hadn’t won a major against Nadal since 2007, when the Swiss had taken down the Spaniard in five sets at Wimbledon.

Rafa was only 20 years old then. But very quickly, he knew exactly what to do.

After that, Federer couldn’t understand why Nadal wasn’t going to chip and charge, or push the ball in the center of the court, or challenge his forehand. He just pounded and pounded and pounded till Federer’s grew frustrated in his one-handed backhand slice.

Nadal beat him at 2008 Roland Garros (on clay), 2008 Wimbledon (on grass), 2009 Australian Open (on hard courts), 2011 RG, 2012 Aussie Open and the 2014 Aussie Open. Rafa had beaten Roger six times in the Slams.

Now, Federer is 35 years and Nadal is 30.

In the summer of 2016, Roger was pretty hurt and, after he lost early at Wimbly, he called it a year. He was tired and his body was breaking down.

Fortunately, Federer got better, his knees were better, and he missed playing tennis. Enter Ivan Ljubicic, the former player and now his coach, really helped Federer. They practiced and practiced. When Federer was prepared to play again, he was ready to go. His phenomenal serve, forehand, return, the net, variety, lobs … Almost everything, except for his backhand.

But it was right there. Finally, Federer went on court in the final of the 2017 Aussie, and he shocked Nadal 6-4 3-6 6-1 3-6 6-3. Nadal was up 3-1 in the fifth set, and we could tell that Federer was much more powerful and directed.

Six weeks later at Indian Wells, Federer crushed Nadal 6-2 6-3.
Now, Federer is incredibly confident once again.

But hold on. In Miami this week, he won two fantastic contests, but they were very, very long. He beat Tomas Berdych 7-6(6) in the third, and in the semis, he ended Nick Kyrgios 7-6(5) in the third. We would think that Federer is a little bit tired, no?

Look, Federer did get a day off. But on Sunday, if he is forced to get into the third set — let’s say after two hours— then Rafa will win. Nadal isn’t tired at all, as he easily whipped Jack Sock and Fabio Fognini.

Without a doubt, Nadal has to improve over the next few years because he hasn’t won a Grand Slam since 2014. Rafa’s backhand can be weak, and he doesn’t come into the net enough.

Regardless, Nadal is pretty pissed off and he wants to win a big event right now. He will run and run and run, and best Federer in three fun sets.

Johanna Konta d Caroline Wozniacki to win title
A couple years ago, it was hard to see Konta, now 25 years old ,reach the top 10, much less win a big event. She did today, out-hitting Caro 6-4 6-3. She is so powerful, so aggressive … and she rarely backs off.

Now the Brit is ranked No. 7. Perhaps this year, she can win a major, if she continues to improve. But, at Wimbledon when the pressure is on? We will find out in the next few months is she’s prepared for that accomplishment.

Filed Under: Featured Bottom Right, Lead Story Tagged With: Andy Murray, Caroline Wozniacki, Johanna Konta, miami, Novak Djokovic, rafa nadal, Roger Federer

Wozniacki against Pliskova: Is Caro ready to win again?

March 30, 2017 by Matthew Cronin Leave a Comment

Caroline Wozniacki vs Karolina Pliskova
Earlier this year, Caro and Pliskova reached the final in Doha. Wozniacki had won the tournament before. In 2013 Miami, Woz overcame Pliskova in three sets here. The same goes, winning at 2014 Monterrey and Istanbul, also in another three sets. Pliskova was good back then, but she was very inconsistent and she grew frustrated with her game.

But in the past two years, Pliskova increased her speed. She will never be the fastest player, but this was a real improvement. But she hits the ball harder than anyone. That is why she is now ranked No. 3, and if she continued to improve, than she will become No. 1 someday. Soon.

This year, the former No. 1 Wozniacki is rising again — especially with her forehand and serve — but once she goes up against the very good women, she chokes a bit. More so, in the semis or finals against the top 10, she gets very nervous. Amazingly, Woz hasn’t won a big event since 2011, when she won Dubai, Indian Wells and Beijing. Now, it’s all in her head.

The good news is that Caro is finally getting aggressive. For sure, she is as steady as a rock and very rarely gets tired. In order to change when she was losing all the time, she need to see the light. She is on her way there, but it will be a months-long journey.

That is why Pliskova will attack immediately and go for the lines. If she is kissing the lines, she will win. If she does not, maybe Caro will break her down.

It’s a tossup, but Pliskova will out-stroke Woz at the end.

Roger Federer vs Tomas Berdych
The Swiss is totally locked in. It’s hard to believe that he is now nearly a reflection of his brilliant self from the mid-2000s. Players from that time must be wondering if Federer will continue to show real flashes of the player who dominated the sport a decade ago. Czech Berdych has gotten better in the past 10 days, but he still isn’t 100 percent yet. Take Federer is straight sets.

Nick Kyrgios v Alexander Zverva
Who would have thunk it?

It is the quarterfinals of Miami, you know? Are the young guys ready to dance now? Perhaps they are.

The 19-year-old Zverev is racing ahead, stunning Stan Wawrinka. The controversial but super powerful Kyrgios has played very well this month, and the 21-year-old will reach the top 10 very soon.

Two weeks ago at Indian Wells, Kyrgios beat the No. 20 Zverev 6-3 6-4. Maybe the German will change it up? Perhaps, but as good as Zverev is, he still needs to learn a lot of things.

So does Nick, but he is a little older, and on court, smarter. Nick in straight sets.

Johanna Konta vs Venus Williams
Both women played two great contests on Wednesday: Konta overcame Simon Halep in three dramatic — and very long —sets; Venus rushed towards the net frequently and bested the odd No. 1, Angie Kerber, in straight sets.

Last year, Konta beat Venus at the Aussie Open and Stanford. While Konta is in great shape now, still, she might be a big tired. If Konta goes right out of the gates, she will win in straight sets. If they go to the third set, Venus will break her down. If Konta can take down Williams, we predict she will reach the final of Miami for the first time.

Filed Under: Featured Bottom Right, Lead Story Tagged With: Alexander Zverev, Caroline Wozniacki, Johanna Konta, Karolina Pliskova, Nick Kyrgios, Roger Federer, sascha, Tomas Berdych, Venus Williams

The women grades, A-F from Aussie Open: Kerber A-plus, but Caro way down

February 3, 2016 by Matthew Cronin Leave a Comment

A-plus

Angie Kerber

For the first time ever, the German finally played as well as she could at a major, crushing her forehand and backhand and she didn’t back off all. The lefty is so fast, strong and just so lethal. She beat both the former No. 1 Vika Azarenka and the current No. 1 Serena Williams to win the Australian Open. Who else has managed to do that? No one, that’s who.

Johanna Konta

The Britain has improved a tremendous amount over the past six months, coming from nowhere to somewhere. Her depth is now incredible and she also appears very patient, which is why she reached the major semi for the first time.

A-minus

Serena Williams

The famous Serena played excellent ball all the way until the final, when she was a bit erratic against Kerber and her volleys were out of control. But still, you can’t win every time and, at the Australian Open, she was pretty darn good, just not perfect.

Shuai Zhang

The Chinese has almost retired for good because she couldn’t win a match for months and, at the Australian Open, she qualified and reached the quarters. A true stunner.

B-plus

Aga Radwanska

The Pole looked like she had a real shot to win a Grand Slam for the first time and she reached the semis again, but Serena played fantastic. Once again, Aga didn’t serve or return well enough. Some day …

Belinda Bencic

The 18-year-old was very close to upsetting Maria Sharapova, losing 7-5 7-5, which was very good considering that the Russian served as well acheter cialis forum as she has in years. The Swiss is so close

Daria Gavrilova

Some players can’t stand the pressure at the Slams, others thrive. The Aussie had a terrific week until the fourth round, when she was ousted by Carla Suarez Navarro.

Anna-Lena Friedsam

The young German shocked Roberta Vinci and had it against Radwanska, up 5-2 in the third before she cramped and lost. Still, at least she rose up for the first time.

Maria Sharapova

The five-time Grand Slam champion looked better and better until she faced Serena in the quarters, when once again, she wasn’t patient enough. Plus, she has to improve her returns against Williams.

Carla Suarez Navarro

At least the nervous foe reached the quarters, which is very good because she is working on her mental game, but she still has a long way to go at the majors.

Margarita Gasparyan

The young Russian reached the fourth round, upsetting Sara Errani. It looks like the powerful Gasparyan is becoming more thoughtful.

Vika Azarenka

The former No. 1 looked so good and she was ready to reach the final, but then Kerber stunned her as she just beaten the German two weeks prior. She is not quite ready to regain the top spot.

Barbora Strycova

You never know how good the veteran Czech will be, playing outstanding ball against Garbine Muguruza and then she was a little flat against Azarenka.

B minus

Annika Beck

So many of the young Germans had a good tournament, including Beck who reached the fourth round-up out-stroking Timea Bacsinszky.

C-plus

Madison Keys

The good news is that Keys fought incredibly hard to overcome Ana Ivanovic in the third round, the bad news is that Keys got hurt once again, losing against Zhang.

Ekaterina Makarova

It was good to see the veteran Russian, who had been injured since the 2015 US Open, getting back on court. She did lose to Konta in the fourth round, 8-6 in the third, but at least she showed that she finally looks like she is healthy again.

Svetlana Kuznetsova

The Russian should have gone deep at the Aussie Open considering that she had just won Sydney, but as she says, some days you don’t know whether you will hit the ball correctly. Her age is affecting her consistency.

Ana Ivanovic

Given that the former No. 1 hasn’t gone deep in months, at least she reached the third round and almost knocked off Keys. But she has to be better than that.

C-minus

Garbine Muguruza

There is no doubt that the Spaniard had a chance to reach the final and then, against Strycova in the third round, she looked very shaky. She needs to take a deep breath.

Timea Bacsinszky

The Swiss looked so good at the 2015 Roland Garros and now she is slumping, losing in the second round.

Karolina Pliskova

The Czech had a fine 2015, but in the Slams, she flailed, just like when she lost in straight sets in the third round versus Makarova.

Simona Halen

The Romanian is impossible to understand what she is doing right now. She looked fairly good in Sydney, and then she was totally stunned against Zhang, not even going for her shots.

Venus Williams

The seven-time Grand Slam champion looked totally out of it against Konda in the first round. Maybe she should have charged the net more, because she volleys as good as anyone. But not that day.

Sam Stosur

The reality is that she doesn’t play well at all in Australia. If she did, she could actually go deep at the AO, because outside of her country, she has been outstanding (winning the 2011 US Open and reach the 2010 Roland Garros final), and here she hasn’t even come close.

Sloane Stephens

How can she win Auckland and then, in the first round, she falls against an unknown? She is a fine player, but mentally she can disappear.

Caroline Wozniacki

At this point, it is impossible to know where the former No. 1 is going. She lost in the first round and she hasn’t competed well at all since last April. Time to add a new coach.

Filed Under: Featured Bottom Left, Lead Story Tagged With: Aga Radwanska, Angie Kerber, Caroline Wozniacki, Johanna Konta, Maria Sharaova, Serena Willimas, Victoria Azaranka

Winners & Losers, Toronto: Bencic beat 6 fine players to grab title

August 17, 2015 by Matthew Cronin Leave a Comment

WINNERS

Belinda Bencic

The 18-year-old Swiss was lethal. She was not perfect, but she seemed to read the lines at every turn. She can crack her forehands and backhands, she can sit back and wait until there is an opportunity, or she attacks ferociously. To win the Toronto title, she bested six fine players, outlasting Genie Bouchard, Caro Wozniacki, Sabine Lisicki, Ana Ivanovic, Serena Williams and Simona Halep. She rarely became nervous and now the teenager is truly believing in herself and she will have a legitimate chance to win the US Open.

Simona Halep

The Romanian had to retire in the final against Bencic, losing the first set 6-7 and winning the second set 7-6, but she was sick and couldn’t continue. However, she fought hard during the week, outlasting Angie Kerber and Aga Radwanska in three sets, and then she had to work hard against the fast Sara Errani in the semis. Yes, she has to swing away at times, but after she had a difficult clay and grass season, she is pleased to be back at the hard courts.

Serena Williams

In the past year, Serena has lost against Venus Williams, Petra Kvitova and now Bencic. Clearly, Serena was upset (she called it ‘crappy’) as her fabulous serve was way off and she had hurt her left hand, but really, it’s better for her to have lost. Now there will be a little pressure – at least until the US Open, when she tries to win all four Grand Slams at the same year.

Sara Errani

The veteran Italian hasn’t played spectacularly well this season, but she “upset” Victoria Azarenka, which was a fine win.

Lesia Tsurenko

The Ukrainian reached the quarterfinals on Toronto and she has been playing outstanding ball, winning Istanbul

LOSERS

Caro Wozniacki

Yes, she was hurt, but she didn’t say anything until after she lost against Bencic. She also lost in the opening round against Varvara Lepchenko in Stanford, when she said she 100 percent – until later. If she doesn’t want to play because her leg hurt, then don’t play, but don’t pretend that you are fine, and then later, she switched her commentary. She is a very nice person, but she needs to be honest all the time

Aga Radwanska

The Polish Radwanska has been close, but oh so far, falling against Kerber and Halep 6-4 in the third in Stanford and Toronto. She has every game in the book, but she cannot panic late or she is not going to reach the top 5 again.

Carla Suarez Navarro

The No. 10 Spaniard had rested well after a poor Wimbledon and she was excited on the hard courts, but she was flat in Stanford and Toronto. The 26-year-old isn’t a baby anymore. It’s time for her to step it up immediately.

Filed Under: Featured Bottom Left, Lead Story Tagged With: Aga Radwanska, Belinda Bencic, Caroline Wozniacki, Serena williams, Simona Halep, Toronto

With Serena out, Wozniacki steps in Bank of the West Classic in Stanford

August 6, 2015 by Matthew Cronin Leave a Comment

FROM THE BANK OF THE WEST CLASSIC: The defending champion Serena Williams pulled out of the Bank of the West Classic Stanford last week, which is too bad, but there are other people who need to catch fire on the hard courts in the next four weeks. Soon, the US Open will begin and we all know that Serena is a heavy favorite to win a major against, given that she had won four Slams in a row.

No one is playing well enough to knock off the 21 Grand Slam champion. It can occur, but if Serena is playing extremely well, it is hard to figure out how you can attack her. She has a phenomenal first serve. She has a bullet of a forehand and backhand. Her returns are laser like, and she is very smart and wise. Essentially, no one can toppled Williams.

But as Aga Radwanska said the other day, Serena is almost untouchable, but on occasion, she can drop a bit, she is a little off and then someone while have slight chance to stun Serena.

There are plenty of fine players at Stanford, but every single one has to become better if they ever want a real shot to upend Williams. The top seed at the Bank of the West is Carolina Wozniacki, who is a close friend with Serena and she cheers for her when Williams wins, but at the US Open, Wozniacki wants to win a title – a very big title. As the former No. 1 Wozniacki said, at the end of this year, she would be the happiest if she snares the US Open. Last year, ‘Caro’ played very well in reaching the final in NYC, but then Serena whacked her.

At the WTA Final in the semis, Wozniacki played as well as she could and she was so close to out-run Williams, but she backed off a little bit, Serena stepped up and Wozniacki went down.

This year, the Dane has been up and down. At times, the No. 5 has been very up and down. She should have won at Stuttgart, beating Lucie Safarova, Carla Suarez and Simons Halep. But in the final, she was playing against Angie Kerber, she was ahead in the third set, but then she fell. She was nervous and if she is going to rise again, she has to find a way to win to believe in herself at crunch time.

On Thursday, she will have to face the tough veteran Varvara Lepchenko. If she out hits her, she will have to play Mona Bathel, a big hitter. If she wins there, she will have to play the likes of the new No. 10 Katerina Pliskova or maybe the rising youngster Madison Keys. Then Wozniacki will know that if she can out-stroke the up-and-comers, she has to be aggressive, because Stanford ‘s courts are fairly fast and you cannot just push the balls back in and hope.

On the other side of the draw, the 44-year-old Kimiko Date-Krumm was down 4-1 in the second set and came back to stun Sabine Lisicki 1-6 7-6 (4) 6-2. Props to Date-Krumm for winning, who entered the tournament ranked No. 174, but what is Lisicki doing? She is so unpredictable… The Ukrainians went at each other between with the young Elina Svitolina overcame the new mom Kateryna Bondarenko 4-6 6-4 7-5. Svitolina has been extremely well this season and will face Alison Riske, who upended Carlos Suarez in the second round. Riske is changing around and she needs to play much more confident for the rest of the year because before that, she was confused.

Angelique Kerber will go up again the Croatian Ana Konjuh, who will be heard from very soon.

Filed Under: Featured Bottom Left, Lead Story Tagged With: Aga Rawanska, Alison Riske, Caroline Wozniacki, Serena Willimas

Notes on a Draw Sheet: Taylor Townsend struggling, now working with coach Donald Young Sr.

May 27, 2015 by Matthew Cronin Leave a Comment

ROLAND GARROS, DAY 3 — The American Taylor Townsend is now working under her old/new coach Donald Young Sr (his son is Donald Jr.). Townsend – who lost in the first round at RG — grew up in Atlanta, where the senior Young taught her when she was a kid. Now, she is returning to the Peach State. Townsend was working in Florida with the USTA for a few years and now she wants to try Young once again. Townsend was also been hitting with Zina Garrison last year, who lives in Houston.

It sounds like she is trying to settle down.

In March, she had a stress reaction in her ankle and she had to wear a boot for a couple of weeks. She hadn’t played until early May as she was out for two months.

When she was out, she was sitting around and knew she had to make some change.

“Just mentally, physically, just everything was just trying to get healthy,” she said. “I was just trying to get back to basic things. It’s very rare that you can have someone that’s willing to coach you again who basically built your game up. [Donald] taught me how to play tennis, so he knows my game like the back of my hand. He knows my strokes and everything, the way I’m supposed to be playing. He knows the best way that I can play. He’s seen me when I was at my best, playing the game that I know I can play. So I just wanted to get back to that and just go back to basics. Get back with my family and just try to build a strong foundation, base, and just get back grounded again.”

Currently ranked No. 130, Taylor is only 19 years old … so she has a long way to go. She is very strong and has a lot of variety, but at times she isn’t sure which way she is going.

Last year, Townsend reached the third round at Roland Garros when she stunned the Frenchwoman Alize Cornet. She was only 18 years old and it appeared that she was ready to climb.

During last summer she qualified at Washington and Cincinnati, but, in the US Open, she had to face Serena Williams in the first round and she was crushed 6-3, 6-1. After that she lost her touch.

This year, she hasn’t won much at all, falling to Caroline Wozniacki twice and against Sam Stosur. Her long-term goals is, “Top 10, Top 5 and win all the Grand Slams several times.” That is ambitious, but the 2012 Australian junior champion has a long way to go. She wasn’t progressing, so now she is hoping that she will be better, and soon.

“I was variety and what makes me special, using my slice and coming into the net and just trying to incorporate something that’s not the same,” she said. “I wasn’t doing that a lot. I was coming to net and being aggressive, but I wasn’t using everything that I know I have. My coach saw that, and we immediately jumped on that. Just trying to get me back to doing thing that I know works for me and just using variety and being creative out there.”

AND MORE, FROM ALL OF THE PLACE

The US Open champion Marin Cilic says he is finally hitting the ball well again. The Croatian has been hurt since last October and he just started back on court. He won his first match at RG. A number of people have forgotten that he is even here.

“When I’m at the court I’m feeling confident; I feel that I’m playing good,” he said. “Just it’s sometimes that things don’t set up themselves like when you are confident. I mean, for example, like when you have a lot of matches, wins, things like that, you’re going to bring the best shots on some crucial moments. I think that’s what helps you the most.”

Caroline Wozniacki says that the courts at RG have changed, at least a little bit. She likes the colors on court.

“I think there are much more clay on the courts in general,” she said. “I think there are more bad bounces because of that. I think in previous years it’s been much less clay, been faster to play on. The color of the clay, I think we’re used to it by now and getting our socks and shoes dirty. The orange clay on it it’s still going to look good. I’m wearing yellow these weeks, so I think that contrasts well on to the clay. It kind of brightens it all up, even when it’s a gray day out there, I’m still shining bright (smiling).”

Madison Keys says that her main coach Lindsay Davenport is here, as is her husband Jon Leach, but the player/coach Lisa Raymond is not here at RG. … Eugenie Bouchard, who lost in the first round, says she is hoping to play a lot grass. … Richard Gasquet has been hurt a ton this year but he says. “I’m ready for this fight.”… Novak Djokovic knows Rafa Nadal so well at RG. After all, the Spaniard has won nine titles here. “He loves playing on clay, especially here in Paris. Best of five, as well, something that is playing in his favor, because there are not many players who can compete physically with him. To accept the fact that you’re going to have to play a lot of long rallies, you’re going to have to win the points, he’s not going to give you, he’s one of the best defenders ever to play the game. So he plays with a lot of heavy topspin. You spend a lot of energy to win one set and you have to win three. I think that’s one of the reasons he’s so successful here.”

Filed Under: Featured Bottom Right, Lead Story Tagged With: Caroline Wozniacki, Donald Young, Eugenie Bouchard, Marin Cilic, Matt Cronin, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, roland garros, Taylor Townsend