Latest news with #TransylvaniaOpen
Reuters
08-02-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
WTA roundup: New mom Belinda Bencic wins Abu Dhabi title
February 8 - Switzerland's Belinda Bencic won her first WTA title since returning from maternity leave, defeating American Ashlyn Krueger 4-6, 6-1, 6-1 in Saturday's final at the Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open. In her fourth tour-level event since giving birth to her daughter Bella last April, the 27-year-old Bencic won for the first time since 2023, also at Abu Dhabi. Seeking her second WTA title, the 20-year-old Krueger jumped ahead with 21 winners to Bencic's eight en route to a first-set win. But Bencic, the 2021 Olympic gold medalist and former World No. 4, evened the match with 13 winners and only three unforced errors in the second set. Bencic broke Krueger's serve for a 2-0 lead in the third set, then secured another break point for a 5-1 advantage. With her 30th winner of the match, Bencic put the two-hour, 23-minute match away, then held her baby during the trophy presentation. Transylvania Open No. 1 seed Anastasia Potapova of Russia advanced to the final at in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, taking down unseeded Aliaksandra Sasnovich of Belarus 6-3, 7-5. Potapova will face unseeded Italian Lucia Bronzetti, who won her semifinal match when her opponent, Czech fifth seed Katerina Siniakova, retired due to injury in the first set with Bronzetti leading 4-0. Potapova won 24 of her 29 first-service points (82.8 percent), had five aces and saved three of five break points. She's seeking her third WTA title, while Bronzetti is looking for second win on the tour.
Reuters
07-02-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
WTA roundup: Ashlyn Krueger, Belinda Bencic reach Abu Dhabi final
February 7 - American Ashlyn Krueger will go for her second career WTA title at the Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open after she took down Czech opponent Linda Noskova 7-6 (2), 6-4 in the semifinals Friday. The 20-year-old Kruger will face Switzerland's Belinda Bencic, who rallied to upset No. 1 seed Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. Krueger, ranked No. 51 in the world, saved four of six break points against Noskova and won 43 of her 59 first-service points (72.9 percent). In her only other finals appearance on tour, she won the 2023 Japan Women's Open; that was a WTA 250-level event, while Abu Dhabi is in the more prestigious WTA 500 tier. Rybakina saved nine of 13 break points, as well as three match points, but it wasn't enough to stave off Bencic, who took control of the second set by winning the first three games and pulled away midway through the third. Transylvania Open Aliaksandra Sasnovich of Belarus charged back to stun No. 4 seed Anhelina Kalinina of Ukraine 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (3) in the quarterfinals in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. Kalinina held the advantage in most major statistics, including aces (4-0), break points saved (12 of 18) and break points converted (seven of nine). But Sasnovich charged back from a 5-3 third-set deficit to force a tiebreaker, and after falling behind 3-1, she ripped off six straight points for the upset. Her reward is to face No. 1 seed Anastasia Potapova of Russia in the semis after Potapova beat Germany's Ella Seidel 6-2, 6-3. Czech fifth seed Katerina Siniakova defeated Bulgaria's Viktoriya Tomova 6-3, 7-6 (7), and Lucia Bronzetti toppled No. 7 seed Elisabetta Cocciaretto 6-1, 6-4 in an all-Italian battle.
Reuters
05-02-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
WTA roundup: Linda Noskova upsets Paula Badosa in Abu Dhabi
February 5 - Linda Noskova of the Czech Republic rolled to a 6-4, 6-1 victory over second-seeded Paula Badosa of Spain in the second round of the Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open on Wednesday. Noskova converted 6 of 9 break points while winning in 67 minutes against the Australian Open semifinalist. Noskova next faces Poland's Magda Linette, who advanced when sixth-seeded Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia retired in the second set. Top-seeded Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan rallied for a 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 victory over Katie Volynets, while Ashlyn Krueger delivered a 1-6, 7-5, 6-4 victory over No. 3 seed Daria Kasatkina of Russia. Czech Marketa Vondrousova knocked off No. 4 Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan 6-2, 6-3. No. 8 seed Leyla Fernandez of Canada posted a 6-0, 6-3 victory over Lulu Sun of New Zealand and Tunisia's Ons Jabeur was a 6-3, 6-3 winner over Wakana Sonobe of Japan. Transylvania Open Viktoriya Tomova of Bulgaria saved 3 of 5 break points while notching a 7-5, 7-5 victory over second-seeded Olga Danilovic of Serbia in the second round in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. Tomova won 75 percent of her first-seven points (30 of 40) while outdueling Danilovic to reach the quarterfinals. No. 4 seed Anhelina Kalinini of Ukraine rallied for a 1-6, 6-4, 6-4 victory over Suzan Lamens of the Netherlands. No. 5 seed Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic outlasted Great Britain's Francesca Jones 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-4, while Germany's Ella Seidel rolled to a 6-4, 6-2 victory over No. 8 Jaqueline Cristian of Romania. Aliaksandra Sasnovich of Belarus was a 6-3, 7-5 winner over Canada's Marina Stakusic.
New York Times
05-02-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Simona Halep's tennis record and Grand Slam titles made the solid look spectacular
Perfection in sport, as in life, is pretty much impossible. But there are days when athletes get as close to it as can reasonably be expected. For Simona Halep, that day came six years ago in the 2019 Wimbledon final, when she beat Serena Williams 6-2, 6-2 in just 56 minutes. It was the most comprehensive defeat Williams ever suffered in a Grand Slam final. Advertisement But there was another statistic that stood out and may never be beaten. Halep made just three unforced errors, the least ever by a player in a major final. She was a few shots away from a flawless performance against the greatest women's player of all time and one of the best ever on a grass court. Williams was the heavy favorite going into the match, in search of an eighth Wimbledon title and a 24th Grand Slam title overall, to equal Margaret Court's tally. Halep had other ideas, hitting 14 winners alongside those three misses. By the time she sent a mistimed crosscourt forehand into the net, Halep was already up 5-1, having maneuvered Williams all over Centre Court. Attempting another shaped angle into the American's forehand corner, Halep didn't quite clear the tape. The second came from the aggressive change of direction off a relatively neutral ball that was one of her trademarks, this time hit slightly too flat. The preceding shot, returning a ball from Williams that came close to clipping the baseline just as deep, typified her excellence in defense. The third and final one of the match came straight off a powerful but slightly short second-serve return, right on the edge of being forced. The 'unforced error' is one of the harder statistics to parse in tennis — some believe that it doesn't really exist at all — but Halep's consistency in the final was such that even a shot like this stands out as errant. All three shots are signals of the confidence in her game that took her to the top of the sport, which was flowing unrestricted for 56 minutes that Saturday. Williams was 37 when they played that final, which would be her penultimate at a Grand Slam. Tuesday night in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, Halep announced her retirement from tennis at 33, ending a career that also saw her rise to world No. 1 and win the French Open. This was not a long drawn-out goodbye on a grand stage like those of Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray, but rather a low-key shuffle off the tennis coil. Halep had spoken about the impact of a debilitating knee injury on the eve of the Transylvania Open, and she said her goodbyes in her home country after a 6-1, 6-1 thrashing from the world No. 72, Lucia Bronzetti. Advertisement The Transylvania Open is a WTA 250 event, the lowest rung of the tour and not the kind of venue one would expect for the retirement of a multiple Grand Slam champion. Halep has had a difficult few years after a doping ban saw her miss almost 18 months after a provisional suspension and original ban of four years was reduced to nine months on appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). 'I don't know if it's with sadness or joy, I think both,' Halep, who won 24 WTA titles in total, said on court on Tuesday night. 'I've always been realistic with myself, my body. Even though my performance wasn't very good, it was still my soul. I'm very glad that you came and I wonder if I will come back again, but for now it's the last time I've played. I don't want to cry. It's a beautiful thing that I became world No. 1. I won Grand Slams. It's all I wanted. Life goes on. There is life after tennis. I hope we will see each other again.' Those three unforced errors are a revealing prism through which to reflect on a career that for a few years saw the Romanian become one of the sport's dominant players and most compelling stories. GO DEEPER Simona Halep gets her biggest win — but there is no making up for lost time That memorable afternoon in south west London was a high watermark even by Halep's standards, but her career had been built around a spectacular solidity. Standing at only 5ft 6in (1.68m), Halep was never going to blast opponents off the court. Her superpowers were her speed and her ability to absorb and redirect power. Andrea Petkovic, the big-hitting German and former world No.9, told The Athletic in a recent interview that her 1-7 record against Halep was down to the latter's ability to keep changing the direction of a rally, which meant Petkovic was constantly off-balance. Against Williams, Halep delivered an exhibition of counter-punching tennis, chasing everything down and fizzing passing shots beyond her helpless opponent. At one point in the first set Williams could only applaud after Halep sent a crosscourt backhand pass flying past her. 'There's so many impressive things about her,' Williams said afterwards. 'Her tenacity, her ability to improve every time. Her ability to find power. You can't underestimate her.' Advertisement Halep was so locked in that she won the last five games of the match, and only faced one break point in its entirety. Williams, who had returned to the sport the previous year after childbirth, had the crowd on her side, including her good friend Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, who was watching on from the Royal Box. Halep did not have that kind of superstardom. Nor, for a long time, did she have anything like Williams' killer instinct. Halep became world No. 1 in October 2017, having just turned 26, but she lost her first three major finals, all three of them in three sets. Maria Sharapova overpowered a 22-year-old Halep at the 2014 French Open, but three years later Halep was the huge favorite at the same tournament against an unseeded 20-year-old, Jelena Ostapenko. The Romanian lost against an opponent whose all-or-nothing approach was in sharp contrast to her own, and the following January, she again fell short to a player going for a first major. This time, Caroline Wozniacki took the 2018 Australian Open title in an epic that lasted almost three hours. When Halep went 3-6, 2-4 down to Sloane Stephens in the final of that year's French Open, yet more devastation loomed. But Halep turned it around to finally win the Roland Garros title that had always seemed the most hospitable Grand Slam for her physically demanding brand of tennis. Much more so than Wimbledon, where the quick courts seemed to favour big servers and heavy hitters, making her win against Williams the following year all the more remarkable. GO DEEPER Simona Halep retires from tennis Halep was a hugely popular first-time Grand Slam champion, well-liked in the dressing room and within the sport in general for her groundedness and apparent lack of ego. Her desperation to win a major was well known and after Halep won in Paris, Martina Navratilova joked: 'It wasn't a monkey off her back; this was an 800lb gorilla.' Halep eventually overcame her difficulties on the biggest stages by being more 'chill' — a word she used a lot during that Wimbledon title run. Halep had been known to get down on herself when losing matches, and got so ratty with coach Darren Cahill, now working with men's world No. 1 Jannik Sinner, during some of their on-court exchanges that the Australian briefly ended the pair's partnership in 2017 until she accepted that things needed to change. Halep never again hit the heights she did in that masterclass against Williams, reaching the Australian Open semis the following year and then the last four at Wimbledon in 2022, but never again reaching a major final. Just as it looked like she was having a resurgence under new coach Patrick Mouratoglou (who had been in Williams' box for the 2019 Wimbledon final), Halep was provisionally suspended after testing positive for the banned substance roxadustat at the U.S. Open a couple of months earlier. Advertisement Halep later argued that she had ingested the roxadustat with a contaminated batch of a supplement that Mouratoglou had recommended she begin using. But she was provisionally suspended in October 2022 and then given a four-year ban in September 2023 after anti-doping officials ruled that a blood test showed signs of intentional doping. She also neglected to mention using the supplement during initial questioning. Halep's appeals, ultimately to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), took nearly a year and a half to work their way through the system. CAS cut the suspension to nine months in March 2024, ruling that Halep 'bore no significant fault or negligence.' Halep received a wild card entry into the Miami Open last March, just after CAS's verdict, but none of the four majors offered a similar route back to tennis' biggest stage, aside from one for qualifiers from the Australian Open in January that she had to miss because of injury. By Tuesday night's retirement, she'd played a total of six matches since her comeback, winning just once. As she demonstrated against Williams, Halep's game relied on athleticism and rhythm. And so as knee and shoulder injuries took hold in the latter part of her career, alongside the lack of matches, she was unable to be competitive, let alone dominant like she had been before. But to understand how someone so small and slight could rise to the top of such a physical sport, watch those 56 minutes and three unforced errors against Williams. A masterclass in the high-energy, counterpunching game that for a few years made Halep an unlikely but irresistible force at the top of women's tennis.
The Independent
05-02-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Simona Halep hit extraordinary highs but leaves tennis with a complicated legacy
After the best hour of tennis she ever played, Simona Halep dropped to her knees and beamed at her box in disbelief. The Romanian had just bamboozled and outclassed the greatest female tennis player in the modern game in the 2019 Wimbledon final, in doing so claiming her second Grand Slam title. She hit just three unforced errors in the entire match and a sentence rarely uttered came to mind: Serena Williams was powerless. It felt like a seismic moment, not just for Halep but for women's tennis and the next generation behind the Williams sisters. In her prime years at 27, Halep reclaimed her world No 1 ranking and her ceiling seemed limitless. But five years on, as Halep waved goodbye to professional tennis on Tuesday after a 6-1, 6-1 thrashing by world No 72 Lucia Bronzetti at her home tournament, her legacy is a complicated one. 'I don't know if it's with joy or sadness, I think both feelings are trying me but I'm making this decision with my soul,' Halep said, as she announced her decision to retire on court at the Transylvania Open. 'Where I probably was, it's very hard to get there and I know what it means to get there. It's a beautiful thing. I became world number one, I won grand slams, it's all I wanted. Life goes on, there is life after tennis and I hope that we will see each other again.' Halep is speaking after a tempestuous two-and-a-half years which was spent mostly away from the tennis court. In October 2022, the Romanian was provisionally suspended by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) after testing positive for the banned substance Roxadustat, the blood-boosting anaemia drug, at the 2022 US Open. Irregularities were also found in her biological passport – the testing system used to establish an athlete's blood profile over several years – with 'suspicious' results in the 2022 season. Nearly a year later, Halep was banned for four years but an appeal last February in the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) reduced the ban to nine months, as CAS ruled Halep 'on the balance of probabilities' had not taken Roxadustat on purpose. The Romanian has always insisted she did not take the drug intentionally, with her former coach Patrick Mouratoglou taking the blame for adding a collagen supplement to her nutrition plan in the summer of 2022. 'This collagen happened to be contaminated,' he said, in November 2023. 'I feel responsible for what happened because it's my team – so me, basically – who brought her this collagen.' Throughout the whole saga, Halep had been incandescent, describing it as 'the hardest match' of her life. In the end, it was a situation where a route back to the top quickly became unfeasible. Whichever way you look at it, it has been a lamentable conclusion to a career Halep could only dream of when training as a teenager in the coastal town of Constanta, on the shores of the Black Sea. There was her first WTA title in 2013 on her favoured clay in Nuremberg, which was quickly followed by five more titles in the same year. Halep was in the top-10 for 373 consecutive weeks from 2014-2021, emerging as one of women's tennis' most consistent players, omnipresent in the latter stages of the world's biggest tournaments. Yet her early 20s did not come without heartbreak. After blowing a set and a break advantage in the 2017 French Open final to unseeded teenager Jelena Ostapenko – her third defeat in a Grand Slam final – there were question marks around whether Halep would ever reach the pinnacle of professional tennis. But a year later, in the same setting on Court Philippe-Chatrier, Halep this time came from a set and a break down to beat Sloane Stephens in the final to claim her first major. Her relief at reaching her Everest was felt across the game. That sensational 56-minute hot-streak of stunning athleticism and exceptional defensive skills on Centre Court in 2019 would follow for major No 2. But those highest of highs did not translate into all-court dominance standing the test of time. In fact, she would never reach another Grand Slam final. She was blighted by Covid in 2020 and then came the spate of injuries in 2021 which, ultimately, she has never recovered from. Her final title came in August 2022, with a WTA 1000 victory in Toronto. A few weeks later, she would test positive for Roxadustat. Despite being cleared to play a year ago – and returning to the tour with a wild card in Miami – constant pain in her knee would not disappear. An exhibition event in Abu Dhabi in December saw her experience shoulder pain, too, and the writing looked on the wall when she withdrew from Australian Open qualifying last month. However, she can take solace in that she managed to finish with one final appearance in her homeland, where she is revered as the greatest Romanian tennis player since Ilie Nastase in the 1970s. Halep's achievements, including 24 WTA titles and 64 weeks at world No 1, are awe-inspiring. Yet in a period where Grand Slam champions Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek have also tested positive for banned substances, the Romanian's own ordeal cannot be ignored when discussing her career and has been a bad look for the sport in general. Halep's highs were extraordinary – and none were better than that all-time Wimbledon final performance on the grass of SW19. But her legacy now is convoluted; tangled up in a murky final two years.
