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Tag: serena williams

Serena Williams Wins Record Seventh Title in Miami

World No. 1 Serena Williams won her record-breaking seventh title in Miami on Saturday, beating Li Na in the final, 7-5, 6-1.

After a shaky opening game, Li Na, the No. 2 seed, broke to open the set. She then held, and looked to be in control of the match, eventually going up a double break, to 5-2. However, despite error-riddled play from Williams, Li Na failed to capitalize on the lead, and got broken both times she served for the set. It was exactly what Williams needed to gain confidence, and she began playing remarkably better.

When serving to stay in the set at 5-6, Li Na was broken a third consecutive time, giving Williams the first set 7-5.

Each player held to open the second set, but Williams broke Li Na’s second service game, giving her a 4-1 lead. Trouble on serve continued for the Chinese No. 1, as Williams, in true dominant form, broke again to go up 5-1 after another lengthy game, then held easily, serving it out 6-1. It was Williams’ 59th career title.

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Cover Photo (Creative Commons License): Francisco Carbajal

March 29, 2014
Ana Ivanovic Shocks Serena Williams in Australia

In a stunning upset, Ana Ivanovic defeated five-time champion Serena Williams in the fourth round of the Australian Open. Ivanovic came from a set down to prevail 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 in 1 hour and 56 minutes. It was the 26-year-old Serb’s first victory over Williams in five attempts.

“It’s amazing,” said Ivanovic. “Honestly, I went on the court and I just wanted to play the best I could. I’m so thrilled.”

It was Williams first loss since August 2013.

Ivanovic, seeded 14, will face Eugenie Bouchard or Casey Dellacqua in the quarterfinals.

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Cover Photo (Creative Commons License): NAPARAZZI

January 19, 2014
Australian Open Day 7 Schedule of Play / Scores: Sunday, January 19

[Scores added as known.]

Rod Laver Arena — 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 4
Flavia Pennetta (ITA) (28) d. Angelique Kerber (GER) (9) — 6-1, 4-6, 7-5

Not Before: 12:30 P.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 4
Ana Ivanovic (SRB) (14) d. Serena Williams (USA) (1) — 4-6, 6-3, 6-3

Not Before: 2:00 P.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 4
Novak Djokovic (SRB) (2) d. Fabio Fognini (ITA) (15) — 6-3, 6-0, 6-2

Not Before: 7:00 P.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 4
Eugenie Bouchard (CAN) (30) d. Casey Dellacqua (AUS) — 6-7(5), 6-2, 6-0

Men’s Singles – Round 4
Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) (8) d. Tommy Robredo (ESP) (17) — 6-3, 7-6(3), 7-6(5)

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Click here to discuss the Men’s matches in our discussion forum.

Click here to discuss the Women’s matches in our discussion forum.

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Hisense Arena — Not Before: 12:30 P.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 4
Na Li (CHN) (4) d. Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) (22) — 6-2, 6-0

Men’s Singles – Round 4
David Ferrer (ESP) (3) d. Florian Mayer (GER) — 6-7(5), 7-5, 6-2, 6-1

Women’s Doubles – Round 3
Sara Errani (ITA) (1) / Roberta Vinci (ITA) (1) d. Monique Adamczak (AUS) (3) / Olivia Rogowska (AUS) (3) — 6-2, 6-2

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Margaret Court Arena — 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Doubles – Round 3
Jarmila Gajdosova (AUS) / Ajla Tomljanovic (CRO) d. Timea Babos (HUN) / Petra Martic (CRO) — 6-2, 7-5

Men’s Doubles – Round 3
Leander Paes (IND) (5) / Radek Stepanek (CZE) (5) d. Yuki Bhambri (IND) / Michael Venus (NZL) — 6-3, 6-2

Not Before: 2:00 P.M.

Men’s Doubles – Round 3
Alex Bolt (AUS) / Andrew Whittington (AUS) d. Pablo Carreno Busta (ESP) / Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (ESP) — 6-7(4), 7-6(5), 7-5

Not Before: 5:00 P.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 4
Tomas Berdych (CZE) (7) d. Kevin Anderson (RSA) (19) — 6-2, 6-2, 6-3

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Show Court 2 — 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Doubles – Round 3
Shahar Peer (ISR) / Silvia Soler-Espinosa (ESP) d. Lucie Hradecka (CZE) / Michaella Krajicek (NED) — 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-2

Not Before: 12:30 P.M.

Men’s Doubles – Round 3
Treat Huey (PHI) (12) / Dominic Inglot (GBR) (12) d. Rohan Bopanna (IND) (7) / Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (PAK) (7) — 6-4, 7-6(1)

Mixed Doubles – Round 1
Anastasia Rodionova (AUS) / Colin Fleming (GBR) d. Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) / Nenad Zimonjic (SRB) — 6-4, 6-4

Men’s Doubles – Round 3
Michael Llodra (FRA) (13) / Nicolas Mahut (FRA) (13) d. Alexander Peya (AUT) (2) / Bruno Soares (BRA) (2) — 7-6(4), 6-4

Mixed Doubles – Round 1
Daniela Hantuchova (SVK) / Leander Paes (IND) d. Ajla Tomljanovic (CRO) / James Duckworth (AUS) — 7-5, 4-6 [10-7]

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Show Court 3 — Not Before: 12:00 P.M.

Women’s Doubles – Round 3
Kveta Peschke (CZE) (4) / Katarina Srebotnik (SLO) (4) d. Hao-Ching Chan (TPE) (13) / Liezel Huber (USA) (13) — 6-2, 6-7(6), 6-4

Mixed Doubles – Round 1
Elena Vesnina (RUS) (8) / Mahesh Bhupathi (IND) (8) d. Arantxa Parra Santonja (ESP) / David Marrero (ESP) — 6-7(3), 6-4 [10-5]

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Court 6 — Not Before: 4:00 P.M.

Mixed Doubles – Round 1
Lisa Raymond (USA) / Mariusz Fyrstenberg (POL) d. Liezel Huber (USA) (3) / Marcelo Melo (BRA) (3) — 6-2, 6-2

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Court 15 — Not Before: 6:00 P.M.

Mixed Doubles – Round 1
Abigail Spears (USA) / Dominic Inglot (GBR) d. Lucie Hradecka (CZE) / Martin Emmrich (GER) — 6-1, 7-6(5)

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Cover Photo (Creative Commons License): MD111

January 18, 2014
Ongoing Commitments

As intimated earlier in the week, one of the more fascinating battles going on this week has been waged not between players, but between the media and the English language. This has entailed an exhaustive quest for original ways to describe the prevailing atmospheric conditions. Rennae Stubbs found a way, though it didn’t necessarily lead to victory: “Can she survive in this heat, which is extraordinarily hot?” Rhetorically, we might generously call this a polyptoton, although it would exhaust generosity to call it a good one. On the other hand, Serena Williams’s assertion that the Australian Open is “a great start to the beginning of the year” is just a tautology. That’s okay – words are not her business. Her business is winning tennis matches. Thankfully Darren Cahill was on hand to explain in simple terms how she not only continues to do so, but is actually getting better at it, in clear defiance of her age.

Today Williams faced Daniela Hantuchova, who several days ago achieved the rarest feat in tennis: prompting the commentators to add a new line item to her official fact sheet. In this case the new fact is that she can play the piano, an astonishing feat that was demonstrated to the gobsmacked Australian media several days ago, who summarily dubbed her “a concert pianist”. The fact sheet having been amended, there’s now a legal obligation to bring up her astounding musical prowess whenever she appears on screen. From today: “She’s so good at so many things: tennis, piano . . .” The media love nothing more than celebrities – athletes, actors, US presidents – demonstrating hitherto unrevealed musical talents, no matter how meagre those talents truly are. The fact is, Hantuchova is a concert pianist in the same way that I am a professional tennis player. YouTube suggests her pianistic wizardry has been revealed many times before. (For the record, Williams was out of sorts, but still won. Hantuchova played very well.)

Of course, supplementary talents don’t have to be musical. Anything not directly related to tennis will do, down to and including functional literacy. More than once I’ve heard Janko Tipsarevic called a “borderline genius” because he has read Dostoevsky. Perhaps Benjamin Becker should try that, since the poor guy’s fact sheet hasn’t been updated in nearly eight years, and still only features two items. Firstly, he isn’t related to Boris (Boris confirmed this personally in the Australian Open’s draw ceremony). Secondly, he was the guy up the other end in Andre Agassi’s last match (Boris also mentioned this, amply fulfilling his ongoing commitment to supply no insight whatsoever).

Speaking of Agassi, he’s back on Australian television screens this year, fulfilling his ongoing commitment to talk very slowly over thinly-disguised Jacob’s Creek commercials. The overall success of the campaign is apparent in this year’s expanded budget. This time the ads are shot on location, and feature an extended cast including Steffi Graf, Agassi’s brother Phil, his Dad Mike, and Gil Reyes (who was included last year, but this time has more to do). The glacial solemnity of the delivery and the intrusive soundtrack as ever lend Agassi’s inspirational words a slightly creepy edge. It’s no stretch to imagine the weapons-grade sentimentality of the opening film breaking tough prisoners at a secret torture facility. After that, however, something miraculous happens — the rest of the ads are actually pretty good. As far as I can tell they each reprise material already featured in Open, but that’s understandable; any anecdote worthy of a wine commercial shouldn’t be omitted from one’s autobiography. ‘Magic’, the fourth and final film, is a trifle overwrought, with a syrupy orchestral track and a “magic mountain”. This mountain is the one Agassi would famously toil upon in order to prepare for Australia’s cruel conditions, its magic evident in its efficacy. Few players have mastered those conditions more thoroughly. Thirteen years ago I watched Agassi run David Prinosil into the ground on a very hot Melbourne afternoon, until the German keeled over and couldn’t get up. Times were different, and I don’t recall that it was regarded as a moral issue. If Prinosil was still playing, no doubt it’d be on his fact sheet.

For the longest time, networks kept their fact sheets safely out of sight, but no longer. Channel 7, in line with its “ongoing commitment to the evolution of tennis coverage”, has recently taken to sharing selected titbits before each match. A box pops up on screen, titled “Things You May Not Know”. For example, did you know that Sam Stosur loves to play “Bejeweled Blitz” on her phone? I hope not. Did you know that Hantuchova loves the film Gladiator? Of course you did: she’s a professional tennis player, and they all do. Apparently Benoit Paire is called ‘‘The Stork” because he is tall and thin. Just in case you assumed it was because he is a qualified midwife. Last night he recovered from two sets down, running Nick Kyrgios into the ground on a very hot Melbourne evening. It was tremendous entertainment, initially contoured by the Frenchman’s forehand, which for long periods barely worked at all, and later by the Australian’s legs, which gave out entirely. Given his technical issues, it was a commendably patient performance from Paire, laced with just enough of his characteristic lunacy to keep things interesting. Kyrgios is the image of untrammelled youth on court, but afterwards was as gracious and thoughtful as you could hope for.

Juan Martin del Potro last night contrived to lose to a laudably determined (and surprisingly inspired) Roberto Bautista-Agut. Del Potro was considered a pre-tournament favourite, or at any rate represented the sole reason to believe Rafael Nadal wouldn’t reach the semifinals unhindered. Nadal wasn’t significantly hindered by Thanasi Kokkinakis, conceding just eight games, although those eight games were accumulated with sufficient panache that Australians now feel some reason to maintain hope for the future, a rare sensation in these Tomic times. Andy Murray was completely untroubled by Vincent Millot, even, it turned out, when he trailed 1-5 in the third set. Roger Federer was imperious against Blaz Kavcic for two sets, then merely good enough for one more. The main interest, apparently, was that Federer was scheduled to play on Hisense Arena, the first time this has occurred since Gladiator appeared on DVD, to the collective ecstasy of both professional tours. Britain’s The Telegraph contended that this reflected Federer’s “current status among the also-rans of the top 10”, although they failed to address what this says about Murray, who as of the third round will have played on Hisense twice. Interviewed after the match, Federer gave every impression that he didn’t much care where he played, though the Hisense crowd couldn’t have been more delirious in their appreciation that he’d played right there in front of them.

Gilles Simon followed up his complicated five-set victory against Daniel Brands with another against Marin Cilic, all on a broken foot. Details have been slow to emerge, but it seems Cilic served for every set at least fifteen times, and that at one stage play was suspended when an escaped panther wandered onto court. Simon will next face Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Florian Mayer beat Jerzy Janowicz in straight sets today, a stunning upset that more or less everyone expected. Janowicz’s form convinced no one this week, and after losing he conceded he hadn’t spent sufficient time on Magic Mountain, mostly due to injury. He struggled mightily in the heat, but insisted it was his own fault, an unpopular attitude that will certainly go unreported. Mayer will next face David Ferrer, whose quarter is so short on marketable quality that he has already played twice in Rod Laver Arena. It could be, per The Telegraph, that this merely reflects his exalted position among the elite, but I doubt whether anyone truly believes that. If he’d been drawn in the top half, one doubts whether he’d see the inside of Laver before the quarterfinals. He’d be confined to Hisense, in much the same way that Javier Piles once confined him to an extraordinarily hot ball-closet for shirking his piano practice. Or so the official fact sheet says.

January 18, 2014
Australian Open Day 5 Schedule of Play / Scores: Friday, January 17

[Scores added as known.]

Rod Laver Arena — 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 3
Serena Williams (USA) (1) d. Daniela Hantuchova (SVK) (31) — 6-3, 6-3

Men’s Singles – Round 3
David Ferrer (ESP) (3) d. Jeremy Chardy (FRA) (29) — 6-2, 7-6(5), 6-2

Not Before: 2:00 P.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 3
Casey Dellacqua (AUS) d. Jie Zheng (CHN) — 6-2, 6-4

Not Before: 7:00 P.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 3
Ana Ivanovic (SRB) (14) d. Samantha Stosur (AUS) (17) — 6-7(8), 6-4, 6-2

Men’s Singles – Round 3
Novak Djokovic (SRB) (2) d. Denis Istomin (UZB) — 6-3, 6-3, 7-5

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Click here to discuss the Men’s matches in our discussion forum.

Click here to discuss the Women’s matches in our discussion forum.

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Hisense Arena — 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 3
Angelique Kerber (GER) (9) d. Alison Riske (USA) — 6-3, 6-4

Women’s Singles – Round 3
Na Li (CHN) (4) d. Lucie Safarova (CZE) (26) — 1-6, 7-6(2), 6-3

Men’s Singles – Round 3
Tomas Berdych (CZE) (7) d. Damir Dzumhur (BIH) — 6-4, 6-2, 6-2

Not Before: 7:00 P.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 3
Tommy Robredo (ESP) (17) d. Richard Gasquet (FRA) (9) — 2-6, 7-5, 6-4, 7-6(6)

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Bob Bryan (USA) (1) / Mike Bryan (USA) (1) d. Paul Hanley (AUS) / Jonathan Marray (GBR) — 6-4, 7-6(3)

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Margaret Court Arena — 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 3
Flavia Pennetta (ITA) (28) d. Mona Barthel (GER) — 6-1, 7-5

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Ivan Dodig (CRO) (4) / Marcelo Melo (BRA) (4) d. Chris Guccione (AUS) / Thanasi Kokkinakis (AUS) — 7-5, 7-6(5)

Not Before: 2:00 P.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 3
Kevin Anderson (RSA) (19) d. Edouard Roger-Vasselin (FRA) — 3-6, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(5), 7-5

Not Before: 7:00 P.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 3
Fabio Fognini (ITA) (15) d. Sam Querrey (USA) — 7-5, 6-4, 6-4

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Show Court 2 — 11:00 A.M.

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Jarkko Nieminen (FIN) / Dmitry Tursunov (RUS) d. Andre Begemann (GER) / Martin Emmrich (GER) — 7-6(3), 6-4

Women’s Singles – Round 3
Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) (22) d. Monica Niculescu (ROU) — 6-4, 6-4

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Kristina Mladenovic (FRA) (12) / Flavia Pennetta (ITA) (12) d. Aleksandrina Naydenova (BUL) / Teliana Pereira (BRA) — 6-1, 6-2

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Pablo Carreno Busta (ESP) / Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (ESP) d. Dustin Brown (GER) / Gael Monfils (FRA) — 6-4, 2-6, 6-4

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Show Court 3 — 11:00 A.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 3
Florian Mayer (GER) d. Jerzy Janowicz (POL) (20) — 7-5, 6-2, 6-2

Women’s Singles – Round 3
Eugenie Bouchard (CAN) (30) d. Lauren Davis (USA) — 6-2, 6-2

Not Before: 2:30 P.M.

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
David Marrero (ESP) (3) / Fernando Verdasco (ESP) (3) d. James Duckworth (AUS) / Matthew Ebden (AUS) — 3-6, 6-3, 6-2

Mixed Doubles – Round 1
Kveta Peschke (CZE) (7) / Marcin Matkowski (POL) (7) d. Arina Rodionova (AUS) / Nick Kyrgios (AUS) — 7-5, 6-4

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Court 6 — 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Doubles – Round 2
Kveta Peschke (CZE) (4) / Katarina Srebotnik (SLO) (4) d. Katarzyna Piter (POL) / Alicja Rosolska (POL) — 7-6(2), 6-4

Women’s Doubles – Round 2
Shahar Peer (ISR) / Silvia Soler-Espinosa (ESP) d. Su-Wei Hsieh (TPE) (2) / Shuai Peng (CHN) (2) — 7-5, 3-6, 6-4

Men’s Doubles – Round 2
Lukasz Kubot (POL) (14) / Robert Lindstedt (SWE) (14) d. Benjamin Mitchell (AUS) / Jordan Thompson (AUS) — 6-1, 6-3

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Daniela Hantuchova (SVK) (15) / Lisa Raymond (USA) (15) d. Mandy Minella (LUX) / Chanelle Scheepers (RSA) — 6-7(2), 6-2, 6-1

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Court 7 — 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Doubles – Round 2
Raquel Kops-Jones (USA) (8) / Abigail Spears (USA) (8) d. Garbine Muguruza (ESP) / Arantxa Parra Santonja (ESP) — 6-4, 7-6(4)

Mixed Doubles – Round 1
Ashleigh Barty (AUS) / John Peers (AUS) d. Olivia Rogowska (AUS) / John-Patrick Smith (AUS) — 6-3, 6-4

Not Before: 2:00 P.M.

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Jarmila Gajdosova (AUS) / Ajla Tomljanovic (CRO) d. Alla Kudryavtseva (RUS) (9) / Anastasia Rodionova (AUS) (9) — 1-6, 6-4, 7-5

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) (3) / Elena Vesnina (RUS) (3) d. Lauren Davis (USA) / Lourdes Dominguez Lino (ESP) — 6-3, 6-2

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Court 8 — 11:00 A.M.

Men’s Doubles – Round 2
Yuki Bhambri (IND) / Michael Venus (NZL) d. Jean-Julien Rojer (NED) (10) / Horia Tecau (ROU) (10) — 6-4, 6-4

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Leander Paes (IND) (5) / Radek Stepanek (CZE) (5) d. Lukas Dlouhy (CZE) / Lukas Rosol (CZE) — 6-4, 6-1

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Madison Keys (USA) / Alison Riske (USA) d. Xinyun Han (CHN) / Miki Miyamura (JPN) — 6-2, 7-5

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Eugenie Bouchard (CAN) / Vera Dushevina (RUS) d. Valeria Solovyeva (RUS) / Elina Svitolina (UKR) — 6-3, 6-1

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Court 13 — 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Doubles – Round 2
Sara Errani (ITA) (1) / Roberta Vinci (ITA) (1) d. Kaia Kanepi (EST) / Renata Voracova (CZE) — 1-6, 6-1, 6-1

Men’s Doubles – Round 2
Michael Llodra (FRA) (13) / Nicolas Mahut (FRA) (13) d. Philipp Oswald (AUT) / Simon Stadler (GER) — 7-6(5), 7-6(2)

Not Before: 2:00 P.M.

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Julia Goerges (GER) (14) / Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (CZE) (14) d. Naiktha Bains (AUS) / Olivia Tjandramulia (AUS) — 6-3, 6-3

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Andreas Seppi (ITA) / Potito Starace (ITA) d. Tobias Kamke (GER) / Florian Mayer (GER) — 7-6(1), 6-4

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Court 19 — 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Doubles – Round 2
Hao-Ching Chan (TPE) (13) / Liezel Huber (USA) (13) d. Varvara Lepchenko (USA) / Raluca Olaru (ROU) — 6-4, 7-6(4)

Men’s Doubles – Round 2
Max Mirnyi (BLR) / Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) d. Marcel Granollers (ESP) (6) / Marc Lopez (ESP) (6) — 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(3)

Not Before: 2:00 P.M.

Women’s Doubles – Round 2
Lucie Hradecka (CZE) / Michaella Krajicek (NED) d. Vania King (USA) (16) / Galina Voskoboeva (KAZ) (16) — 7-6(4), 6-1

[divider]

Court 20 — 11:00 A.M.

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Daniele Bracciali (ITA) / Alexandr Dolgopolov (UKR) d. Jonathan Erlich (ISR) / Andy Ram (ISR) — 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-3

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Timea Babos (HUN) / Petra Martic (CRO) d. Dominika Cibulkova (SVK) / Yanina Wickmayer (BEL) — 6-4, 3-6, 7-5

Cover Photo (Creative Commons License): pasukaru76

January 16, 2014
Australian Open Day 3 Schedule of Play / Scores: Wednesday, January 15

[Scores added as known.]

Rod Laver Arena — 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 2
Na Li (CHN) (4) d. Belinda Bencic (SUI) — 6-0, 7-6(5)

Women’s Singles – Round 2
Serena Williams (USA) (1) d. Vesna Dolonc (SRB) — 6-1, 6-2

Men’s Singles – Round 2
Novak Djokovic (SRB) (2) d. Leonardo Mayer (ARG) — 6-0, 6-4, 6-4

Not Before: 7:00 P.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 2
Samantha Stosur (AUS) (17) d. Tsvetana Pironkova (BUL) — 6-2, 6-0

Men’s Singles – Round 2
Vasek Pospisil (CAN) (28) d. Matthew Ebden (AUS) — 3-6, 7-6(6), 7-6(9), 6-1

[divider]

Click here to discuss the Men’s matches in our discussion forum.

Click here to discuss the Women’s matches in our discussion forum.

[divider]

Hisense Arena — 11:00 A.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 2
Tomas Berdych (CZE) (7) d. Kenny De Schepper (FRA) — 6-4, 6-1, 6-3

Men’s Singles – Round 2
David Ferrer (ESP) (3) d. Adrian Mannarino (FRA) — 7-6(2), 5-7, 6-0, 6-3

Women’s Singles – Round 2
Casey Dellacqua (AUS) d. Kirsten Flipkens (BEL) (18) — 6-3, 6-0

Not Before: 5:00 P.M.

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Eric Butorac (USA) / Raven Klaasen (RSA) d. Lleyton Hewitt (AUS) / Patrick Rafter (AUS) — 6-4, 7-5

[divider]

Margaret Court Arena — 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 2
Monica Niculescu (ROU) d. Sabine Lisicki (GER) (15) — 2-6, 6-2, 6-2

Women’s Singles – Round 2
Flavia Pennetta (ITA) (28) d. Monica Puig (PUR) — 6-3, 6-4

Women’s Singles – Round 2
Angelique Kerber (GER) (9) d. Alla Kudryavtseva (RUS) — 6-4, 6-2

Men’s Singles – Round 2
Sam Querrey (USA) d. Ernests Gulbis (LAT) (23) — 6-2, 6-3, 6-4

Not Before: 7:00 P.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 2
Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) (8) d. Alejandro Falla (COL) — 6-3, 6-3, 6-7(4), 6-4

[divider]

Show Court 2 — 11:00 A.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 2
Richard Gasquet (FRA) (9) d. Nikolay Davydenko (RUS) — 7-6(3), 6-4, 6-4

Men’s Singles – Round 2
Tommy Robredo (ESP) (17) d. Julien Benneteau (FRA) — 6-3, 6-7(4), 6-1, 7-6(6)

Women’s Singles – Round 2
Eugenie Bouchard (CAN) (30) d. Virginie Razzano (FRA) — 6-2, 7-6(10)

Women’s Singles – Round 2
Ana Ivanovic (SRB) (14) d. Annika Beck (GER) — 6-1, 6-2

[divider]

Show Court 3 — 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 2
Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) (22) d. Irina Falconi (USA) — 6-2, 7-5

Men’s Singles – Round 2
Jerzy Janowicz (POL) (20) d. Pablo Andujar (ESP) — 4-6, 7-6(3), 7-6(5), 6-3

Women’s Singles – Round 2
Alison Riske (USA) d. Yanina Wickmayer (BEL) — 6-1, 6-1

Men’s Singles – Round 2
Fabio Fognini (ITA) (15) d. Jarkko Nieminen (FIN) — 7-5, 6-4, 3-6, 6-2

[divider]

Court 5 — 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Anna-Lena Groenefeld (GER) (11) / Mirjana Lucic-Baroni (CRO) (11) d. Azra Hadzic (AUS) / Jessica Moore (AUS) — 6-3, 6-1

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Kveta Peschke (CZE) (4) / Katarina Srebotnik (SLO) (4) d. Alexandra Cadantu (ROU) / Simona Halep (ROU) — 2-6, 6-3, 6-2

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Shahar Peer (ISR) / Silvia Soler-Espinosa (ESP) d. Yung-Jan Chan (TPE) / Janette Husarova (SVK) — 7-5, 4-6, 6-4

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Magdalena Rybarikova (SVK) / Stefanie Voegele (SUI) d. Jelena Dokic (AUS) / Storm Sanders (AUS) — 6-4, 6-4

[divider]

Court 6 — 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 2
Mona Barthel (GER) d. Luksika Kumkhum (THA) — 4-6, 6-3, 6-4

Men’s Singles – Round 2
Jeremy Chardy (FRA) (29) d. Alexandr Dolgopolov (UKR) — 7-5, 7-6(5), 6-7(3), 7-6(5)

Men’s Singles – Round 2
Kevin Anderson (RSA) (19) d. Dominic Thiem (AUT) — 6-4, 6-3, 6-4

Women’s Singles – Round 2
Lauren Davis (USA) d. Julia Goerges (GER) — 7-5, 2-6, 6-4

[divider]

Court 7 — 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Hao-Ching Chan (TPE) (13) / Liezel Huber (USA) (13) d. Tamarine Tanasugarn (THA) / Saisai Zheng (CHN) — 6-3, 6-3

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Kaia Kanepi (EST) / Renata Voracova (CZE) d. Sally Peers (AUS) / Viktorija Rajicic (AUS) — 6-3, 6-1

Not Before: 2:30 P.M.

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Marcel Granollers (ESP) (6) / Marc Lopez (ESP) (6) d. Samuel Groth (AUS) / John-Patrick Smith (AUS) — 6-4, 6-4

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Benjamin Mitchell (AUS) / Jordan Thompson (AUS) d. Carlos Berlocq (ARG) / Alejandro Gonzalez (COL) — 5-7, 6-3, 6-4

[divider]

Court 8 — 11:00 A.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 2
Florian Mayer (GER) d. Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) (14) — 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3

Men’s Singles – Round 2
Denis Istomin (UZB) d. Dmitry Tursunov (RUS) (30) — 7-6(3), 4-6, 6-1, 6-4

Women’s Singles – Round 2
Jie Zheng (CHN) d. Madison Keys (USA) — 7-6(5), 1-6, 7-5

[divider]

Court 10 — 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Katarzyna Piter (POL) / Alicja Rosolska (POL) d. Olga Govortsova (BLR) / Christina McHale (USA) — 6-3, 6-3

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Marin Draganja (CRO) / Mate Pavic (CRO) d. Marc Gicquel (FRA) / Benoit Paire (FRA) — 7-6(0), 6-3

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Varvara Lepchenko (USA) / Raluca Olaru (ROU) d. Shuko Aoyama (JPN) / Misaki Doi (JPN) — 6-2, 6-4

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Garbine Muguruza (ESP) / Arantxa Parra Santonja (ESP) d. Sharon Fichman (CAN) / Monica Puig (PUR) — 4-6, 6-4, 7-5

[divider]

Court 11 — 11:00 A.M.

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Jean-Julien Rojer (NED) (10) / Horia Tecau (ROU) (10) d. Teymuraz Gabashvili (RUS) / Mikhail Kukushkin (KAZ) — 6-2, 7-5

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Colin Fleming (GBR) / Ross Hutchins (GBR) d. Marinko Matosevic (AUS) / Michal Przysiezny (POL) — 4-6, 6-4, 6-0

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Alexander Peya (AUT) (2) / Bruno Soares (BRA) (2) d. Feliciano Lopez (ESP) / Andre Sa (BRA) — 6-4, 6-4

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Mahesh Bhupathi (IND) / Rajeev Ram (USA) d. Santiago Giraldo (COL) / Joao Sousa (POR) — 4-6, 6-3, 6-4

[divider]

Court 13 — 11:00 A.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 2
Damir Dzumhur (BIH) d. Ivan Dodig (CRO) (32) — 4-6, 4-6, 6-3, 4-1 Ret.

Women’s Singles – Round 2
Daniela Hantuchova (SVK) (31) d. Karolina Pliskova (CZE) — 6-3, 3-6, 12-10

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Monique Adamczak (AUS) / Olivia Rogowska (AUS) d. Darija Jurak (CRO) / Andreja Klepac (SLO) — 6-3, 7-6(2)

[divider]

Court 15 — 11:00 A.M.

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Oliver Marach (AUT) / Florin Mergea (ROU) d. Santiago Gonzalez (MEX) (16) / Scott Lipsky (USA) (16) — 6-3, 7-6(6)

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Mariusz Fyrstenberg (POL) (9) / Marcin Matkowski (POL) (9) d. Tomasz Bednarek (POL) / Ivo Karlovic (CRO) — 7-5, 7-5

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Philipp Oswald (AUT) / Simon Stadler (GER) d. Jesse Huta Galung (NED) / Igor Sijsling (NED) — 3-6, 7-6(5), 6-2

Not Before: 3:30 P.M.

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Daniel Nestor (CAN) (8) / Nenad Zimonjic (SRB) (8) d. Benjamin Becker (GER) / Daniel Brands (GER) — 6-4, 6-3

[divider]

Court 19 — 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 2
Lucie Safarova (CZE) (26) d. Lucie Hradecka (CZE) — 6-7(4), 6-3, 6-0

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Lukasz Kubot (POL) (14) / Robert Lindstedt (SWE) (14) d. Federico Delbonis (ARG) / Albert Ramos (ESP) — 6-3, 6-2

Men’s Singles – Round 2
Edouard Roger-Vasselin (FRA) d. Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (ESP) — 7-6(1), 6-4, 4-6, 6-1

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Treat Huey (PHI) (12) / Dominic Inglot (GBR) (12) d. Juan Sebastian Cabal (COL) / Robert Farah (COL) — 4-6, 6-4, 6-3

[divider]

Court 20 — 11:00 A.M.

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Johan Brunstrom (SWE) / Frederik Nielsen (DEN) d. Yen-Hsun Lu (TPE) / Divij Sharan (IND) — 6-2, 6-4

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Jelena Jankovic (SRB) / Karin Knapp (ITA) d. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) / Vera Zvonareva (RUS) — 6-2, 6-4

Not Before: 2:30 P.M.

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Vania King (USA) (16) / Galina Voskoboeva (KAZ) (16) d. Sandra Klemenschits (AUT) / Yvonne Meusburger (AUT) — 6-2, 6-3

[divider]

Court 22 — 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Raquel Kops-Jones (USA) (8) / Abigail Spears (USA) (8) d. Chia-Jung Chuang (TPE) / Liga Dekmeijere (LAT) — 6-1, 6-1

Men’s Doubles – Round 1
Yuki Bhambri (IND) / Michael Venus (NZL) d. Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP) / Daniel Gimeno-Traver (ESP) — 6-2, 7-5

Women’s Doubles – Round 1
Anabel Medina Garrigues (ESP) / Yaroslava Shvedova (KAZ) d. Bojana Jovanovski (SRB) / Donna Vekic (CRO) — 6-0, 6-1

Cover Photo (Creative Commons License): jimmyharris

January 14, 2014
Australian Open Day 1 Schedule of Play / Scores: Monday, January 13

[Scores added as known.]

Rod Laver Arena – 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Angelique Kerber (GER) (9) d. Jarmila Gajdosova (AUS) — 6-3, 0-6, 6-2

Men’s Singles – Round 1
David Ferrer (ESP) (3) d. Alejandro Gonzalez (COL) — 6-3, 6-4, 6-4

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Samantha Stosur (AUS) (17) d. Klara Zakopalova (CZE) — 6-3, 6-4

Not Before: 7:00 P.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Novak Djokovic (SRB) (2) d. Lukas Lacko (SVK) — 6-3, 7-6(2), 6-1

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Serena Williams (USA) (1) d. Ashleigh Barty (AUS) — 6-2, 6-1

[divider]

Click here to discuss the Men’s matches in our discussion forum.

Click here to discuss the Women’s matches in our discussion forum.

[divider]

Hisense Arena – 11:00 A.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) (8) d. Andrey Golubev (KAZ) — 6-4, 4-1 Ret.

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Na Li (CHN) (4) d. Ana Konjuh (CRO) — 6-2, 6-0

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Ana Ivanovic (SRB) (14) d. Kiki Bertens (NED) — 6-4, 6-4

Not Before: 5:00 P.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Jerzy Janowicz (POL) (20) d. Jordan Thompson (AUS) — 1-6, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2, 6-1

[divider]

Margaret Court Arena – 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) (22) d. Venus Williams (USA) — 2-6, 6-4, 6-4

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Tomas Berdych (CZE) (7) d. Aleksandr Nedovyesov (KAZ) — 6-3, 6-4, 6-3

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Julia Goerges (GER) d. Sara Errani (ITA) (7) — 6-3, 6-2

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Luksika Kumkhum (THA) d. Petra Kvitova (CZE) (6) — 6-2, 1-6, 6-4

Not Before 7:00 P.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Denis Istomin (UZB) d. Marcos Baghdatis (CYP) — 6-4, 7-5, 6-4

[divider]

Show Court 2 – 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Daniela Hantuchova (SVK) (31) d. Heather Watson (GBR) — 7-5, 3-6, 6-3

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Matthew Ebden (AUS) d. Nicolas Mahut (FRA) — 6-3, 7-5, 4-6, 0-6, 6-3

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Vasek Pospisil (CAN) (28) d. Samuel Groth (AUS) — 6-4, 6-3, 6-4

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Lauren Davis (USA) d. Sachia Vickery (USA) — 6-3, 6-3

[divider]

Show Court 3 – 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Kirsten Flipkens (BEL) (18) d. Laura Robson (GBR) — 6-3, 6-0

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Casey Dellacqua (AUS) d. Vera Zvonareva (RUS) — 6-2, 6-2

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Richard Gasquet (FRA) (9) d. David Guez (FRA) — 7-5, 6-4, 6-1

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (ESP) d. Tommy Haas (GER) (12) — 7-5, 5-2 Ret.

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Sabine Lisicki (GER) (15) d. Mirjana Lucic-Baroni (CRO) — 6-2, 6-1

[divider]

Court 5 – 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Irina Falconi (USA) d. Anabel Medina Garrigues (ESP) — 6-3, 6-1

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Dominic Thiem (AUT) d. Joao Sousa (POR) — 5-7, 6-4, 6-3, 7-6(3)

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Edouard Roger-Vasselin (FRA) d. Carlos Berlocq (ARG) — 6-4, 7-6(5), 6-7(9), 6-2

[divider]

Court 6 – 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Belinda Bencic (SUI) d. Kimiko Date-Krumm (JPN) — 6-4, 4-6, 6-3

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Ernests Gulbis (LAT) (23) d. Juan Monaco (ARG) — 1-6, 6-4, 7-6(4), 6-2

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Jie Zheng (CHN) d. Roberta Vinci (ITA) (12) — 6-4, 6-3

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Alexandr Dolgopolov (UKR) d. Ricardas Berankis (LTU) — 7-5, 7-5, 6-2

[divider]

Court 7 – 11:00 A.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Jarkko Nieminen (FIN) d. Dudi Sela (ISR) — 3-6, 7-6(3), 6-7(3), 6-3, 6-3

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Fabio Fognini (ITA) (15) d. Alex Bogomolov Jr. (RUS) — 6-3, 6-2 Ret.

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Monica Niculescu (ROU) d. Shahar Peer (ISR) — 6-4, 6-1

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Tsvetana Pironkova (BUL) d. Silvia Soler-Espinosa (ESP) — 6-3, 6-2

[divider]

Court 8 – 11:00 A.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Sam Querrey (USA) d. Santiago Giraldo (COL) — 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 7-6(3)

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Kenny De Schepper (FRA) d. Di Wu (CHN) — 7-5, 7-5, 7-6(2)

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Mona Barthel (GER) d. Shuai Zhang (CHN) — 7-6(4), 6-3

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Alison Riske (USA) d. Elena Vesnina (RUS) (23) — 6-2, 6-2

[divider]

Court 10 – 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Karolina Pliskova (CZE) d. Pauline Parmentier (FRA) — 6-0, 6-1

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Damir Dzumhur (BIH) d. Jan Hajek (CZE) — 6-4, 6-2, 6-1

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Lucie Hradecka (CZE) d. Donna Vekic (CRO) — 6-3, 6-1

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Leonardo Mayer (ARG) d. Albert Montanes (ESP) — 6-1, 6-3, 6-1

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Vesna Dolonc (SRB) d. Lara Arruabarrena (ESP) — 2-6, 6-2, 6-4

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Yanina Wickmayer (BEL) d. Dinah Pfizenmaier (GER) — 7-6(5), 6-3

[divider]

Court 11 – 11:00 A.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Alejandro Falla (COL) d. Mikhail Kukushkin (KAZ) — 6-7(2), 6-2, 6-2, 6-3

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Madison Keys (USA) d. Patricia Mayr-Achleitner (AUT) — 6-2, 6-7(8), 9-7

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Nikolay Davydenko (RUS) d. Lukasz Kubot (POL) — 3-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4

[divider]

Court 13 – 11:00 A.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Ivan Dodig (CRO) (32) d. Ivo Karlovic (CRO) — 7-6(8), 6-3, 7-6(4)

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Flavia Pennetta (ITA) (28) d. Alexandra Cadantu (ROU) — 6-0, 6-2

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Annika Beck (GER) d. Petra Martic (CRO) — 6-0, 6-0

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Tommy Robredo (ESP) (17) d. Lukas Rosol (CZE) — 6-1, 6-7(7), 3-6, 7-6(5), 8-6

[divider]

Court 15 – 11:00 A.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Adrian Mannarino (FRA) d. Steve Johnson (USA) — 3-6, 6-3, 6-0, 5-7, 6-4

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Eugenie Bouchard (CAN) (30) d. Hao Chen Tang (CHN) — 7-5, 6-1

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Lucie Safarova (CZE) (26) d. Julia Glushko (ISR) — 7-5, 3-6, 6-1

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Dmitry Tursunov (RUS) (30) d. Michael Russell (USA) — 6-2, 6-2, 6-3

[divider]

Court 19 – 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Alla Kudryavtseva (RUS) d. Caroline Garcia (FRA) — 6-2, 7-6(7)

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Kevin Anderson (RSA) (19) d. Jiri Vesely (CZE) — 2-6, 6-7(4), 6-4, 6-4, 6-4

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Pablo Andujar (ESP) d. Albert Ramos (ESP) — 6-4, 6-2, 6-4

[divider]

Court 20 – 11:00 A.M.

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) (14) d. Jan-Lennard Struff (GER) — 6-1, 6-4, 6-2

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Virginie Razzano (FRA) d. Alison Van Uytvanck (BEL) — 7-6(3), 7-6(3)

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Julien Benneteau (FRA) d. Pablo Carreno Busta (ESP) — 6-3, 3-6, 4-6, 6-1, 6-2

[divider]

Court 22 – 11:00 A.M.

Women’s Singles – Round 1
Monica Puig (PUR) d. Anna Tatishvili (GEO) — 6-2, 6-4

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Florian Mayer (GER) d. Denis Kudla (USA) — 6-4, 6-2, 6-4

Men’s Singles – Round 1
Jeremy Chardy (FRA) (29) d. Jesse Huta Galung (NED) — 6-2, 6-4, 6-4

Cover Photo (Creative Commons License): Brian Giesen

January 11, 2014
Australian Open – Women’s Draw

Serena Williams and Li Na are in the top half; Victoria Azarenka and Maria Sharapova in bottom half.

Click here to discuss the Australian Open Women’s Draw in our discussion forum.

The full draw:

First Quarter

Serena Williams (USA) (1)
Ashleigh Barty (AUS)

Vesna Dolonc (SRB)
Lara Arruabarrena (ESP)

Pauline Parmentier (FRA)
Karolina Pliskova (CZE)

Qualifier
Daniela Hantuchova (SVK) (31)

Samantha Stosur (AUS) (17)
Klara Zakopalova (CZE)

Tsvetana Pironkova (BUL)
Silvia Soler-Espinosa (ESP)

Annika Beck (GER)
Petra Martic (CRO)

Kiki Bertens (NED)
Ana Ivanovic (SRB) (14)

Roberta Vinci (ITA) (12)
Jie Zheng (CHN)

P.Mayr-Achleitner (AUT)
Madison Keys (USA)

Casey Dellacqua (AUS)
Vera Zvonareva (RUS)

Laura Robson (GBR)
Kirsten Flipkens (BEL) (18)

Eugenie Bouchard (CAN) (30)
Hao Chen Tang (CHN)

Alison Van Uytvanck (BEL)
Virginie Razzano (FRA)

Sachia Vickery (USA)
Lauren Davis (USA)

Julia Goerges (GER)
Sara Errani (ITA) (7)

[divider]

Second Quarter

Na Li (CHN) (4)
Qualifier

Qualifier
Kimiko Date-Krumm (JPN)

Donna Vekic (CRO)
Qualifier

Julia Glushko (ISR)
Lucie Safarova (CZE) (26)

Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) (22)
Venus Williams (USA)

A.Medina Garrigues (ESP)
Qualifier

Shahar Peer (ISR)
Monica Niculescu (ROU)

Mirjana Lucic-Baroni (CRO)
Sabine Lisicki (GER) (15)

Angelique Kerber (GER) (9)
Jarmila Gajdosova (AUS)

Caroline Garcia (FRA)
Qualifier

Dinah Pfizenmaier (GER)
Yanina Wickmayer (BEL)

Alison Riske (USA)
Elena Vesnina (RUS) (23)

Flavia Pennetta (ITA) (28)
Alexandra Cadantu (ROU)

Monica Puig (PUR)
Qualifier

Shuai Zhang (CHN)
Mona Barthel (GER)

Luksika Kumkhum (THA)
Petra Kvitova (CZE) (6)

[divider]

Third Quarter

Jelena Jankovic (SRB) (8)
Misaki Doi (JPN)

Nadiya Kichenok (UKR)
Ayumi Morita (JPN)

Kurumi Nara (JPN)
Shuai Peng (CHN)

Andrea Petkovic (GER)
Magdalena Rybarikova (SVK) (32)

Sorana Cirstea (ROU) (21)
Marina Erakovic (NZL)

Qualifier
Bojana Jovanovski (SRB)

Lesia Tsurenko (UKR)
Varvara Lepchenko (USA)

Qualifier
Simona Halep (ROU) (11)

Carla Suarez Navarro (ESP) (16)
Vania King (USA)

Galina Voskoboeva (KAZ)
Qualifier

Kristina Mladenovic (FRA)
Stefanie Voegele (SUI)

Francesca Schiavone (ITA)
Dominika Cibulkova (SVK) (20)

Alize Cornet (FRA) (25)
Polona Hercog (SLO)

Camila Giorgi (ITA)
Storm Sanders (AUS)

Paula Ormaechea (ARG)
Karin Knapp (ITA)

Bethanie Mattek-Sands (USA)
Maria Sharapova (RUS) (3)

[divider]

Fourth Quarter

Agnieszka Radwanska (POL) (5)
Yulia Putintseva (KAZ)

Olga Govortsova (BLR)
Qualifier

Qualifier
Mandy Minella (LUX)

Teliana Pereira (BRA)
A.Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) (29)

Kaia Kanepi (EST) (24)
Garbine Muguruza (ESP)

Timea Babos (HUN)
Anna Schmiedlova (SVK)

Christina McHale (USA)
Yung-Jan Chan (TPE)

Lourdes Dominguez Lino (ESP)
Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) (10)

Sloane Stephens (USA) (13)
Yaroslava Shvedova (KAZ)

Tadeja Majeric (SLO)
Ajla Tomljanovic (CRO)

Olivia Rogowska (AUS)
Mariana Duque-Marino (COL)

Elina Svitolina (UKR)
Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) (19)

Jamie Hampton (USA) (27)
Jana Cepelova (SVK)

Chanelle Scheepers (RSA)
Yvonne Meusburger (AUT)

Su-Wei Hsieh (TPE)
B. Zahlavova Strycova (CZE)

Johanna Larsson (SWE)
Victoria Azarenka (BLR) (2)

January 10, 2014
Serena Williams Bags Brisbane

Serena Williams secured her first title of 2014 defeating Victoria Azarenka in the final of the Brisbane International.

Williams, the world No. 1, took the match 6-4, 7-5 in 98 minutes to send out a clear warning to her rivals in the build up to the Australian Open.

She took the first set without facing a single break point and capitalized on an unforced error from Azarenka to break in the seventh game. The Belarus World No. 2 was offered no opportunity to restore parity and could not get back into the set.

Azarenka raised the stakes in the second set, twice breaking Williams and was in pole position to level things up after jumping out to a 4-2 lead before Williams broke back.

At 5-5, the American broke again to edge out in front and then served out the match to take the title.

The win extended a run of successive victories to 22 and Williams didn’t drop a set during the entire tournament.

[divider]

Cover Photo (Creative Commons License): Francisco Carbajal

January 4, 2014
Serena Williams Caps Historic Year With a Win in Istanbul

Serena Williams came from behind to beat China’s Li Na in the WTA Championships final in Istanbul: 2-6, 6-3, 6-0.

The 32-year-old world No. 1 overcame a lethargic start, and a stellar Li, who broke early, and dominated the first set, though Williams started to regain form in her last service game of the opener. Midway through the second set, it was the 31-year-old No. 5-ranked Chinese woman who appeared to run out of gas, allowing Serena to then run away with the match.

The win gives Williams a career-best 11 titles for the year, a win-loss record of 78-4, and a record-smashing $12.4 million in total prize money. (The previous record was set by Victoria Azarenka last year, with $7.9 million.)

[divider]

Photo credit: Aleksandr Osipov (Creative Commons License)

October 27, 2013