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From Seoul, South Korea, September 2018

 

1. Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open, China




ABOUT


The 2018 Wuhan Open (also known as the 2018 Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open for sponsorship reasons) is a women's tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts between September 23–29, 2018. It is the 5th edition of the Wuhan Open, and part of the WTA Premier 5 tournaments of the 2018 WTA Tour. The tournament is held at the Optics Valley International Tennis Center in Wuhan, China.



POINTS


Winner - 900 / Runner-up - 585 / Semifinalists - 350 / Quarter-finalists - 190

Round of 16 - 105 / Round of 32 - 60 / Round of 64 - 1



SEEDS


Except seed no 16, Asleigh Barty, all the other seeds were eliminated before the quarter-finals, at the date this article was published.





FINALISTS


Anett Kontaveit (Estonia, left) lost to Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus, right) in two sets, score 3-6 3-6.



 WINNER 


Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus) is having a great second half of the year




FINAL HIGHLIGHTS



***



2017 WINNER: Caroline Garcia (France) defeated Asleigh Barty (Australia) in the final




2017 Final Highlights



***


2016 WINNER: Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic) defeated Dominika Cibulkova (Slovakia)




2015 WINNER: Venus Williams (USA) defeated Garbine Muguruza (Spain)




2014 WINNER: Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic) defeated Eugenie Bouchard (Canada)





2. Tashkent Open, Uzbeckistan




ABOUT


The 2018 Tashkent Open is a WTA International tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It is the 20th edition of the Tashkent Open, on the 2018 WTA Tour. It takes place at the Olympic Tennis School in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, between September 24 and 29, 2018.



POINTS


Winner - 280 / Runner-up - 180 / Semifinalists - 110 / Quarter-finalists - 60

Round of 16 - 30 / Round of 32 - 1



SEEDS




FINALISTS


Margarita Gasparyan (Russia) defeated Anastasia Potapova (Russia) in two sets, 6-6 6-1



 WINNER 


Margarita Gasparyan (Russia)




FINAL HIGHLIGHTS




***



2017 WINNER: Kateryna Bondarenko (Ukraine) defeated Timea Babos (Hungary)


wtatennis.com

wikipedia.com



:
Posted by me-wanderer

From Seoul, South Korea, May 2018



<Semifinal in Rome, Italian Open>




   Last year Simona Halep reached the final in Rome but lost to Elina Svitolina. Her current No position can be maintained if she defends as many of the points as she can. With Caroline Wozniacki, ranked No 2, leaving the competition in the quarter-Simona is able to maintain her position, but a title in Rome would be a great achievement and would consolidate her leadership in the WTA rankings. For now, she is going to maintain the No 1 position untill at least the start of French Open (Roland Garros). This means Simona is also seeded first for the French tournament.






   Halep beat Caroline Garcia in two sets. She did not have to work too much for the victory as Garcia commited error after error. Meanwhile, Sharapova comes after a not so easy win over Jelena Osptapenko in the quarter-finals, so she would be theoreticaly more exhausted. Halep did not play the match in the Round of 15 because her opponent Madison Keys has retired. It will be an interesting match to watch, definitely.


   Simona talked about the semifinal against Sharapova, saying she is expecting a very difficult game and that she has only one thing in mind: to play a good match. "I look forward for a difficult match, of course. It was always difficult against Sharapova, but I know I have a chance, and if I do my game it will be fine. I will try to do everything on court in order to win, but I do not have other expectations. I will enter the court and give my best. This is what I want.


   She also mentioned she is not thinking about statistics, which favor the Russian with 7 wins to 1 loss. "I feel this match is open, anyone can win. I do not thing about the past confrontations."



The last meeting between Simona and Maria in Beijing. Simona won in two sets, 6-2, 6-2:


 



The Quarter final against Caroline Garcia, score 6-2, 6-3:


012345678




ziare.com



:
Posted by me-wanderer

From Seoul, South Korea, May 2018



1. Mutua Madrid Open, Spain






ABOUT:



The 2018 Mutua Madrid Open is a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts at the Park Manzanares in Madrid, Spain from 5 May–13 May 2018. It will be the 17th edition of the event on the ATP World Tour and 10th on the WTA Tour. It is classified as an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event on the 2018 ATP World Tour and a Premier Mandatory event on the 2018 WTA Tour.






Point system for women's singles


winner - 1000

finalist - 650

semifinalists - 390

quarter finalists - 215

round of 16 - 120

round of 32 - 65

round of 64 - 10



Seeds






FINALISTS:


Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic) vs. Kiki Bertens (Netherlands) 


Score: 7(8)-6(6), 4-6, 6-3


  This year's draw and results were full of surprises with big names leaving the competition early. Muguruza lost to Kasatkina in the last 16, Svitolina lost to Suarez Navarro in the round of 32 and in my opinion, the player of the tournament was Kiki Bertens.  She was coming after a clay title at Charleston (USA) at Volvo Car Open. Bertens is one of the best players on clay in the women's circuit. And she showed great performances here at Madrid.  She eliminated such players as seed 15 Anastasia Sevastova (round of 32), seed 2 Caroline Wozniacki (round of 16), Maria Sharapova who looked like she was ready for a comeback (quarter-final), seed 7 Caroline Garcia (semi-final) and lost the final eventually.


  If Bertens was the player of the tournament, Petra Kvitova looks like she is the player of the year so far. She won the trophy in St. Petersurg, then two weeks later won again in Doha, and won the Czech Open just the week before Madrid. Fans were expecting her to be exhausted in Madrid but she got the title after two years of reign of Simona Halep. It is the thrird time she wins the title in Madrid, a first time record of this competition. She also won in 2015 and 2011. Halep left the competition in the quarter finals, losing to Karolina Pliskova.







   WINNER:   



Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic)





                        

2017 winner:


Simona Halep, Romania






2016 winner:


Simona Halep, Romania





2015 winner:


Petra Kvitova, Czech Republic





wtatennis.com

wikipedia.com



:
Posted by me-wanderer

From Seoul, South Korea, May 2018



1. Grand Prix De Sar La Princesse Lalla Meryem, Rabat, Morocco








ABOUT:



The Morocco Open or Rabat Grand Prix (for sponsorship reasons called the Grand Prix de SAR La Princesse Lalla Meryem), is a women's professional tennis tournament currently held in Rabat, Morocco. This WTA Tour event is classified as an International tournament and is played on outdoor clay courts. It is the only WTA tournament held in Africa.





FINALISTS:


 Elise Mertens (Belgium) and Ajla Tomljanovic (Australia) 

Score: 6-2, 7(7)-6(4)









   WINNER:   



Elise Mertens (Belgium)






                        

2017 winner:


Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Russia








2. J&T Banka Prague Open, Czech Republic









ABOUT:



The 2018 J&T Banka Prague Open is a professional tennis tournaments played on outdoor clay courts. It will be the 9th edition of the tournament, and part of the International category of the 2018 WTA Tour. It will take place at the Sparta Prague Tennis Club in Prague, Czech Republic, from 30 April to 6 May 2018.






FINALISTS:


Mihaela Buzarnescu (Romania) and Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic)








   WINNER:   


Petra Kvitova lost the third set but came back to win the title. It 

was a mental game that put down the Romanian, score 4-6, 6-2, 6-3.






                        

2017 winner:


Mona Barthel, Germany







2. Kunming Open, Anning, China






ABOUT:



-




FINALISTS:


Zheng Saisai (China) and Irina Khromaceva (Russia)


Score: 6-3, 4-6,  6(5)-7(7)



   WINNER:   



Irina Khromaceva (Russia)






                        

2017 winner:


Zheng Saisai, China




wtatennis.com

wikipedia.com



:
Posted by me-wanderer

From Seoul, South Korea, March 2018



Miami Open, Key Biscayne, Florida











 The WTA tour at Miami is the second Premier Mandatory event of the competitional year. 128 players will enter competition, and 32 of them will enter directly into the second round. 



The 32 seeds who enter from the second round are:


 




Point system:


Winner - 1000

Runner up - 650

Semifinalists - 390

Quarterfinalists - 215

Round of 16 - 120

Round of 32 - 65

Round of 64 - 35

Round of 128 - 10




GALLERY OF THE CHAMPIONS:



2017 winner: Johanna Konta, UK









2016 winner: Victoria Azarenka, Belarus






2015 winner: Serena Williams, USA



wtatennis.com

wikipedia.org


:
Posted by me-wanderer

From Neupotz, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany, January 2018




Side Note: It was satifsfying for me as a Romanian to witness Simona's way 

into the semifinals, and I was also very pleased to see Korean's Jeong Hyeon's

 impressive performance at this tournament. 



Halep-Kerber 6-3 4-6 9-7



The second semifinal in the women's tournament in Australia. 

It seemed so easy for Halep to bring the score to 5-0 as Kerber did not play much 

in the beginning of the match.

After an unbalanced first set however, Kerber came back and won the seond one. 

Both players were great, but the thrid set was heart attack 

after heart attack for any of the supporters of these two players, and

perhaps for the players themselves too.









The Romanian, twice a French Open runner-up, saved two match points on her way to victory.

At the score 7:8 Angelique Kerber struggled with a good baseline game before Halep made the

 crucial point, and narrowly missed the final of this Australian Open.







Speaking courtside, Halep said:

"It was very tough.. I'm shaking now, very emotional. She's a very good opponent,

moving well, hitting from everywhere. I'm really glad I could win this match.

I tried to be very calm. Today was like a rollercoaster, up and down,

 but I didn't give up. "


"I had just confidence in myself. I decided after I twisted my ankle (in the first round)

that I would fight for every point in this tournament and then I wold rest.

I didn't give up, not even a ball.

If you don't give up, you van win the match in the end.

I did it an I'm really proud of myself actually."







Halep will face Caroline Wozniacki in the final on Saturday. Both players are seeking 

to win their first Grand Slam title, and Wozniacki is also looking forward 

to replace Halep as WTA Number One. 



<In the other semifinal, Wozniacki beat Belgian Mertens in two sets 3-6 6(2)-7(7)>


Simona Halep v Angelique Kerber match highlights (SF)

Simona Halep on court interview (SF)



Following is the current ranking of the first 5 players.

The winner of the tournament will be awarded 2000 ranking points 

and the runner-up 1300 points.

If Caroline wins on Saturday, she will be the new Number One. 





Australian Open point system:


Win: 2000

Runner-up: 1300

Semifinals: 780

Quarter-finals: 430

4th round: 240

3rd round: 130

2nd round: 70

1st round: 10




 Angelique Kerber is a former champion of the Australian Open.

In 2016 she won the trophy after a match against Serena Williams. 




bbc.com

express.co.uk

theguardian.com

spiegel.de

:
Posted by me-wanderer

From Seoul, South Korea, October 2017


안녕 folks!


Caroline Wozniacki with the trophy




WTA Finals Singapore. The competition reuniting the best 8 players in women’s tennis. It is the last competition of the year, and the most important after the 4 Grand Slams. This year the best world 8 competed against each other in 2 groups, and indeed, each game was worth watching! When the best 8 play among themselves each game is like a final.


 Group standings, semifinals, final & points and prize won. Interesting fact: the participation fee of $ 151 000 is deducted from the prize, so players who did not make it to the final or at least the semifinals, perhaps won't sleep well until the next season begins. :D






Danish player Caroline Wozniacki triumphed over veteran Venus Williams in the final game in Singapore, a game which ended 6-4 6-4. The second set saw Caroline almost winner as she was leading with 5 games to zero, but as champion that she is, Venus made an unforgettable comeback winning 4 games in a row. Caroline however, was strong enough not to be intimidated, ending up with the trophy, and the money of course. Moreover, she climbed 3 positions in the year-end rankings, from no 6 to no 3. 



Caroline reached the fisrt WTA position only once before, between October 2010 and February 2011. She has never won a Grand Slam tournament, which makes this Singapore trophy the most important for her so far.


You can see the higlights of the game here: youtube link Don't miss the second set! It was epic! 



Incredible Venus, at 37 years old



The most important title in Wozniacki's career. She has never won a Grand Slam. 

But she nailed this final.




THE OTHER STORY, YEAR-END NO 1 IN WOMEN'S TENNIS: SIMONA HALEP. 

THE BEST PERFORMANCE OF ROMANIAN TENNIS EVER

 

Halep was not able to reach the semifinals. She won her first group game against French Caroline Garcia, but lost to Wozniacki and Ukrainian Elina Svitolina. As the only player who could threaten her no 1 position, Czech Karolina Pliskova lost in the semifinals, she managed to remain the leader in the WTA standings. And she will stay there until the next season begins. 

 Simona said she stills feels very sad for the French Open final she lost last summer, but as one of her goals for 2017 was to be No 1, she ends the year in a positive note. Her game started to improve lately, and it seems that her biggest problem, the mental part, is not as disturbing as it used to be. 

Watch the awarding ceremony here: click




One of the most consistent WTA players, finally gets there. But no Grand Slam yet... 






AND YET ANOTHER STORY, CAROLINE GARCIA: THE RISING STAR


Another Caroline, Garcia, was the last to qualify for this year’s finals. WTA No 8, was, personally, my favourite player of this tournament. Very strong mentally and with a powerful attack style game, she put in trouble all the other players she met here. She even beat Wozniacki in the groups. I am looking forward to see her rising even more next year.






FINALLY, FAN BATTLE :D


Nothing gets more fun on facebook these days than following fans fight over the new world's number 1. From people lamenting there is no one single dominant player in women's tennis, to people arguing one does not need a Grand Slam to be a champion. Consistency or fame? What would you choose?


An article analyzing this particular topic here: click





FINAL STANDINGS OF 2017 IN WTA




Sources:


wtatennis.com

http://www.tennis.com/pro-game/2017/10/tough-call-will-any-wta-player-win-more-one-major-2018/70159/

http://www.hindustantimes.com





:
Posted by me-wanderer


From Seoul, South Korea, October 2017


안녕 folks!


     



Simona Halep's way to her first WTA number 1 ranking was halted several times in the months before China Open (30 Sept- 8 Oct, 2017). The Roland Garros final loss to Jelena Ostapenko and the elimination from US Open by Maria Sharapova in the first round, were not easy to deal with psychologically. 










In an interview for a Romanian TV channel she stated the Roland Garros final haunted her dreams for days after the game. Aggressive player Ostapenko is not an easy opponent these days in the WTA tournaments. 






On the other side, Halep lost all her previous games to Sharapova, seven in number, a situation that led some to say she had developed a Sharapova complex. However, Halep denied such a thing, still admitting that it was one of her biggest wishes to beat the Russian.



<Previous meetings, before Beijing 2017>




     China Open will remain a tournament to remember for Simona Halep. 



<Petra Kvitova, Caroline Garcia, Jelena Ostapenko, Simona Halep>



She obtained her first victory in two sets against the 'unbeatable Russian': 6-2, 6-2.



     

     


     



She took revenge for the Roland Garros final, becoming WTA No 1, after the semifinal against Ostapenko: 6-2, 6-4.






Yet Simona is getting a lot of criticism from fans all over the world who say that a No 1 without a Grand Slam is not a real No 1. Regarding this, only time will tell the truth. 









Sources:


TVR1 interview with Simona Halep, in Romanian:




Pictures:

https://www.facebook.com/WTA/?ref=br_rs

http://www.wtatennis.com/



Watch:


2017 China Open 3rd Round against Maria Sharapova, highlights:

https://youtu.be/3oYXBWw_RR8




2017 China Open semi-final against Jelena Ostapenko, highlights:

https://youtu.be/gUt8s9lIVRk



:
Posted by me-wanderer