Australian Open Draw Preview: Serena Slammed With A Tough Draw, Kerber Given Comfortable Start - UBITENNIS
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Australian Open Draw Preview: Serena Slammed With A Tough Draw, Kerber Given Comfortable Start

Australian Open, the first grand slam of the 2017, has been drawn! As always, it brought a lot of great first round match-ups and roads to the title for different players.

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First Quarter

 

Topping the draw is the World No. 1 Angelique Kerber. Her first round opponent will be Lesia Tsurenko of Ukraine, who is currently playing in the semifinals of Hobart. This means she is in good form, but will also be fatigued for the match. Second round will either be a German derby with Carina Witthoeft or will be faced with a qualifier. Kerber’s third round opponent could be any of 27th seed Irina-Camelia Begu, Yaroslava Shvedova, Viktorija Golubic or Kristyna Pliskova. Any of them could play her, and all of them could give her a hard time. They are hard hitters, and on the right day could pull of the upset over Kerber. The No. 1 has looked very shaky in the first weeks of the season, suffering early losses to Svitolina and Kasatkina. The section from which will come Kerber’s Round of 16 opponent has a lot of potential upsetters for Kerber. 23rd seed Daria Kasatkina, who defeated Kerber in Sydney, Eugenie Bouchard, as well as a blockbuster first round between 15th seed Roberta Vinci and big-serving CoCo Vandeweghe.

Perhaps the biggest threat to Kerber on her way to semifinals can be 7th seed Garbine Muguruza. The Spaniard had a solid start to the year, beating the likes of Stosur, Kasatkina or Kuznetsova in Brisbane, before retiring to Alize Cornet in the semifinals. This put some question marks around Muguruza, but she has been granted an easy first round match against Marina Erakovic. In the second round, she will most probably face Auckland champion Lauren Davis. Third round should again be a bit easier, with 32nd seed Anastasija Sevastova and Christina McHale being the most likely options. Overall a pretty easy intro into Australian Open for Muguruza. Her projected 4th round opponent is her countrywoman Carla Suarez Navarro, seeded 10th. However, she is far from a certain pick for the match. Suarez Navarro starts off against the dangerous Slovak Jana Cepelova, a serial upsetter who has wins over Serena Williams and Garbine Muguruza under her belt. Even if she passes through her second round against Sorana Cirstea, she will be met by one of her difficult 3rd round opponents, Shenzhen finalist Alison Riske, Madison Brengle, who beat Serena at Auckland or 20th seed Shuai Zhang, last year’s quarterfinalist.

Second Quarter

4th seed Simona Halep is headlining the second quarter of the draw, and will most likely be the semifinal hurdle for Angelique Kerber. In the Romanian’s way will stand Shelby Rogers in the first round, and Ashleigh Barty or Annika Beck in the second round. Halep hasn’t started her season in the best fashion, falling to Katerina Siniakova in the second round of Shenzhen. Rogers played well so far in 2017, scoring wins over Bouchard, Sevastova and Arruabarrena, and their match should definitely be on upset alert. Halep’s expected 3rd round opponent is Monica Puig, but since her Olympic triumph in early August, the Puerto Rican has won only 4 matches, and has no wins in 2017 so far. It will most likely be here, as Puig will play Patricia-Maria Tig in the first round, also winless in 2017. This slump of other opponents may open the door of opportunity for 16 year-old Destanee Aiava, Australian wildcard who is the first player born in 2000s to play in a Grand Slam. The Australian will start her journey against a qualifier, and then play the winner of the aforementioned match between Puig and Tig. Halep’s potential Round of 16 opponent will either be 19th seed Kiki Bertens or 13th seed Venus Williams, who were both given pretty soft draws until their 3rd round clash.

On the other side of the quarter is 8th seed Svetlana Kuznetsova, who has gone 3-2 so far in 2017, reaching quarterfinals in Brisbane. 26th seed Laura Siegemund, former World No. 1 Jelena Jankovic, Shenzhen champion Katerina Siniakova and Julia Goerges are all going to be competing for one 3rd round spot against Kuznetsova, making it as hard as possible for her to proceed further. 11th seed Elina Svitolina is also gunning for the quarterfinals, with a potentially tricky draw looming ahead. First challenge will be Galina Voskoboeva, who is coming back from her hiatus, and her second round opponent will either be a qualifier or Francesca Schiavone, who is playing her last Australian Open. 3rd round opponent Pavlyuchenkova has also been solid this year, getting wins over Samantha Stosur and Svetlana Kuznetsova in Sydney.

Third Quarter

Definitely the hardest section to predict is the third quarter. Starting off the quarter is 6th seed Karolina Pliskova, Brisbane 2017 champion. She will have the challenge of facing the unorthodox Monica Niculescu in the second round, and one of Ostapenko or Putintseva, both very tricky opponents, but the big-serving Czech should get through. 4th round is full of tough players, leading with 22nd seed Daria Gavrilova, who looks to be the most likely to reach the Round of 16. Even though Bacsinszky is the higher seed, she hasn’t played this year yet and is going to play Camila Giorgi. Players like Ana Konjuh and Kristina Mladenovic are going to be there to push the players to the best of their abilities.

Highest seed in the third quarter is 3rd seed Agnieszka Radwanska. The Pole is in great form as she is currently in the final of Sydney facing Johanna Konta. On the way there, Radwanska beat McHale, Duan and Strycova without losing a set. For a player like Radwanska, a very physical and grinding player, one of the keys to Grand Slam success is making sure her matches are short, to not drop sets in the early stages of the tournament, or she will be fatigued and more prone to lose. This is something that will be hard to do, as the World No. 3 kicks-off her Australian Open against Tsvetana Pironkova, to whom she lost at Roland Garros. Follow that with a 3rd round against Alize Cornet and a 4th against Samantha Stosur or Elena Vesnina, and Radwanska will have to put together a series of impressive performances to keep herself in the tournament.

Fourth Quarter

The final quarter is headlined by the odds-on favorite and 2nd seed Serena Williams. The American was slammed with incredibly difficult opening two rounds, starting against Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic. The 19 year-old has a tough season behind her, dropping to No. 48 after she made the Top 10. She has won the most recent match in 2015, when Bencic beat Williams on her way to the biggest title of her career so far in Montreal. Williams’ second round will either be against Yanina Wickmayer, or former No. 5 Lucie Safarova, who also suffered through an injury-ridden 2016, and is looking to redeem herself in the new season. After the 3rd round, the American will have a chance to catch her breath as she was drawn against probably the weakest seed in the tournament, Timea Babos. Other possibilities like Nicole Gibbs or Irina Falconi won’t do much damage either. 4th round will bring a must-watch match for sure with any of the possibilites, from the seeds Barbora Strycova and Caroline Garcia to floaters like Andrea Petkovic or Kateryna Bondarenko.

Serena’s quarterfinal opponent is projected to be 6th seed Dominika Cibulkova. After a great finish to 2016, she will attempt to continue her form into 2017. The Slovak’s draw is pretty soft, with none of Allertova, Knapp or Hsieh being a threat in the two opening rounds. The third round isn’t the worst either, with 30th seed Ekaterina Makarova who is struggling for stability, Sara Errani, Ekaterina Alexandrova and Risa Ozaki. Round of 16 for Cibulkova will be a round of hell, with many different players who can threaten her looming from that section. Most notable is 9th seed Johanna Konta, defending her 2016 semifinal. Konta is in great form in 2017, reached the Sydney final in which she will play Agnieszka Radwanska. 17th seed Caroline Wozniacki and Naomi Osaka could also prevent Cibulkova from reaching quarterfinals, if given the chance.

My Predictions

Australian Open is always the most difficult slam to predict, simply because we don’t have that much data about the players in this year yet, and it takes serious tennis knowledge to be able to predict, yet I will take a crack at it nonetheless.

Round of 32
(1) Angelique Kerber def. (27) Irina-Camelia Begu
Coco Vandeweghe def. Eugenie Bouchard
(20) Shuai Zhang def. (10) Carla Suarez Navarro
(7) Garbine Muguruza def. Christina McHale
(4) Simona Halep def. Destanee Aiava
(19) Kiki Bertens def. (13) Venus Williams
(11) Elina Svitolina def. (24) Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
(8) Svetlana Kuznetsova def. Katerina Siniakova
(5) Karolina Pliskova def. Jelena Ostapenko
(22) Daria Gavrilova def. Danka Kovinic
(14) Elena Vesnina def. Johanna Larsson
(3) Agnieszka Radwanska def. Maria Sakkari
(6) Dominika Cibulkova def. Sara Errani
(17) Caroline Wozniacki def. (9) Johanna Konta
(16) Barbora Strycova def. (21) Caroline Garcia
(2) Serena Williams def. Nicole Gibbs

Round of 16
(1) Angelique Kerber def. Coco Vandeweghe
(7) Garbine Muguruza def. (20) Shuai Zhang
(4) Simona Halep def. (19) Kiki Bertens
(11) Elina Svitolina def. (8) Svetlana Kuznetsova
(5) Karolina Pliskova def. (22) Daria Gavrilova
(3) Agnieszka Radwanska def. (14) Elena Vesnina
(17) Caroline Wozniacki def. (6) Dominika Cibulkova
(2) Serena Williams def. (16) Barbora Strycova

Quarterfinals
(1) Angelique Kerber def. (7) Garbine Muguruza
(11) Elina Svitolina def. (4) Simona Halep
(5) Karolina Pliskova def. (3) Agnieszka Radwanska
(2) Serena Williams def. (17) Caroline Wozniacki

Semifinals
(11) Elina Svitolina def. (1) Angelique Kerber
(5) Karolina Pliskova def. (2) Serena Williams

Final
(5) Karolina Pliskova def. (11) Elina Svitolina

 

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Dusan Lajovic upsets Andy Murray to reach the second round at the Miami Open

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Dusan Lajovic upset two-time champion Andy Murray 6-4 7-5 in their first head-to-head match on the first day of the Miami Open to reach the second round at the Hard Rock Stadium. 

 

Lajovic won 72% of his second serve points and saved two of the three break points he faced. The Serbian player converted all three break points. 

Lajovic saved two break points in the fourth and sixth game before earning the first break of the match to love in the seventh game to take a 4-3 lead. Lajovic held on his final two service games to win the first set 6-4. 

Lajovic earned his first break in the ninth game to take a 5-4 lead, when Murray hit his forehand long. Lajovic was not able to serve out the match at 5-4, as Murray broke back to draw level to 5-5. After missing two match points from 40-0, Lajovic closed out the match, when Murray his his forehand into the net after a long rally in the 12th game. Lajovic has now a 8-5 record this season. 

Lajovic had won just four of 16 hard court since the start of 2022. 

“When I did not close it out, I thought it’s happening again. Honestly that last game I was super right at 40-0 and he was able to put pressure on me. Luckily he shanked the last forehand, which he normally doesn’t do”, said Lajovic. 

Lajovic ended his Sunshine Double campaign with a 2-2 record in Indian Wells and Miami. 

Lajovic set up a second round match against Maxime Cressy. 

“I don’t like playing against guys like him. They try to provoke you and put you under pressure on your service games. I will try to stay mentally stable”, said Lajovic. 

Last year’s Next Gen ATP Finals champion Brandon Nakashima edged past Oscar Otte 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 in 88 minutes. 

Nakashima hit a series of winners to win the tie-break 7-3 with two mini-breaks before earning the only break of serve in the sixth game of the second set. The US player did not face a break point en route to taking the win in his first head-to-head match against Otte. 

Nakashima set up a second round match against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, who won their only previous head-to-head match in straight-set at the Adelaide International 2. 

Japan’s Taro Daniel reached the second round after his French opponent Arthur Rinderknech retired when he went down 1-4 in the first set. Daniel beat Matteo Berrettini en route to the third round at Indian Wells last week. JJ Wolf beat Alexander Bublik 7-5 6-3.

The first set started with a trade of breaks. Bublik earned his second break in the ninth game to take a 5-4 lead. Wolf broke straight back to draw level to 5-5, as Bublik was serving for the set. Wolf earned his third break in the 12th game to win the first set 7-5. Wolf won the second set 6-3 with his only break in the fourth game. 

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Bianca Andreescu battles past Emma Raducanu in Miami

The Canadian won her first-round match against a tough British opponent.

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BIANCA ANDREESCU OF CANADA - PHOTO: ALBERTO NEVADO / MMO

Bianca Andreescu is into the second round of the Miami Open after beating Emma Raducanu 6-3, 3-6, 6-2 in two hours and 33 minutes on Stadium Court.

 

The Toronto native hit 33 winners and served seven aces in a match that went the distance. Andreescu saved 11 out of the 12 break points she faced and broke her rival three times en route to victory.

“You never know what you are going to expect and I wanted to come in today playing my best,” the former US Open champion said afterwards. ” With what I had I think I did that and Emma played amazing. She is an incredible player”.

Andreescu opened the match by breaking the London native in the first game and that break of serve was enough for her to serve out the first set quite comfortably.

The second set stayed on serve until 4-3 when Raducanu had multiple breakpoints and managed to break the Canadian on her seventh opportunity. She then served out the set to send the match into a deciding third set where the Toronto native bounced back and at 3-2 broke Raducanu once again to take the lead.

Andreescu broke serve once again while the Brit was serving to stay in the match to secure the win. After the match in her post-match on-court interview, she was asked what made her so dangerous today.

“I didn’t let my negative emotions get the best of me and I stayed positive,” she replied. “I was very energetic and I never gave up and that really key for me today”.

The Canadian will next face the number seven seed Maria Sakkari in the second round.

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Iga Swiatek pulls out of the Miami Open due to a rib injury

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Defending champion Iga Swiatek was forced to withdraw from the Miami Open ahead of the second round match due to a rib injury. 

 

Swiatek was expected to play against US player Claire Liu on Thursday after receiving a first-round bye. 

“You know that in and after Doha I was struggling with a strong infection. I was allowed to play, but a strong episode of tough cough led to a rib injury. We were trying to handle it and continue to play as long as it was safe for me. We were analyzing the data in the last days and my doctor prepared my diagnosis. Unfortunately, I am still feeling a lot of discomfort and pain and I can’t compete. It’s a truly call to not play in Miami, but health is the most important thing. I am grateful this is the first health issue in a long time and I was able in perfect shape for so long, but that’s sport. It happens sometimes, without our control. It’s time to accept it and get well as well as possible ”, said Swiatek. 

The injury bothered Swiatek during her semifinal match against eventual champion Elena Rybakina in Indian Wells. She revelead after her match against Rybakina that she had been struggling with a rib complaint following an infection. 

“I gave it all but Elena was a better player today. I am feeling discomfort and pain in my ribs and it was challenging for me to compete at my highest level. Now I just need to consult with my medical team and I will definitely use these next days to recover”, said Swiatek. 

She will also miss the Bille Jean King Cup Qualifier against Kazakhstan from 14-15 April in Astana. 

Last year Swiatek did not drop a set en route to winning the Miami Open. The Polish player became the fifth woman to complete the Sunshine Double of winning back-to-back titles in Indian Wells and Miami in the same season. Swiatek will be replaced by Austrian lucky loser Julia Grabher. 

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