Women Tennis News Update – Brussels, Strasbourg and Rankings (05/22/13)

Written by: Staff on 22nd May 2013

Women Tennis News Update - Brussels, Strasbourg and Rankings (05/22/13)

epa03675550 Kirsten Flipkens from Belgium returns the ball to Julia Goerges from Germany during their first round match of the WTA Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, Germany, 24 April 2013. EPA/DANIEL MAURER |

Brussels

They tried to catch up in Brussels, but it was too much. Yulia Putintseva and Roberta Vinci split sets in their second round match, and will have to play the third set on Thursday; the match between Kirsten Flipkens and Jamie Hampton also awaits completion.

Singles – First Round: Kaia Kanepi def. (3) Dominika Cibulkova 6-4 7-6(8-6)

Dominika Cibulkova used to like clay, but there hasn’t been much sign of it lately…. Of course, Kaia Kanepi has been playing very well. Fortunately for her, since she was defending 200 points. This should suffice to keep her Top Fifty.

Singles – First Round: (4) Sloane Stephens def. Tsvetana Pironkova 6-3 2-6 6-3

This match had started the day before, so it didn’t really slow down the schedule much. But this week last year was one of the few times when Tsvetana Pironkova did well on clay. She loses 120 points and will fall to around #60.

Singles – First Round: (5) Kirsten Flipkens def. Madison Keys 6-4 1-6 6-2

Kirsten Flipkens has a shot at the Top Twenty here, but this was obviously a very tough first round, and she still has another match to play.

Singles – First Round: (6) Julia Goerges def. CoCo Vandeweghe 6-1 7-5

This wasn’t enough yet to count for Julia Goerges; she needs at least one more win to keep the #24 ranking. And she too still had another match to play….

Singles – First Round: (8) Shuai Peng def. Sofia Arvidsson 6-3 6-0

Sofia Arvidsson is another clay hater who did well at this time last year. She will fall well below #60.

Singles – First Round: Zheng Jie def. Mallory Burdette 6-2 4-6 6-3

Zheng Jie is now certain to return to the Top Fifty. She might rise to around #45.

Singles – First Round: Yulia Putintseva def. Alison Van Uytvanck 6-1 6-0

Alison Van Uytvanck was a very promising player in low Challengers, but she has struggled dreadfully in the high Challengers and WTA events. It begins to look as if her promise was only that….

Singles – First Round: Shuai Zhang def. Magdalena Rybarikova 6-1 6-3

Magdalena Rybarikova loses her Top Fifty chance.

Singles – First Round: Jamie Hampton def. Yanina Wickmayer 1-6 6-3 6-4

The struggles continue for Yanina Wickmayer, who loses her chance to clinch a Top Forty spot.

Singles – First Round: Romina Oprandi def. Melanie Oudin 6-2 6-2

This put Romina Oprandi very close to the Top Forty, with the chance to try for the spot later in the day.

Singles – Second Round: Zheng Jie def. (1) Caroline Wozniacki 6-2 6-4

What a way to go into Roland Garros for Caroline Wozniacki. Opening-round losses at Stuttgart, Madrid, Rome, and now this. She will stay #10 for now, but she clearly isn’t playing like a Top Ten player.

Singles – Second Round: (4) Sloane Stephens def. Shuai Zhang 6-4 6-0

Sloane Stephens hasn’t moved yet, but if she wins her next match, she’ll rise to #16. And she really does seem to have solved her funk.

Singles – Second Round: Romina Oprandi def. (6) Julia Goerges 6-3, retired

Julia Goerges had a wrist problem, and Romina Oprandi is pretty good on clay anyway. Goerges will fall from #24 to #25; Oprandi has now clinched her Top Forty spot.

Singles – Second Round: (7) Varvara Lepchenko def. Elena Baltacha 6-2 6-0

Varvara Lepchenko has now assured herself a Top 25 spot.

Singles – Second Round: (8) Peng Shuai def. Olga Govortsova 4-6 7-6(7-4) 7-6(7-4)

This makes it almost certain that Peng Shuai will hit the Top Thirty.

Singles – Second Round: Kaia Kanepi def. Jana Cepelova 6-3 6-3

This should keep Kaia Kanepi above #45. She is looking as if she could be a major unseeded threat in Paris.

Doubles – First Round: (2) Groenefeld/Peschke def. Craybas/Vandeweghe 6-2 6-3

Doubles – First Round: Dabrowski/Peer def. (3) H Chan/Jurak 6-1 6-4

Doubles – First Round: (4) Govortsova/Rosolska def. Czink/Jovanovski 6-1 6-1

Doubles – First Round: Melnikova/Sasnovich def. Kapshay/Kondratieva 6-3 7-5

Strasbourg

Singles – Second Round: (3) Alize Cornet def. Magda Linette 6-3 6-4

Alize Cornet is the top seed left in the draw, which is fortunate for her, given that she needs two more wins to defend her points. She needs one more to merely guarantee that she stays Top Forty, although it now looks likely.

Singles – Second Round: Misaki Doi def. (4) Hsieh Su-Wei 6-4 4-6 7-6(7-3)

This event has been very tough for seeds; this costs Hsieh her shot at the Top Forty.

Singles – Second Round: Anna Tatishvili def. (5) Monica Niculescu 4-6 6-3 6-2

Monica Niculescu will very likely stay at #49, where she came in; she certainly won’t rise.

Singles – Second Round: (7) Chanelle Scheepers def. Shelby Rogers 2-6 6-3 6-4

At least Shelby Rogers got in some good clay practice before Roland Garros…. Chanelle Scheepers is one of only two seeds left; too bad she faces Cornet next.

Singles – Second Round: Flavia Pennetta def. Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor 6-2 6-3

Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor has had a pretty good clay season this year, so we’d call this a promising win for Flavia Pennetta. She ought to rise from #158 to around #140.

Singles – Second Round: Lucie Hradecka def. Lauren Davis 6-2 6-2

Perhaps not a noteworthy win on clay, but it seems to indicate that Lucie Hradecka is coming around.

Singles – Second Round: Eugenie Bouchard def. Camila Giorgi 6-3 6-0

This is a big surprise on the surface — especially since Camila Giorgi beat Marion Bartoli the round before.

Singles – Second Round: Johanna Larsson def. Virginie Razzano 6-3 6-3

Virginie Razzano still produces occasional strong results, such as her first round win over #2 seed Tamira Paszek, but she can’t build up any momentum. And so her ranking remains in the pits.

Doubles – First Round: Bouchard/Pekhova def. (1) Hantuchova/Hradecka walkover

A big day for Eugenie Bouchard, but it perhaps helps explain Daniela Hantuchova’s singles loss.

Doubles – First Round: (2) Grandin/Uhlirova def. Domachowska/Torro-Flor 6-1 6-3

Doubles – First Round: (4) Date-Krumm/Scheepers def. Feuerstein/Michel 6-3 6-3

Doubles – First Round: McHale/Moulton-Levy def. Garcia/Johansson 6-4 6-1

****** TODAY’S FEATURE ******

This Week’s Movers — Women

Each week, Daily Tennis will look at the biggest movers of the week, looking at how they did what they did.

Biggest Upward Mover — Most Places Moved (Top 100)

Leader: Simona Halep — Moved 20 places, from #64 to #44.

Halep qualified for Rome and made the semifinal. The bad news is, she will lose almost all the ground she just gained when her Brussels final comes off.

Runner-Up: Melanie Oudin — Moved 13 places, from #93 to #80

Oudin qualified for Rome and made the second round when Ekaterina Makarova had to retire.

Biggest Percentage Mover — Cut Ranking By Highest Percent (Top 100)

Leader: Halep, cut ranking 31%

Runner-Up: Sara Errani — Moved 1 place, 17%, from #6 to #5

Errani made the Rome semifinal, and Li Na lost points, and so Errani hit the Top Five. Pretty impressive to be #1 in doubles and #5 in singles — although she almost certainly won’t keep the singles ranking after Roland Garros.

Biggest Loser — Most Places Lost (Top 100)

Loser: TIE

Marina Erakovic — Dropped 12 places, from #79 to #91

Silvia Soler-Espinosa — Dropped 12 places, from #72 to #84

Erakovic last year had direct entry into Rome and made the second round. Soler-Espinosa qualified and made the second round.

Biggest Percentage Loser — Worst Percentage Increase in Ranking (Top 100)

Loser: Venus Williams, ranking increased 6 places, 25%, from #24 to #30.

Venus failed to defend quarterfinalist points from Rome 2012.

Ranking Notes

For such a big event, Rome had surprisingly little effect. Note that Halep was the only player to rise as much as 20%. Errani was the only other player to rise even 15%; #3 mover Oudin rose a mere 14%. On the down side, Venus fell 25%, and Li Na fell 20% (from #5 to #6), but no one else lost ore than Soler-Espinosa’s 17%.

Our Personal Picks for “Best Mover of the Week”

These are subjective picks!

This is interesting. Halep had the best move, but she’ll keep the ranking for only a week. Errani had a far smaller move, but she hit the Top Five, and she has the best combined singles and doubles ranking of any player on the Tour. But she will keep the ranking for only three weeks! And she had less than a 20% move. It hurts a little, but we’ll go with Halep.

KEYWORDS: Movers Women Halep

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

THIS WEEK ON THE WTA:

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

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

NEXT WEEK ON THE WTA:

Roland Garros (Slam/Clay). Defending Champion: Maria Sharapova

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

**RANKINGS

Estimated WTA Rankings As of May 22, 2013

Rank &

Prior

Rank….Name…………..Points

1..(1) SWilliams ……… 11620

2..(2) Sharapova ……… 10015

3..(3) Azarenka ………..9005

4..(4) ARadwanska ………6125

5..(5) Errani ………….5835

6..(6) Li ……………..5335

7..(7) Kvitova ……….. 5175

8..(8) Kerber ………….5135

9..(9) Stosur ………….3645

10.(10) WOZNIACKI ……… 3625

11.(11) Petrova ……….. 3065

12.(12) Kirilenko ……… 3036

13.(13) BARTOLI ……….. 2845

14.(14) Ivanovic ………..2800

15.(15) VINCI …………. 2785*

16.(16) CIBULKOVA ……… 2540

17.(17) STEPHENS ………..2530*

18.(18) Jankovic ………..2500

19.(19) Pavlyuchenkova …..2010

20.(20) Suarez Navarro …..1975

21.(21) FLIPKENS ………..1908*

22.(22) Makarova ………..1811

23.(23) Zakopalova ………1745

24.(29) LEPCHENKO ……… 1686*

25.(24) GOERGES ……….. 1605

26.(25) Safarova ………..1595

27.(26) Cirstea ……….. 1595

28.(27) Shvedova ………..1572

29.(30) VWilliams ……… 1546

30.(34) PENG ……………1545*

**DRAWS

Brussels — Week of May 20

……………….QF

1 Wozniacki (WC)…Zheng

6 Goerges……….Oprandi

4 Stephens………(4)Stephens

8 Peng………….(8)Peng

7 Lepchenko……..(7)Lepchenko

3 Cibulkova……..Kanepi

5 Flipkens

2 Vinci

STATUS OF SEEDS

1 Wozniacki (WC)….lost 2R (Zheng)

2 Vinci

3 Cibulkova………lost 1R (Kanepi)

4 Stephens

5 Flipkens

6 Goerges………..lost 2R (Oprandi)

7 Lepchenko

8 Peng

Strasbourg — Week of May 20

…………….QF

1 Bartoli…….Bouchard

5 Niculescu…..Tatishvili

3 Cornet……..(3)Cornet

7 Scheepers…..(7)Scheepers

8 Hantuchova….Pennetta

4 Hsieh………Doi

5 McHale……..Hradecka

2 Paszek……..Larsson

STATUS OF SEEDS

1 Bartoli……….lost 1R (Giorgi)

2 Paszek………..lost 1R (Razzano)

3 Cornet

4 Hsieh…………lost 2R (Doi)

5 McHale………..lost 1R (Davis)

5 Niculescu……..lost 2R (Tatishvili)

7 Scheepers

8 Hantuchova…….lost 1R (Torro-Flor)

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

SUNDAY

Brussels

Singles – First Round

Kaia Kanepi def. (3) Dominika Cibulkova 6-4 7-6(8-6)

(4) Sloane Stephens def. Tsvetana Pironkova 6-3 2-6 6-3

(5) Kirsten Flipkens def. Madison Keys 6-4 1-6 6-2

(6) Julia Goerges def. CoCo Vandeweghe 6-1 7-5

(8) Shuai Peng def. Sofia Arvidsson 6-3 6-0

Zheng Jie def. Mallory Burdette 6-2 4-6 6-3

Yulia Putintseva def. Alison Van Uytvanck 6-1 6-0

Shuai Zhang def. Magdalena Rybarikova 6-1 6-3

Jamie Hampton def. Yanina Wickmayer 1-6 6-3 6-4

Romina Oprandi def. Melanie Oudin 6-2 6-2

Singles – Second Round

Jie Zheng def. (1) Caroline Wozniacki 6-2 6-4

(4) Sloane Stephens def. Shuai Zhang 6-4 6-0

Romina Oprandi def. (6) Julia Goerges 6-3, retired

(7) Varvara Lepchenko def. Elena Baltacha 6-2 6-0

(8) Shuai Peng def. Olga Govortsova 4-6 7-6(7-4) 7-6(7-4)

Kaia Kanepi def. Jana Cepelova 6-3 6-3

Doubles – First Round

(2) Groenefeld/Peschke def. Craybas/Vandeweghe 6-2 6-3

Dabrowski/Peer def. (3) H Chan/Jurak 6-1 6-4

(4) Govortsova/Rosolska def. Czink/Jovanovski 6-1 6-1

Melnikova/Sasnovich def. Kapshay/Kondratieva 6-3 7-5

Strasbourg

Singles – Second Round

(3) Alize Cornet def. Magda Linette 6-3 6-4

Misaki Doi def. (4) Su-Wei Hsieh 6-4 4-6 7-6(7-3)

Anna Tatishvili def. (5) Monica Niculescu 4-6 6-3 6-2

(7) Chanelle Scheepers def. Shelby Rogers 2-6 6-3 6-4

Flavia Pennetta def. Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor 6-2 6-3

Lucie Hradecka def. Lauren Davis 6-2 6-2

Johanna Larsson def. Virginie Razzano 6-3 6-3

Eugenie Bouchard def. Camila Giorgi 6-3 6-0

Doubles – First Round

Bouchard/Pekhova def. (1) Hantuchova/Hradecka walkover

(2) Grandin/Uhlirova def. Domachowska/Torro-Flor 6-1 6-3

(4) Date-Krumm/Scheepers def. Feuerstein/Michel 6-3 6-3

McHale/Moulton-Levy def. Garcia/Johansson 6-4 6-1

Topics: Brussels tennis news, Sports, Strasbourg tennis news, Wta

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