Sara Errani keeps SF battle alive at WTA Championships

By Magdalena Stanislav

Sara Errani keeps the competition warm at WTA Championships

ISTANBUL, Turkey (TheSportsNEXT) October 25, 2012: Sara Errani of Italy kept her hopes of making it into WTA Championships Semi-Finals alive on Thursday when she outlasted Samantha Stosur of Australia in three sets by 6-3 2-6 6-0 in Istanbul.

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Samantha Stosur, who replaced Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic after she had to pull out of the season-ending TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships due to viral illness, couldn’t stand the challenge posed by her Italian opponent, especially in the third set where she could never offer a fight.

The victory for Sara Errani has added colors to the final day of the round-robin matches on Friday when two matches will decide the two semi-finalists as Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams have already qualified into last-four stage.

Sara Errani showed good control on her game in the opening set and raced to victory by 6-3 but Sam Stosur responded really well to the situation and won the second set 6-2 with an aggressive game plan which woke the Italian up in the third set and she made no further mistakes and won the penultimate set by 6-0.

Sara Errani told reporters after her impressive victory, "In the beginning she was making a lot of unforced errors, but in the second set she was playing amazing. I was just trying to stay focused and aggressive today and I think the third set was better for me."

Sam Stosur could never face the pressure against Sara Errani as she committed seven double faults as well as 49 unforced errors in the match.

Sam Stosur told reporters, “I really wanted to try and play a good match tonight and be at least one match up, but obviously the result wasn't quite that way. It was a little bit up and down - in the second set I got off to a good lead and then was able to hold onto that and win the set, and then I had a break point in the first game of the third and missed a return, and then it was like all the energy went out of me. I certainly dug myself into too much of a hole to try and get out."

Sara Errani had praise for her Australian opponent when she stated, “Sam is a great player but I was ready today. I'm happy I won and that I'm still in the tournament - I hope I can play well tomorrow too and maybe win, I don't know, we'll see how it goes."

Sara Errani will take on world number five Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland in her final round-robin match at the WTA Championships which is very much a quarter-final for both the players as the winner of this match will proceed into knockout stage.

Sara said of Agnieszka Radwanska, "She's a very strong player. I know her and we have played before. It will be a tough match and we will see what happens."

In another mouth-watering showdown on Friday, Victoria Azarenka and Li Na will battle it out for a place in the last-four.

The first match on Friday is a dead-rubber between Maria Sharapova and Sam Stosur because the result will have no effect on the standings in the White Group. 

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WTA Championships: Li Na stays alive; Angelique Kerber signs out

By Magdalena Stanislav

Li Na keeps her chances alive at WTA Championships

ISTANBUL, Turkey (TheSportsNEXT) October 25, 2012:Li Na of China get off the mark in the WTA Championships on Thursday when she outpaced Angelique Kerber of Germany in straight sets by 6-4 6-3 to stay alive in the competition.

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Li Na can still qualify for the semi-finals of the year-ending TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships but she will have to not only win her final round-robin match but also wait for the other results.

End of the Road for
Angelique Kerber at
WTA Championships

After falling miserably to Serena Williams in her first match of the competition, Li Na showed glimpses of her top game which took her to French Open title last year.

After trailing Angelique Kerber 4-2 in the first set, Li Na smashed back into form and won nine of the next 10 games to surge to 6-4 5-1 lead but the German ace still had some energy and fight left in her as she reduced the lead to 5-3 in the second set before the Chinese putting together another perfect service game to seal the deal at 6-3 with the help of a ferocious ace.

The match lasted for an hour and 25 minutes where Li Na hit her fourth love hold in 10 service games.

Talking to reporters after her victory, Li Na said, “I had my first match yesterday but felt much, much better today - I was more focused and concentrated on the court. Angelique is very good in defense. My coach, Carlos, was telling me before the match to use more topspin and open the court - I knew I had to change the space to win today."

With this victory, Li Na has improved her head-to-head record against Angelique Kerber to 6-1. Li Na mostly enjoys playing against the lefties as compared to righties and some of her biggest victories have come against the players who predominantly use left hand.

During last five years, Li Na has won 34 matches against the lefties as against only five defeats which came to Sybille Bammer (Rome in 2009), Petra Kvitova (Madrid in 2011), Kerber (Indian Wells in 2012), Kvitova again (Montréal in 2012) and Laura Robson (US Open in 2012). Moreover, Li Na was able to push three of these five losses down to the wire.

Angelique Kerber, who was featuring in the year-ending event for the first time, signed out of the WTA Championships after her third straight loss but she had some positives to mention when she told reporters, “It was very nice to be here - I really enjoyed my week and also my three matches. I take a lot of experience from here and I think it will bring me to another level next year, so I'm really happy I was part of the WTA Championships. And the organization and the crowd were unbelievable”.

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Unstoppable Serena Williams sinks Victoria Azarenka at WTA Championships

By Magdalena Stanislav

Who can stop American tennis queen from winning at WTA Championships?

ISTANBUL, Turkey (TheSportsNEXT) October 25, 2012:Serena Williams of United States continued to dominate the top players in the world as she decimated world number one Victoria Azarenka of Belarus by a comfortable margin of 6-4 6-4 at the WTA Championships in Istanbul on Thursday.

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With her ninth straight victory against the Belarusian, Serena Williams, who has already qualified for the WTA Championships semi-finals, improved her head-to-head record against Victoria Azarenka to 11-1.

Victoria Azarenka can still end the current season on top of the WTA Tour Rankings if she wins her final round-robin match at the WTA Championships, which has world’s top eight players competing for the final title of the year.

Serena Williams, who missed much of the tennis action in 2012, can end up at world number three position and she looked great right from the start of her match against Victoria Azarenka as she raced to victory in straight sets.

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Maria Sharapova cruises into WTA Championships semis

By Magdalena Stanislav

Maria Sharapova keeps her cool to stay in the hunt.

ISTANBUL, Turkey (TheSportsNEXT) October 25, 2012: Maria Sharapova of Russia stayed upright in a nerve-wrecking match against Agnieszka Radwanska to storm her way into semi-finals of the TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships in Istanbul on Wednesday.

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In the second consecutive WTA Championships match which lasted for over three hours, Maria Sharapova battled hard to eventually defeat Agnieszka Radwanska by 5-7 7-5 7-5.

The marathon match, which ended at 2:12am local time, lasted for three hours and 12 minutes.

Agnieszka Radwanska used her subtle style of tennis and made variety and redirection of pace at work in the first set and eventually won it by 7-5.

She raced to a 4-2 lead in the second set as Maria Sharapova started running out of options but to play more aggressive brand of tennis and went on the offense.

Maria Sharapova told reporters, "I was a little bit frustrated early on. I wasn't doing the right things and she was doing all the right things, and making me make mistakes. I was just trying to hang in there."

Maria Sharapova clawed her way back in the second set and as she got accustomed to her aggression and Radwanska’s subtle play she got better and won the second and third set by identical margin of 7-5.

The aggression of Maria Sharapova was evident by the statistics which stated her to hit 66 winners to 64 errors while on the other hand Agnieszka Radwanska could manage 18 winners to 19 errors.

Talking about her energy levels, the Russian former world number one said, "It was a very physical match with so many ups and downs - I wasn't playing my best tennis, but I kept fighting. And when you win when you're not at your best, it gives you extra motivation to do better in the next one."

The workaholic display of aggressive Sharapova made her win praise of Agnieszka Radwanska who told reporters, "It was a great match, and all the sets were very tight. I had my chance in the second set, but when you don't use your chances against a top player, a great player, it's hard to come back and win."

Sharapova also had praise for her opponent when she said, “There's a reason why she's No.4 in the world. Her capability of anticipating where the ball goes and getting it back - and no matter if it's a hard shot or a low slice with no pace, she makes you work for it. She did until the end. I found a way to get through the points, which isn't easy."

Talking about her semi-final qualification, Maria Sharapova said, "I'm happy to get to that stage - the goal is always to get out of your group. I was injured last year and didn't play very well, so to be in the semifinals this year makes me very proud, and especially given the way I fought tonight."

Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams have now qualified for the Semi-Finals of the WTA Championships. Serena Williams entered the last-four by dint of Victoria Azarenka taking three sets to beat Angelique Kerber.

Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams are the only players to have won the WTA Championships title previously after Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic, defending champion, pulled out of the tournament owing to viral illness.

Maria Sharapova has won the WTA Championships title once in 2004 while Serena Williams has won it twice in 2001 and 2009.

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WTA Championships: Azarenka beats Kerber in 3-hour long battle

By Magdalena Stanislav

Charged-up Victoria Azarenka denies Angelique Kerber

ISTANBUL, Turkey (TheSportsNEXT) October 25, 2012: World number one Victoria Azarenka kept her nerves to record her first victory at the TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships in Istanbul on Wednesday.

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In a battle that lasted for over three hours, Victoria Azarenka was pushed to the limits by Angelique Kerber of Germany but failed to execute her authority as the Belarusian made an impressive start to her WTA Championships campaign with 6-7 (11-13) 7-6 (2) 6-4 victory.

With her second defeat at the WTA Championships, the world number 5 Angelique Kerber is out of semi-finals contention.

Needing to win the match to stay alive in the competition, Angelique Kerber showed great intent right from the start and raced to a 3-1 lead before eventually winning it after an historic tie-break where she saved as many as five set points to finally win the first set by 7-6 (13-11). The first set equaled the record of longest tie-break in the history of WTA Championships.

Victoria Azarenka couldn’t get the first set out of her mind when she told reporters, “Honestly, when I was up 6-2 in the tie-break, she played three great points, then I made a stupid mistake. I made a few too many unforced errors today, but it happens, and she was playing really well - she forced me to do those unforced errors."

Victoria Azarenka looked more in control in the second set as she scampered to 4-2 lead before Angelique Kerber won three straight games to take 5-4 lead and reached the double match point and at one stage was leading her opponent 15-40 on her serve. However, she failed to capitalize on the golden opportunity to seal the deal and Azarenka stormed her way back into contention with powerful tennis and won the set eventually by 7-6.

Victoria Azarenka told reporters about the second set, “On the match points I just thought I had to go for it - she wasn't going to miss, and I didn't want to wait for her to make a mistake. I was so determined to make it happen. I wanted to take destiny into my hands - if I missed those shots, it was going to be up to me, not up to my opponent."

Angelique Kerber stated, “Vika played unbelievable in those moments. She played unbelievable on those match points. I really couldn't do anything."

After winning the second set, Victoria Azarenka raced to 5-3 advantage in the third set before ending the over three hours long battle by breaking Kerber.

"I was fighting so hard - at the beginning of the tournament it's quite hard to have a match like that!" Azarenka said adding, “But all the best players are here and you have to show your best tennis. I don't think I did that, but at least I showed my best fight. I'm glad I lived this experience and overcame the challenges today."

Angelique Kerber is yet to beat Victoria Azarenka as she told reporters, “I gave it my best today, but Vika played too well in the important moments. Of course I'm a little bit sad I lost this match but the quality was unbelievable - there's just one winner and one loser, and Vika won today. I was happy to be a part of this great match. The atmosphere was amazing."

Victoria Azarenka next plays Serena Williams, who has already qualified for the semi-finals of the WTA Championships.

Talking about her Thursday’s encounter, Azarenka said, “I have to be ready for anything and give my all. It's the last push here. I'll recover tonight and keep as much energy as possible. The most important thing for me is to have the desire - and I have it."

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Petra Kvitova to lead Czech Republic in Fed Cup final

By Magdalena Stanislav

Petra Kvitova will have to recover early to lead Czechs in Fed Cup final

PRAGUE, Czech Republic (TheSportsNEXT) October 24, 2012: Despite of a viral illness, the world number six tennis player in WTA Rankings, Petra Kvitova has been chosen to lead Czech Republic in the Fed Cup final against Serbia.

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The announcement has come on the day when Petra Kvitova pulled out of WTA Championships in Istanbul citing viral illness and flew back home in a bid to get ready for the future assignments.

The Czech Republic squad for the Fed Cup final against a strong-looking Serbian team was named Wednesday by Captain Petr Pala and he decided to keep the same squad that defeated even-stronger Italy 4-1 in the semi-finals.

Petra Kvitova has not been in greatest of form off late and her notable victories came only last season when she won the Wimbledon and WTA Championships title but this year it’s been a topsy-turvy ride for the Czech tennis queen who has now slipped to sixth in the WTA Rankings.

Her latest performance was a horrific defeat to Agnieszka Radwanska last night when she committed whopping 41 unforced errors before bowing out by 6-3 6-2 as the viral illness never allowed her to concentrate on her game.

Her team’s spokesman Karel Tejkal told reporters here today that Petra Kvitova was flying home for further treatment and her teammates were expecting her to recover in time for the Fed Cup finals.

The Fed Cup 2012 best-of-five final will be played on November 3 and 4 on an indoor hard-court at Prague's O2 Arena.

Petra Kvitova has been joined by 17^th ranked Lucie Safarova as the second singles player in the squad while the doubles pair will be Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka, who ended runners-up at this year’s US Open and London Olympics.

This would be the first time that Czech Republic and Serbia will meet in the Fed Cup. Thea last time Czech Republic made it into the Fed Cup finals was last year where they defeated Russia by 3-2 in Moscow. The defending champions have won the Fed Cup title only once since the country split in 1993. The Czechs won the Fed Cup title five more times when it was known as Czechoslovakia.

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Sick Petra Kvitova pulls out of WTA Championships

By Magdalena Stanislav

Petra Kvitova pulls out of WTA Championships title defense

ISTANBUL, Turkey (TheSportsNEXT) October 24, 2012: The WTA Championships will certainly have a new winner crowned this year after defending champion Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic withdrew from the tournament citing a viral illness.

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Samantha Stosur of Australia will replace Petra Kvitova at the WTA Championships as the WTA gave no detail of the nature of illness to the defending champion.

Petra Kvitova, who is world number six in WTA Tour Rankings, got off to an embarrassing start to her title defense in Istanbul last night when Agnieszka Radwanska defeated her in straight sets by 6-3 6-2 as the Czech committed a whopping 41 unforced errors.

Later on her Twitter account, Petra Kvitova said, “I am on my way to the airport now to fly home and see my doctor. I am so sad to withdraw from the WTA Champs and to leave Istanbul.

I want to say sorry to the Turkish fans who supported me so much here. I just wasn't able to compete at 100 per cent and need to recover”, she added.

“Will keep fingers crossed for Fed Cup and let you know. Good luck to Sam, hope she can win some matches for me :)”, she stated on social networking website Twitter.

The WTA Championships comprises of the WTA Tour Rankings’ top eight women players and this year the Red Group has Victoria Azarenka of Belarus, Serena Williams of United States, Angelique Kerber of Germany, and Li Na of China while the White Group has Maria Sharapova of Russia, Samantha Stosur of Australia, Sara Errani, and Agnieszka Radwanska.

Karel Tejkal  and Petra Kvitova on Day 1 of WTA Championships in Istanbul

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Serena Williams storms past Li Na at WTA Championships

By Magdalena Stanislav

Serena Williams posted 28th win in 29 matches against Li Na at WTA Championships

ISTANBUL, Turkey (TheSportsNEXT) October 24, 2012: Serena Williams of United States won her second straight match at the WTA Championships 2012 on Wednesday when she edged out Li Na of China by 7-6 (7-1) 6-3 in Istanbul.

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Serena Williams, who found her serve erratic right throughout the match, especially in the opening set, found it hard to fight against her faults and Li Na at the same time but the woman with the tough character avoided all the challenges to register a rather easy victory in the end.

Serena Williams hit six double-faults and could only win 51 percent of the points upon first serve and eventually sealed the deal on her third match point.

Li Na also had a struggling outing as there were eight breaks in the first set and three more in the second with both players struggling for rhythm dearly.

With this victory, Serena Williams has now won 28 of her last 29 matches and is enjoying a sound phase in her career where she clinched the Grand Slam titles of Wimbledon and US Open and won London 2012 Women’s Tennis Gold to put icing on the cake.

Despite of her glittering year, the lack of fitness has left her in a position where she can only fight for finishing as world number two in the WTA Tour Rankings, in case she wins at WTA Championships.

In the other matches scheduled for Wednesday, world number one Victoria Azarenka of Belarus will face off against Angelique Kerber while Maria Sharapova of Russia will take on Agnieszka Radwanska in the final encounter of the night.

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WTA Championships: Sharapova, Williams, Radwanska start with victories

By Magdalena Stanislav

Agnieszka Radwanska stuns defending champion Petra Kvitova at WTA Championships 2012

ISTANBUL, Turkey (TheSportsNEXT) October 24, 2012: Maria Sharapova of Russia, Agnieszka Radwanska, and Serena Williams of United States won their first matches at the year-ending WTA Championships in Istanbul on Tuesday.

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Maria Sharapova defeated Sara Errani by 6-3 6-2 in what was a repeat of the French Open final, Agnieszka Radwanska battered struggling titleholder Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic by 6-3 6-2, whereas Serena Williams made short work of Angelique Kerber by 6-4 6-1.

Serena Williams, who won Wimbledon and US Open titles, is looking in great form but won’t be able to surge towards the WTA world number one ranking as she had to sit out of the tennis action for the best part of the season owing to injuries but another feather in crown would be just the perfect motivation for her.

It is important to mention here that Serena Williams, who has won 15 Grand Slam titles, has ended WTA season as world number one only twice in her career and those came in 2002 and 2009.

Serena has featured in the Istanbul WTA Championships six times and won the title here twice in 2001 and 2009. Since winning her second title in Istanbul, the American top tennis ace is featuring in this tournament for the first time.

The TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships 2012 features two eight players in the world and this year Victoria Azarenka, Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams, Agnieszka Radwanska, Angelique Kerber, Petra Kvitova, Sara Errani, and Li Na are participating in the event.

Maria Sharapova, Sara Errani, Petra Kvitova, and Agnieszka Radwanska are pooled in Whites Group while the other group has Serena Williams, Victoria Azarenka, Angelique Kerber, and Li Na.

Playing in her first match since winning the US Open title, Serena Williams showed no signs of rustiness as she breezed to victory against Angelique Kerber. Talking to reporters after her victory, Serena Williams said, “Obviously, I would rather win majors. I've been No. 1 and I would love to be No. 1 again. I think maybe one day I will. We'll see. I just feel if I keep winning tournaments, majors, tournaments like this, and playing well and consistently, the ranking will come”.

Serena Williams may not have the chance to vie for the world number one spot but Maria Sharapova kept her in numbers game when she raced to 6-3 6-2 victory over Sara Errani in her first match of the competition.

Victoria Azarenka, who holds the top position in the WTA Tour Rankings, will feature in her first match at the TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships 2012 on Wednesday.

Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic, who won the TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships title last year, got off to a disappointing start against Agnieszka Radwanska on Tuesday.

Petra Kvitova, who entered into this tournament on a 25-match winning streak indoors, looked far from her best and seemed nervous like a rookie as she lost her first three games before recovering to draw at 3-3. However, Radwanska broke her again and sealed the deal in the first set.

After losing the first set, Petra Kvitova looked even more drained out against a fitter and steadier Agnieszka Radwanska as the Czech fell to her first loss in four matches against Radwanska and overall her second loss in 28 indoor matches in the last two years.

Agnieszka Radwanska told reporters after her impressive inaugural day show, “I am just happy that I could play my best tennis today and close that match in two sets. It's a good start”.

Petra Kvitova, who had won the WTA Championships last year without losing a single match, told reporters, “I was nervous all match. I had a lot of errors”.

All is not lost for Petra Kvitova as the TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships 2012 tournament has a round-robin format and she has two more matches to get her a place in the last-four.

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Sofia Arvidsson kicks Marion Bartoli out of Kremlin Cup

By Alexia Krause

Sofia Arvidsson puts Mario Bartoli on wait for WTA Championships

MOSCOW, Russia (TheSportsNEXT) October 18, 2012: Sofia Arvidsson of Sweden stunned Marion Bartoli of France in straight sets by 6-3 6-0 on Wednesday to storm her way into quarterfinals of the Kremlin Cup in Moscow.

The loss was a huge blow for world number 10 Marion Bartoli who had to win this match to stay at a better position as compared to Samantha Stosur of Australia and now will stay as the second alternate at the season-ending WTA Championships starting next week in Istanbul.

Sofia Arvidsson looked in good shape right from the start and broke her French opponent thrice before dropping service a couple of times. She excelled in the second set and gave Bartoli no chance of making a comeback into the match.

The Frenchwoman didn’t help her chances either as she had six double-faults in the second set alone.

Sofia Arvidsson is bidding to win her second title of the current season after winning title in Memphis earlier this year.

Sofia will face either seventh seeded Maria Kirilenko or Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan in the quarterfinals of the Kremlin Cup.

Talking to reporters after her impressive victory, Sofia Arvidsson said, “I am very happy to win this match to reach the quarterfinals. Marion is a great competitor, a top-10 player, and I knew I would have to be at my best. My strategy was to focus on the way I wanted to play and move her around the court”.

On the other hand, Marion Bartoli showed her disappointment on losing the big match for her chances of qualification in the season ending WTA Championships. She told media persons, “It would have been better for me to come to Istanbul as the first substitute, but it's always very rewarding for me to get a chance to go there. Today my body just refused to execute what my mind was telling it to do. The surface here is very slow and it didn't fit my play well”.

In the other matches played at the Kremlin Cup on Wednesday, Klara Zakopalova advanced into the last eight by getting the better of eighth-seeded Lucie Safarova by 6-4 6-4 in all-Czech match.

Local favorites Valeria Solovieva defeated Elina Svitolina of Ukraine 6-4 6-2 to cruise into second round, while Maria Kirilekno uprooted fellow Russian Elena Vesnina by 7-5 6-1 in her first round match.

In the men's second-round action on Wednesday, eighth-seeded Tatsuma Ito of Japan won a battle of nerves against Russian qualifier Konstantin Kravchuk with final score of 7-6 (7), 2-6, 6-3. In another match, Lukas Rosol of the Czech Republic came from behind to topple fifth-seeded Denis Istomin of Uzbekistan by 4-6, 6-4, 6-3.

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