Latest news with #WTA250
Business Recorder
20-05-2025
- Sport
- Business Recorder
Emma Raducanu stuns Daria Kasatkina at Strasbourg
Great Britain's Emma Raducanu defeated sixth-seeded Daria Kasatkina of Australia 6-1, 6-3 on Monday to advance to the Round of 16 at the Internationaux de Strasbourg in France. It was the third straight loss for the Aussie, ranked No. 17 in the world. Ninth-seeded Beatriz Haddad Maia of Brazil rallied to a 3-6, 6-4, 7-5 win over Denmark's Clara Tauson in two hours, 44 minutes on the clay court. Other winners in the WTA 500 event's Round of 32 included Ashlyn Krueger (6-4, 7-5 over McCartney Kessler), Danielle Collins (6-1, 1-6, 6-2 over Sofia Kenin), Russia's Anna Kalinskaya and Anna Blinkova, Wang Xinyu of China and Marie Bouzkova of the Czech Republic. Grand Prix Sar La Princesse Lalla Meryem No. 2 Camila Osorio of Colombia dropped her first set before charging back to beat Italy's Elisabetta Cocciaretto 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 to reach the Round of 16 at the WTA 250 tournament in Rabat, Morocco. Emma Raducanu relishing underdog status ahead of Swiatek clash Fourth-seeded Ann Li defeated Russia's Maria Timofeeva 7-6 (6), 6-2, and No. 9 Katie Volynets routed Brazil's Carolina M. Alves 6-3, 6-0 in one hour, six minutes. Also advancing were Hailey Baptiste, No. 10 Jessica Bouzas Maneiro of Spain, Zeynep Sonmez of Turkiye, Ajla Tomljanovic of Australia, Italy's Tatiana Pieri and Jaqueline Cristian of Romania.
The Guardian
21-04-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
‘I can trust him': Emma Raducanu to continue coaching partnership with Mark Petchey
Emma Raducanu has revealed that she intends to continue her coaching partnership with Mark Petchey on an ad hoc basis following her quarter-final run at the Miami Open last month. 'We're keeping things informal for now and it's been working,' she said in a joint interview with the Guardian and the BBC before the Madrid Open. 'He's someone I've known for a long time and I do feel like I can trust him. 'For now there is no real thing set in stone but we're taking it week to week and he's helping me as much as he can alongside his current commitments.' Raducanu had arrived at the Miami Open last month on a trial with the Slovak coach Vladimir Platenik before opting to dissolve their prospective partnership on the eve of the tournament. She instead enlisted the help of Petchey, Andy Murray's former coach, who was in Miami for his role as a broadcaster on the Tennis Channel. They were joined there by the former player Jane O'Donoghue, Raducanu's close friend. The 22-year-old enjoyed their time together so much that she has tcontinued their partnership despite significant obstacles. After Miami, which was her seventh tournament in two months, Raducanu withdrew from the Billie Jean King Cup and the WTA 250 event in Rouen in order to 'rest and recover' while executing a 10-day training block with Petchey in Los Angeles. 'We created our own little bubble and it was nice to be working on my game out there but at the same time having fun and enjoying it,' she said. Petchey will be in Madrid this week, along with O'Donoghue, but Raducanu stated that he is 'fitting me in around' his other commitments. Still, she is satisfied: 'I'm happy with the set-up going forward right now – it's been working well. I like him a lot and I've known him since before the US Open and it's nice to have familiar faces around.' Like many of Raducanu's choices, opting to work informally with a coach is unconventional. She says that it has been difficult to handle the constant scrutiny she has been under every time she makes a decision but she is slowly learning how to block out the noise and lean on the people around her. 'It's really difficult, because I think every decision I make is made on such a big scale that it's up for judgment,' she said. 'Every time I step on the court, every time I kind of make a choice, it is up for judgment. And I just need to get to a place where I'm comfortable enough and secure enough in what I'm doing that it doesn't matter what other people are saying. 'Over the last few years, that is, truthfully, something that I have been kind of toiling with, because I would care about what people think. I think just in general, in my life, like anytime someone's upset with me or something, it affects me. Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action after newsletter promotion 'So I think, the last few years, it has been difficult, but I think I'm trying to find a way now to just really do what is natural and what feels true to myself and what feels authentic. And that way I can express myself and, not even about the tennis, just feel a better person, just feel happier and lighter.' As she stressed throughout the run, Raducanu believes that the lesson from her performances in Miami is to ensure that finds enjoyment in her daily life while also pursuing her goals: 'I think I'm just trying to keep things more lighthearted off the court, like I'm getting on site, and then trying to just get on get off, like, pretty soon,' she said. 'That has helped me, and then just doing things outside that makes me happy. Like, for example, yesterday I just did a yoga class. It was just random. 'I'll go on hikes. I'll just do things that maybe, like, in the moment, or previously, I would be like: 'Oh, maybe it's not so professional; I need to just be locked in like, 200% of my day.' But now I'm a lot more like: 'No,' because when I'm locked in I am so focused on the court, I give 200%. So I definitely need that area in my life to just decompress, relax and de-stress.'
Yahoo
21-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
‘I can trust him': Emma Raducanu to continue coaching partnership with Mark Petchey
Emma Raducanu chats with Mark Petchey (centre) and Jane O'Donoghue (right) during March's Miami Open. Photograph: SMG/Shutterstock Emma Raducanu has revealed that she intends to continue her coaching partnership with Mark Petchey on an ad hoc basis following her quarter-final run at the Miami Open last month. 'We're keeping things informal for now and it's been working,' she said in a joint interview with the Guardian and the BBC before the Madrid Open. 'He's someone I've known for a long time and I do feel like I can trust him. Advertisement Related: Let it out or bottle it up? Does venting emotion harm performance in elite sport? | Sean Ingle 'For now there is no real thing set in stone but we're taking it week to week and he's helping me as much as he can alongside his current commitments.' Raducanu had arrived at the Miami Open last month on a trial with the Slovak coach Vladimir Platenik before opting to dissolve their prospective partnership on the eve of the tournament. She instead enlisted the help of Petchey, Andy Murray's former coach, who was in Miami for his role as a broadcaster on the Tennis Channel. They were joined there by the former player Jane O'Donoghue, Raducanu's close friend. The 22-year-old enjoyed their time together so much that she has tcontinued their partnership despite significant obstacles. After Miami, which was her seventh tournament in two months, Raducanu withdrew from the Billie Jean King Cup and the WTA 250 event in Rouen in order to 'rest and recover' while executing a 10-day training block with Petchey in Los Angeles. Advertisement 'We created our own little bubble and it was nice to be working on my game out there but at the same time having fun and enjoying it,' she said. Petchey will be in Madrid this week, along with O'Donoghue, but Raducanu stated that he is 'fitting me in around' his other commitments. Still, she is satisfied: 'I'm happy with the set-up going forward right now – it's been working well. I like him a lot and I've known him since before the US Open and it's nice to have familiar faces around.' Like many of Raducanu's choices, opting to work informally with a coach is unconventional. She says that it has been difficult to handle the constant scrutiny she has been under every time she makes a decision but she is slowly learning how to block out the noise and lean on the people around her. 'It's really difficult, because I think every decision I make is made on such a big scale that it's up for judgment,' she said. 'Every time I step on the court, every time I kind of make a choice, it is up for judgment. And I just need to get to a place where I'm comfortable enough and secure enough in what I'm doing that it doesn't matter what other people are saying. Advertisement 'Over the last few years, that is, truthfully, something that I have been kind of toiling with, because I would care about what people think. I think just in general, in my life, like anytime someone's upset with me or something, it affects me. 'So I think, the last few years, it has been difficult, but I think I'm trying to find a way now to just really do what is natural and what feels true to myself and what feels authentic. And that way I can express myself and, not even about the tennis, just feel a better person, just feel happier and lighter.' As she stressed throughout the run, Raducanu believes that the lesson from her performances in Miami is to ensure that finds enjoyment in her daily life while also pursuing her goals: 'I think I'm just trying to keep things more lighthearted off the court, like I'm getting on site, and then trying to just get on get off, like, pretty soon,' she said. 'That has helped me, and then just doing things outside that makes me happy. Like, for example, yesterday I just did a yoga class. It was just random. 'I'll go on hikes. I'll just do things that maybe, like, in the moment, or previously, I would be like: 'Oh, maybe it's not so professional; I need to just be locked in like, 200% of my day.' But now I'm a lot more like: 'No,' because when I'm locked in I am so focused on the court, I give 200%. So I definitely need that area in my life to just decompress, relax and de-stress.'
Forbes
07-04-2025
- Sport
- Forbes
Jessica Pegula Wins Charleston Open 2025 Title, Her First On Clay
CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA - APRIL 06: Jessica Pegula of United States poses with the trophy and her ... More dog Maddie after defeating Sofia Kenin of United States during the final of the Credit One Charleston Open at Credit One Stadium on April 06, 2025 in Charleston, South Carolina. (Photo by) Top seed Jessica Pegula won her first clay-court title at the Charleston Open on Sunday after mounting a second-set comeback to beat fellow American Sofia Kenin 6-3, 7-5. Pegula, the finalist at the WTA 1000 Miami Open last month, made a strong start in the finale as she broke Kenin in the opening game before clinching the set. However, Kenin fought back in style in the second set, racing to a 5-1 lead. Just when Kenin looked set to push the contest into a decider, Pegula saved three set points and won six consecutive games to mount a terrific fightback and clinch victory. With that, Pegula sealed her second title this season, adding to the WTA 250 title she won in Austin last month. "To be able to come here this week after a long two weeks in Miami and take the title is just incredible," Pegula said after the first all-American final at the WTA 500 tournament since 1990. "I just realized how tired I was. She started to play at a high level, there were a couple of games I didn't get out of, didn't break, didn't hold,' she told Tennis Channel. 'It was super windy, super tough conditions. If you lose focus for a split second or stop moving your feet for a second, it just swings so fast. It was the same way for both of us." "In the second set, I just wanted to hold, I just wanted to tell myself to get momentum for the third, because coming into a third like that never feels good," she continued. "I knew I could break her, too. I honestly didn't think I was going to break her twice, but luckily, I could play some good tennis." Pegula has won 17 of her last 19 matches, including five victories this week. She has 25 victories for the season -- which is No. 1 on the WTA Tour. On Monday, the 31-year-old will leapfrog youngster Coco Gauff as the top-ranked U.S. player, and rise to a career-high World No. 3. "I think my perseverance won me a lot of matches this week," Pegula said. "I think, especially on the clay, I feel like you have to have kind of that grittiness and that toughness, because the serve isn't as effective. 'There's not as many free points, and I think winning a couple of tough points or a tough game can kind of turn the momentum of a set or a match, and I felt like I was able to do that multiple times this week. On Sunday, the Charleston Open also extended its title partnership with Credit One Bank through 2031 and committed to providing equal prize money to male and female players starting in 2026. With this move, the Credit One Charleston Open, North America's largest women's-only professional tennis tournament, becomes the first standalone WTA 500 tournament to voluntarily increase prize money prior to the 2033 deadline for all single-week WTA 1000 and 500 events to reward equal prize money. This means the 2026 purse will jump from $1.15 million to over $2 million to match ATP 500 standards.
South China Morning Post
26-03-2025
- Sport
- South China Morning Post
‘Firing on all cylinders': Hong Kong tennis reprieved from doomsday-scenario funding cut
Removing elite status from Hong Kong tennis would have caused significant turbulence for a sport that is 'firing on all cylinders', according to the head of the local association. Advertisement Tennis had been threatened with demotion to Tier B standing at the city's Sports Institute, until new eligibility criteria drawn up this week handed the sport a minimum two-year stay of execution. Michael Cheng Ming-git, president of the Hong Kong, China Tennis Association (HKCTA), said Coleman Wong Chak-lam's run to the third round of this week's Miami Open was illustrative of Hong Kong tennis' efforts in nurturing elite players. He also backed the idea that a sport should be rewarded for staging major events. Hong Kong hosts one ATP 250, one WTA 250 and one WTA 125 tournament every year. Last year, the larger women's event was named tournament of the year at WTA 250 level, reclaiming a prize it first won in 2018. 'Tennis is one of the sports in Hong Kong that can be industrialised, commercialised and professionalised,' Cheng said. 'You need three building blocks: events, infrastructure, and elite and development pathway. They all go hand in hand. Advertisement 'Hong Kong is only the third Asian city to host both ATP and WTA events. We've won two global awards, and counting. Having our athletes featuring and doing well in our events will drive economic growth … and community engagement.'
