Women’s Pro Tour News – 05/18

TODAY’S WOMEN’S NEWS ******

 

Rome

 

Singles – Semifinal: Serena Williams def. (Q) Simona Halep 6-3 6-0

Looks like Serena wants those back-to-back clay titles. Still, it was a great run for Simona Halep — and a timely one, since her finalist points from Brussels come off next week. This means that she will stay in the #60 range even after those points are off. Fortunately, because her results have cost her her chance to play in Brussels; the draw shows her as out with a calf injury.

Singles – Semifinal: (3) Victoria Azarenka def. (7) Sara Errani 6-0 7-5

Sara Errani was down 4-0 in the first set when it started to rain. Apparently she needs a long time to warm up, because when they came back, she quickly lost the last two games of the first set — then started to get into the match. But she just can’t fight Azarenka’s power. She will be #5. And Azarenka will be #3 — but she and Serena have been, officially at least, the two most successful players of 2013. Consider the final a contest for “#1-so-far.”

Doubles – Semifinal: (1) Errani/Vinci def. Kudryavtseva/Rodionova 6-2 6-1

Given the next result, Errani/Vinci look like overwhelming favorites to bring home a title for Italy.

Doubles – Semifinal: Hsieh/Peng def. (2) Petrova/Srebotnik 6-2 6-1

****** TODAY’S FEATURE ******

 

Women’s Look Forward: Brussels, Strasbourg

 

You can always count on Caroline Wozniacki to come to the rescue.

It used to be that the WTA didn’t try to schedule a Premier event in the week before Roland Garros. After all, we’ve just been through two very big events, and everyone wants to rest before the French Open anyway. It’s a very hard time to pull in a field. Most Top Ten players wouldn’t play this week.

Not Wozniacki. Last year, Agnieszka Radwanska was the top seed in a Brussels field where she was the only Top Five player, and two seeds pulled out after the draw was made, and they ended up seeding players with rankings down to #29 — a very low cutoff for a European Premier event; some years, players ranked that low couldn’t even get direct entry into, say, Stuttgart!

This year, the event was expected to be even weaker. Other than Radwanska, the top player on the initial entry list was Roberta Vinci. And then — Radwanska bailed. So Wozniacki, in on a wildcard, is the only Top Ten player in an extremely weak field. Vinci is still #2. Dominika Cibulkova is #3, Sloane Stephens #4, Kirsten Flipkens #5, Julia Goerges #6, Varvara Lepchenko #7, Peng Shuai #8. That’s a cutoff for seeding even lower than last year — around #40. The only unseeded player who looks like a real threat is Kaia Kanepi, who opens against Cibulkova. There is also Yanina Wickmayer, who could play Flipkens in an all-Belgian battle in round two, but she isn’t looking good at all right now.

If Brussels is weak, Strasbourg verges on pitiful. Daniela Hantuchova, #61 last week, nonetheless managed to earn a seed. The only Top 25 player is #1 seed Marion Bartoli. Tamira Paszek is #2, Alize Cornet #3, Hsieh Su-Wei #4, and Monica Niculescu #5; those are the only Top Fifty players in the draw. Christina McHale has the #6 seed, Chanelle Scheepers is #7, and then Hantuchova.

The Rankings

The nice thing for Agnieszka Radwanska about playing Brussels was that she would have been the big favorite. Problem is, it wouldn’t help her, because she is the defending champion. Simona Halep was last year’s finalist — given her result at Rome, it would seem there is something she really likes about late May. Kaia Kanepi and Sofia Arvidsson were last year’s semifinalists. At Strasbourg, the title went to Francesca Schiavone, over Alize Cornet; Pauline Parmentier and Sloane Stephens were semifinalists.

The good news for Radwanska is, she has a hefty lead over #5 Sara Errani; she will keep the #4 spot. In fact, there will be no change in the Top Eight. The first spot in play is #9. Wozniacki can overtake Samantha Stosur with a final.

Halep will fall to around #60. Kanepi may lose her Top Forty spot. Ditto Schiavone. Cornet’s Top Thirty spot in in grave danger. Stephens will probably lose a spot or two but should stay Top Twenty.

KEYWORDS: Preview Brussels Strasbourg

******** THIS WEEK IN TENNIS ********

 

THIS WEEK ON THE WTA:

Rome (Premier Five/Clay). Defending Champion: Maria Sharapova

NEXT WEEK ON THE WTA:

Brussels (Premier/Clay). Defending Champion: Agnieszka Radwanska

Strasbourg (INternational/Clay). Defending Champion: Francesca Schiavone

************ STATS AND FACTS ************

 

**RANKINGS

 

Estimated WTA Rankings As of May 18, 2013

 

Rank &

Prior

Rank….Name…………..Points

1..(1) SWILLIAMS ……… 11340*

2..(2) SHARAPOVA ……… 10015

3..(3) AZARENKA ………..9005*

4..(4) ARADWANSKA ………6475

5..(6) ERRANI ………….5835

6..(5) LI ……………..5335

7..(7) Kerber ………….5310

8..(8) KVITOVA ……….. 5175

9.(10) STOSUR ………….3645

10..(9) WOZNIACKI ……… 3625

11.(11) PETROVA ……….. 3065

12.(12) KIRILENKO ……… 3036

13.(14) Bartoli ……….. 2845

14.(13) IVANOVIC ………..2800

15.(15) VINCI …………. 2785

16.(16) CIBULKOVA ……… 2590

17.(17) STEPHENS ………..2540

18.(18) JANKOVIC ………..2500

19.(19) PAVLYUCHENKOVA …..2010

20.(22) SUAREZ NAVARRO …..1975

21.(21) FLIPKENS ………..1872

22.(20) MAKAROVA ………..1815

23.(23) Zakopalova ………1745

24.(25) GOERGES ……….. 1605

25.(26) CIRSTEA ……….. 1595

26.(28) Shvedova ………..1572

27.(29) Paszek ………….1568

28.(31) LEPCHENKO ……… 1567

29.(24) VWILLIAMS ……… 1550

30.(30) CORNET ………….1530

**DRAWS

 

Rome — Week of May 13

 

………………..3R…………….QF…………….SF……..F

1 S Williams……..(1)S.Williams…..Williams……….Williams..Williams

14 Cibulkova……..(14)Cibulkova

11 Petrova……….Suarez Navarro….Suarez Navarro

[Dominguez Lino(LL)]Dominguez Lino

 

4 A Radwanska…….Halep………….Halep………….Halep

13 Vinci…………(13)Vinci

10 Wozniacki……..Jankovic……….Jankovic

5 Li…………….(5)Li

 

8 Kvitova………..(8)Kvitova

9 Stosur…………(9)Stosur………Stosur

15 Ivanovic………Morita

3 Azarenka……….(3)Azarenka…….Azarenka………Azarenka..Azarenka

 

7 Errani…………(7)Errani………Errani………..Errani

12 Kirilenko……..(12)Kirilenko

16 Stephens………(16)Stephens

2 Sharapova………(2)Sharapova……Sharapova

 

STATUS OF SEEDS

1 S Williams

2 Sharapova……..WITHDREW from QF

3 Azarenka

4 A Radwanska……lost 2R (Halep)

5 Li……………lost 3R (Jankovic)

6 Kerber………..WITHDREW (replaced by Dominguez Lino)

7 Errani………..lost SF (Azarenka)

8 Kvitova……….lost 3R (Stosur)

9 Stosur………..lost QF (Azarenka)

10 Wozniacki…….lost 1R (Jovanovski)

11 Petrova………lost 1R (Suarez Navarro)

12 Kirilenko…….lost 3R (Errani)

13 Vinci………..lost 3R (Halep)

14 Cibulkova…….lost 3R (S. Williams)

15 Ivanovic……..lost 1R (U. Radwanska)

16 Stephens……..lost 2R (Sharapova)

Brussels — Week of May 20

 

1 Wozniacki (WC)

–bye

Zheng

Qualifier

Oprandi

Qualifier

Qualifier

8 Goerges

 

4 Stephens

Pironkova

Qualifier

Rybarikova

Govortsova

Rus

Arvidsson

8 Peng

 

7 Lepchenko

Jovanovski

Baltacha (WC)

Voegele

Cepelova

Tsurenko

Kanepi

3 Cibulkova

 

5 Flipkens

Keys

Wickmayer

Hampton

Qualifier

Van Uytvank (WC)

–bye

2 Vinci

Strasbourg — Week of May 20

 

1 Bartoli

Giorgi

Soler-Espinosa

Bouchard

Tatishvili

Garcia (WC)

Erakovic

5 Niculescu

 

3 Cornet

Johansson

Qualifier

Puchkova

Qualifier

Qualifier

Feuerstein (WC)

7 Scheepers

 

8 Hantuchova

Torro-Flor

Svitolova

Qualifier

Doi

Ka. Pliskova

Beck

4 Hsieh

 

5 McHale

Davis

Hradecka

Muguruza

Larsson

Cetkovska

Razzano (WC)

2 Paszek

******** SCORES ********

 

SATURDAY

Rome

Singles – Semifinal

(1) Serena Williams def. Simona Halep 6-3 6-0

(3) Victoria Azarenka def. (7) Sara Errani 6-0 7-5

Doubles – Semifinal

(1) Errani/Vinci def. Kudryavtseva/Rodionova 6-2 6-1

Hsieh/Peng def. (2) Petrova/Srebotnik 6-2 6-1

***

Bob LARSON – Publisher

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Robert Waltz – Contributor

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