It took over three-and-a-half hours for @NastiaPav to get her hands on the @WTA_Strasbourg ??! pic.twitter.com/izDyucKLpK
— WTA (@WTA) May 26, 2018
S: Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova/RUS def. Dominika Cibulkova/SVK 6-7(5)/7-6(3)/7-6(6)
D: Mihaela Buzarnescu/Raluca Olaru (ROU/ROU) d. Nadiia Kichenok/Anastasia Rodionova (UKR/AUS) 7-5/7-5
S: Johanna Larsson/SWE def. Alison Riske/USA
D: Demi Schuurs/Katarina Srebotnik (NED/SLO) d. Kirsten Flipkens/Johanna Larsson (BEL/SWE) 3-6/6-3 [10-7]
...this was the sort of week that is emblematic of the Russian's career. The week before a slam, when she probably shouldn't be playing at all if she's truly serious about a deep run at a major (she's got a Career QF Slam, but has never gone further). So, naturally, she puts together the best week of her season.
Coming in with a 5-10 record in '18, on a three-matching losing streak (only her second longest drought of the year, as she lost five straight earlier), Pavlyuchenkova reeled off FIVE wins this past week. She started off her run-the-gamut week by double-bageling (of course she did) Tatjana Maria, then posted wins over Natalia Vikhlyantseva, Zarina Diyas and Ash Barty (who retired) to reach her 18th career final. There, she battled Dominika Cibulkova for 3:35, the longest non-slam match of the season (and just short of the length of the Halep/Davis AO contest), playing each set to a TB conclusion, saving two MP in the 3rd, then failing to secure two MP of her own before finally taking the title, outpacing the Slovak 136-134 in total points to claim her 12th career tour crown, tying Dinara Safina and Vera Zvonareva for fifth place on the all-time WTA list of Russian champions.
.@NastiaPav wins the @WTA_Strasbourg ??!
— WTA (@WTA) May 26, 2018
Battles past Dominika Cibulkova 6-7(5), 7-6(3), 7-6(6)!
What a final! pic.twitter.com/qHCNxBnJVA
She'll now head to Paris to compete in her 41st consecutive slam where, if things hold true to the usual form, she'll before the 3rd Round for a fifth straight slam and the 25th time in her 42-major career.
===============================================
RISERS: Johanna Larsson/SWE and Alison Riske/USA
...Larsson, 29, picked up her first title in nearly three years in Nurnberg, winning a pair of three-set matches in the QF (Kristyna Pliskova) and SF (Katerina Siniakova) to reach the final, then pulling a triple-shift on Saturday as she took the singles final over Alison Riske while also playing the doubles SF and Final with Kirsten Flipkens, coming within a 10-7 3rd set TB of sweeping both titles.
Our @NuernbergerCup champion 2018! Congrats to #JoLarsson! ???????? (??: @scalpictures) @wta @nuernberger #wtatennis pic.twitter.com/xdX8HuH2An
— NürnbergerCup (@NuernbergerCup) May 26, 2018
Riske reached her first final since January of last year, defeating the likes of Mandy Minella, Yulia Putintseva, Sorana Cirstea and Flipkens in Nurnberg to reach her sixth career tour-level final. She'll next head to Paris to face off with world #1 Simona Halep in the 1st Round of Roland Garros.
Nuremberg, thank you for such an awesome week! It was an honor to play in my first clay court WTA final! ??Paris?????? Special thanks to my coach @BillyHeiser for this moment! pic.twitter.com/mjg5CcP9Qu
— Alison Riske (@Riske4rewards) May 26, 2018
===============================================
SURPRISE: Mihaela Buzarnescu/ROU
...the 30-year old Romanian's dream 2017-18 continues. After winning seven ITF titles in '17 she made her slam debut at the U.S. Open last summer, then reached the semifinals in Linz in just her second career WTA MD appearance. So far in 2018, Buzarnescu has climbed into the Top 35 (she'll be a slam seed for the first time in Paris while still seeking her maiden MD win at a major), reached two singles finals (on two surfaces) and two doubles finals (including this week with countrywoman Raluca Olaru, picking up her first career tour-level title). In Strasbourg, she posted wins over Magda Linette (the Pole served for the match), Elena Rybakina and Hsieh Su-wei to reach her third semifinal of the season, falling to Dominika Cibulkova.
In Twitter terms, she started the week like this...
Finally decided to create my official Twitter account ?? I'm making progress!
— Mihaela Buzarnescu (@MickyBuzarnescu) May 19, 2018
Next tournament: @WTA_Strasbourg ! ??
And ended it like this...
Wow finally my 1st WTA title???? !
— Mihaela Buzarnescu (@MickyBuzarnescu) May 26, 2018
Big thanks to my partner @Raluca_Olaru and @WTA_Strasbourg for this amazing week. Now heading off to @rolandgarros ?? #haide #happymiki pic.twitter.com/zgycfVkFz6
Pretty good.
===============================================
VETERANS: Dominika Cibulkova/SVK and Kirsten Flipkens/BEL
...in reaching her second final of the season in Strasbourg, Cibulkova may not have picked up her first title since her dream WTA Finals run in Singapore to end 2016, but she came about as close as she could have. Wins over defending champ Sam Stosur and Mihaela Buzarenscu got her into the final, where she had two MP vs. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, only to lose in a three-TB match that lasted 3:35.
Strasbourg final for @Cibulkova. pic.twitter.com/TTUj73o8s8
— Ashish TV ???? (@Ashish__TV) May 25, 2018
In Nurnberg, Flipkens reached the semis in singles (notching an upset win over two-time defending champ Kiki Bertens), her first final four result on tour since 2016, while also reaching the doubles final with singles champ Johanna Larsson. With the Swede was playing in her third match of the day, they still very nearly took the title, losing a 10-7 final set TB to Schuurs/Srebotnik.
===============================================
COMEBACK: Margarita Gasparyan/RUS
...bedeviled by multiple knee surgeries in recent seasons, 23-year Gasparyan was once a shining Russian hope. She won a tour title in '15, then reached the AO Round of 16 and pushed near the Top 40 (#41) early in '16 while also winning three tour-level doubles titles in about nine months time. But after undergoing knee surgery after Wimbledon that year she missed fifteen months. She played four matches late last year, then was out again until late April of '18. Now in her fourth event back, she's reached the final of the $25K challenger is Les Franqueses del Valles, Spain as the world #649. After reaching the MD through qualifying, she posted a win over Katherine Sebov, got a walkover from Marcela Zacarias, then defeated Ana Sofia Sanchez (1 & love) and Katie Swan (6-1/2-0 before the Brit retired) to reach the final, where she'll face 20-year old Spaniard Paula Badosa, who'll be going for her tenth ITF win in eleven career finals. It would be Gasparyan's first singles title since April 2015.
===============================================
FRESH FACES: Fanny Stollar/HUN and the NCAA champions
...best known so far for her Charleston win over Johanna Konta (her first tour-level MD victory), 19-year old Stollar made her way through Nurnberg qualifying this week and then posted MD victories over Zhang Shuai and Heather Watson to advance to her first WTA quarterfinal.
In the NCAA Championships, #15-seeded Stanford picked up the school's record 19th team championship, defeating #1-seeded Vanderbilt 4-3 in the final with Melissa Lord clinching the title. Although, Vanderbilt's Astra Sharma, by way of Down Under, was named the tournament's Most Outstanding player. Her loss in the singles QF on Sunday ended her decorated NCAA career.
Wouldn’t be denied. #GoStanford pic.twitter.com/ttGl470bhx
— Stanford Women’s Tennis (@StanfordWTennis) May 22, 2018
“I don’t think you can find an athlete at Vanderbilt who’s done more.”
— Zac Ellis (@ZacEllisVU) May 22, 2018
Despite NCAA loss, @Vandywtennis star Astra Sharma cements legacy as one of most decorated Commodores ever. #FightDores #NCAATennis https://t.co/CRLzQcBK2u pic.twitter.com/cZVvXbcUec
Stanford's Michaela Gordon is the Rookie of the Year...
The Pac-12's best freshman is also the nation's best: https://t.co/BfVMQjGqxq#GoStanford pic.twitter.com/LaFgxT4WEl
— Stanford Women’s Tennis (@StanfordWTennis) May 25, 2018
The NCAA women's singles championship will be concluded over this Memorial Day weekend. The semifinals will pit Arianne Hartono (Mississippi) vs. Mayar Sherif (Pepperdine), and Fernanda Contreras (Vanderbilt) vs. Ashley Lahey (Pepperdine).
===============================================
DOWN: Samantha Stosur/AUS
...it wasn't a "lost" week for the Aussie, as the defending Strasbourg champ *did* notch two match wins, just her second such result since last October, but her second of this clay season (w/ Prague). She also got a win over the player she defeated in last year's final, countrywoman Dasha Gavrilova. She knocked her off three rounds earlier this time, in the 2nd Round. Hmm, Sam also defeated Dasha (via retirement) in her Prague QF earlier this month. Still, Stosur's QF loss to Dominika Cibulkova was just her second loss in Strasbourg in over a decade (w/ a 1st Round defeat back in '05). She'd won 13 of her last 14 matches in the event prior to the loss, a stretch which includes titles run last year and in '15.
===============================================
ITF PLAYER: TBD
...the $60K Baotou, China challenger will be determined on Sunday between 20-year old Xu Shilin (#363), a former girls #1 seeking her first pro singles title in two years, and Nina Stojanovic, the 21-year old Serb (#308) trying to grab *her* first singles title since October '16.
===============================================
JUNIOR STAR: TBD
...Yuki Naito (JPN/girls #18) and Eleonora Molinaro (LUX/girls #25) will meet to decide the winner of the Grade A Trofeo Bonfiglio event in Milan. Naito is coming off final runs at the Sarawak and Nonthaburi Grade 1 tournaments, while Molinaro is riding a 15-match winning streak in juniors (including a G1 win in Beaulieu-sur-Mer). She's 28-2 in juniors this season, and 24-3 in ITF/Fed Cup matches.
===============================================
DOUBLES: Demi Schuurs/NED, Katrina Srebotnik/SLO and Raluca Olaru/ROU
...Schuurs was at it again in Nurnberg. A week after teaming with Ash Barty for a title in Rome, she put together her second back-to-back title haul of the season (w/ Brisbane/Hobart) by taking the crown this time with Srebotnik. The pair knocked off #1-seeded Melichar/Peschke in the SF (Melichar was also DC, having won in '17 w/ Anna Smith), then won a 10-7 3rd set TB over Flipkens/Larsson in the final. Schuurs has won a tour-leading four titles this season, taking the crowns with four different partners. 37-year old Srebotnik grabbed her second title of the season, the 39th of her career, moving her within two of catching Sania Mirza (41), out for the season while pregnant, for the active tour lead.
Olaru's title run in Strasbourg with Buzarnescu gives her two for the season, having also won in her last tour MD appearance in Rabat with Anna Blinkova. She's won nine titles in her tour career, and before that teamed with Buzarnescu to take the 2006 U.S. Open girls doubles championship.
===============================================
Not the picture I want to be posting but an update for everyone:I had to get surgery on my knee last week & will not be competing for a while. I’m giving a????to no more pain & a successful recovery! Thanks for all of the support! Time to begin this comeback journey?????? pic.twitter.com/6Hv7aRAKtC
— Shelby Rogers (@Shelby_Rogers_) May 22, 2018
...6-7(5)/7-6(3)/7-6(6). The Russian wins a crazy one in 3:35, saving two MP down 5-4 in the 3rd. After trailing 4-2 in the deciding TB, Pavlyuchenkova won four straight points to reach her own double MP. She didn't get either, but then took the final two points to secure the title. She had 73 winners on the day, 13 aces and 49 UE's, edging Cibulkova 136-134 in total points.
===============================================
2. Nurnberg 1st Rd. - Yulia Putintseva def. Sloane Stephens
...5-7/6-4/7-6(3). The match was suspended at 3-3 in the 3rd on Tuesday. When things resumed the next day, Putintseva served for the match and held a MP before things went to a TB, where the Kazakh ultimately prevailed to get her fifth career Top 10 win. The two combined to convert 18 of 46 BP chances in the match.
===============================================
In a repeat of 2017 @WTA_Strasbourg final, Samantha Stosur emerges as winner again, beating compatriot Daria Gavrilova 6-3, 6-4.
— WTA Scores (@Scores_WTA) May 23, 2018
Sam is on a 13-match winning streak in Strasbourg, last defeat came in 2005! #IS18 pic.twitter.com/Scty7DC47m
3. Strasburg 2nd Rd. - Samantha Stosur def. Dasha Gavrilova
...6-3/6-4. A year ago, Gavrilova lost to her fellow Aussie in three sets in the final.
===============================================
Johanna Larsson lifts her first WTA ?? in three years! pic.twitter.com/NZ5oLVitHx
— WTA (@WTA) May 26, 2018
4. Nurnberg Final - Johanna Larsson def. Alison Riske
...7-6(4)/6-4. Riske is 0-5 in tour-level finals since winning in her maiden championship match in Tianjin in 2014. She's lost all five matches in straights, three of them after dropping a 1st set TB.
===============================================
5. Nurnberg QF - Kirsten Flipkens def. Kiki Bertens
...5-7/6-3/7-6(3). Two weeks after Halep didn't get her three-peat in Madrid, Bertens doesn't get a THIRD straight title in Nurnberg. The last remaining potential attempt on tour this year: Wozniacki in Tokyo.
===============================================
...6-2/6-7(8)/7-6(5). Proof that a Pliskova twin *can* still play a match (even a 2:33 one) without inflicting collateral damage. Well, unless you count the #2-seeded German.
.@KrisPliskova defeats Julia Georges 6-2, 6-7(8), 7-6(5)!
— WTA (@WTA) May 21, 2018
Will face @laraarrua in the @NuernbergerCup second round! pic.twitter.com/oBYolJ0QiR
===============================================
...the two-time finalist and 2010 RG champ is in her 69th career slam MD (she participated in the Q/MD of 73 of the last 75 majors dating back to the 1999 U.S. Open, only not making trips to Melbourne in '00 and earlier this year). Schiavone knocked off two seeds (#23 Zaho, #10 Rodina) en route to the MD, losing just one set in three matches and wiping out Rodina love & 1 in the final round.
19th main draw appearance for Francesca Schiavone...#RG18 pic.twitter.com/l4GWxXXiTO
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 25, 2018
*ROLAND GARROS "Q-PLAYER OF THE WEEK" WINNERS*
2006 Julia Vakulenko/UKR
2007 Timea Bacsinszky/SUI & Raluca Olaru/ROU
2008 Maria Jose Martinez-Sanchez/ESP & Yanina Wickmayer/BEL
2009 Yaroslava Shvedova/KAZ
2010 Kaia Kanepi/EST
2011 Sloane Stephens/USA
2012 Kiki Bertens/NED
2013 Anna Karolina Schmiedlova/SVK
2014 Grace Min/USA
2015 Veronica Cepede Royg/PAR
2016 Viktorija Golubic/SUI
2017 Marketa Vondrousova/CZE
2018 Francesca Schiavone/ITA
[2018 slams]
AO: Marta Kostyuk, UKR
RG: Francesca Schiavone, ITA
*ADDITIONAL QUALIFIERS*
Deborah Chiesa, ITA (21, #163) - the NextGen Italian makes her slam debut after notching a final round win over #3 Q-seed Arantxa Rus
Happier than Deborah Chiesa today? Quite impossible: she made her first Grand Slam Main Draw @ChiesaDeborah pic.twitter.com/1I41EAJo8I
— Stefano Berlincioni (@Carretero77) May 25, 2018
Caroline Dolehide, USA (19, #126) - the only teenager to make it through qualifying, Dolehide will now make her slam debut
Mariana Duque Marino, COL (28, #113) - the Colombian posted wins over two Brits (Boulter, Taylor) before winning a 7-5 3rd set, saving two MP and coming back from 5-2 down, over Dalina Jakupovic in the final round.
Alexandra Dulgheru, ROU (28, #160) - the Swarmette, with just one RG MD appearance since 2012, is back from her latest injury-related absence. She reeled off three straight three-set victories this week, coming back from 5-2 and a MP down in the 3rd to win a 9-7 deciding TB over Tamara Korpatch to become the last qualifier to reach the MD. In 2010, Dulgheru had early-career back-to-back-to-back 3rd Round results in Paris, London and New York (her third, fourth and fifth overall major MD's) for her best career slam stretch.
Magdalena Frech, POL (20, #137) - there's no Aga in Paris, but there *is* an additional Pole in the MD after Frech followed up her AO Q-run with another to reach the RG 128
Georgina Garcia Perez, ESP (26, #186) - the Spaniard's career year (which has included a Budapest WD title and Rabat WD final, a $60K ITF singles win and career-high rankings in both disciplines) continues. GGP will make her slam MD debut after coming back for a Q3 win over Harmony Tan after having survived a 2:55 Q2 match vs. Claire Liu ('17 RG Jr. RU).
Viktorija Golubic, SUI (25, #110) - one of two fully healthy Swiss woman in the MD (along w/ Voegele, as Bencic is returning from another two-month break, while Bacsinszky has already pulled out), Golubic won a three-setter over Anna Kalinskaya, winning a 2nd set TB after dropping the 1st set, to get the final round win.
Richel Hogenkamp, NED (26, #134) - the Dutch woman defeats Bianca Andreescu, who'd knocked off #1 Q-seed Vera Lapko, to successfully qualify for a second '18 major, running her streak of consecutive MD appearances in slams to five
These kind off days! ???? #maindraw pic.twitter.com/jm1q024CDf
— Richel Hogenkamp (@Richelhogenkamp) May 25, 2018
Barbora Krejcikova, CZE (22, #141) - the '13 RG girls doubles champ makes her grand slam singles debut.
Grace Min, USA (24, #197) - the Bannerette (def. #11 Sorribes Tormo and Trevisan) is 0-5 in career MD matches in slams
Congratulations to Caroline Dolehide, @GraceMin56 and @deniskudla for qualifying for the main draw at Roland Garros! ??
— USTA (@usta) May 25, 2018
This will also be Dolehide's first main draw at a Grand Slam!
Read More: https://t.co/k8sU4oM3Gm pic.twitter.com/m3s17FeKBM
Rebecca Peterson, SWE (22/#96) - the #2 Q-seed, the Swede will make her RG debut and seek her first MD win at a major
=LL=
Dalila Jakupovic, SLO - the last player into the MD after Bacsinszky's withdrawal, Jakupovic will make her grand slam debut in Paris
Arantxa Rus, NED - into her first slam MD since the '13 Wimbledon following nine unsuccessful (and now 10) qualifying attempts since the '14 AO. Rus reached the RG Round of 16 in 2012.
TOP QUALIFYING MATCH: Q3: Alexandra Dulgheru/ROU d. Tamara Korpatsch/GER
...6-1/5-7/7-6(7). Dulgheru comes back from MP down and 5-2 in the 3rd to claim the last qualifier's spot in the MD
*ADDITIONAL QUALIFYING RESULTS OF NOTE*
Q1: #19 Evgeniya Rodina def. Ankita Raina
...6-3/7-6(2). Raina makes her slam Q-round debut, but won't become the first Indian woman in a major singles MD since Sania Mirza at the 2012 Australian.
===============================================
Q1: #4 Anna Blinkova def. Cagla Buyukakcay
...6-3/6-2. Two years ago, Buyukakcay's Q-run in Paris to reach the MD was one of her biggest "first Turkish player to..." moments, topped days later when she won her 1st Round match. She eventually won a 1st Round match at the U.S. Open later that season and at last year's RG. With this loss, she's now lost in qualifying at the last four majors.
===============================================
Q1: Bianca Andreescu def. #1 Vera Lapko
...6-4/7-5. Lapko had comes to Paris having won 15 of 16 matches and two straight ITF titles. She had three SP in the 2nd, but Andreescu pulled off her biggest win since upsetting Mladenovic last summer in D.C.. But the Canadian's maiden slam MD win will have to wait, as she fell in the final round vs. Richel Hogenkamp.
===============================================
Q1: #13 Dalila Jakupovic def. Genie Bouchard
...6-0/2-1 ret. Playing in her first match since Charleston, Bouchard can't finish and drops to 6-7 (w/ her 2-0 Fed Cup mark included) on the season.
===============================================
Q1: WC Diane Parry def. #5 Jana Fett
...6-7(6)/6-1/7-5. Pastry Parry, 15, was the youngest in the draw (a little more than two months the junior of Marta Kostyuk). Fett had a 5-1 lead and held 2 MP in the 2nd Round of the AO vs. eventual champion Caroline Wozniacki. She's gone 6-10 since.
===============================================
Q2: Martina Trevisan def. Marta Kostyuk
...6-3/6-3. There'll be no repeat of the 15-year old Ukrainian's surprise 3rd Round AO run as a qualifier.
===============================================
Q3: #7 Mariana Duque Marino def. #13 Dalila Jakupovic
...4-6/6-1/7-5. The Colombian comes back from 5-2 down in the 3rd, saving a MP, to become the second South American (w/ PAR's VCR) in the MD.
===============================================
Q3: #22 Richel Hogenkamp def. Bianca Andreescu
...6-3/7-6(9). Nevertheless, I'm still sticking with the preseason prediction that Andreescu will be the highest-ranked Canadian by year's end.
???? (201) Bianca Andreescu falls 3-6, 6-7 (9) v ???? (134) Richèl Hogenkamp in final round of #RolandGarros qualifying
— Mark Masters (@markhmasters) May 25, 2018
1st time since 2006 Wimbledon that there will be no Canadian women in main draw singles at a grand slam
Bouchard, Zhao, Abanada also lost in qualifying
===============================================
*WILD CARDS*
Fiona Ferro, FRA - her second straight RG WC; Ferro's 0-3 in the MD in Paris
Myrtille Georges, FRA - three consecutive RG WC; reached 2nd Round in 2016
Amandine Hesse, FRA - four consecutive RG WC; reached 2nd Round in 2015
Chloe Paquet, FRA - her second straight RG WC; won her 1st Rd. match last year
Pauline Parmentier, FRA - at 32, the oldest slam WC in '18; reached 4th Round in '14; ranked in the Top 75 after winning her first tour title in nearly a decade in Istanbul in April
Jessika Ponchet, FRA - made her slam debut at 2018 AO, also via a wild card from the FFT
Taylor Townsend, USA - Top 75 player who won USTA's RG Playoff Challenge for third time since '14; reached 3rd Round in '14, and is 4-4 in RG MD (0-6 in other majors)
Isabelle Wallace, AUS - makes slam debut after winning TA's RG WC Playoff tournament in Paris last weekend
*YOUNGEST 2018 SLAM...*
=WC=
AO - Wang Xinyu, CHN (16)
AO - Destanee Aiava, AUS (17)
AO - Jaimee Fourlis, AUS (18)
AO - Lizette Cabrera, AUS (20)
AO - Jessika Ponchet, FRA (21)
RG - Jessic Ponchet, FRA (21)
RG - Fiona Ferro, FRA (21)
RG - Isabelle Wallace, AUS (21)
=Q=
AO - Marta Kostyuk, UKR (15)
AO - Viktoria Kuzmova, SVK (19)
AO - Anna Blinkova, RUS (19)
AO - Anna Kalinskaya, RUS (19)
RG - Caroline Dolehide, USA (19)
AO - Magdalena Frech, POL (20)
RG - Magdalena Frech, POL (20)
AO - Ivana Jorovic, SRB (20)
RG - Deborah Chiesa, ITA (21)
=OLDEST 2018 SLAM...=
=WC=
RG - Pauline Parmentier, FRA (32)
RG - Myrtille Georges, FRA (27)
AO - Olivia Rogowska, AUS (26)
=Q=
RG - Francesca Schiavone, ITA (37)
RG - Alexandra Dulgheru, ROU (28)
RG - Mariana Duque Marino, COL (28)
AO - Irina Falconi, USA (27)
RG - Georgina Garcia Perez, ESP (26)
RG - Richel Hogenkamp, NED (26)
=LL=
RG - Aranxa Rus, NED (27)
RG - Dalila Jakupovic, SLO (27)
AO - Bernarda Pera, USA (23)
AO - Viktoriya Tomova, BUL (22)
=LOW-RANKED 2018 SLAM QUALIFIERS=
#521 - Marta Kostyuk, UKR (AO)
#279 - Ivana Jorovic, SRB (AO)
#265 - Francesca Schiavone, ITA (RG)
#197 - Grace Min, USA (RG)
#186 - Georgina Garcia Perez, ESP (RG)
#163 - Magdalena Frech, POL (AO)
#163 - Deborah Chiesa, ITA (RG)
#160 - Anna Kalinskaya, RUS (AO)
#160 - Alexandra Dulgheru, ROU (RG)
=LL=
#139 - Viktoriya Tomova, BUL (AO)
#126 - Bernarda Pera, USA (AO)
#121 - Dalila Jakupovic, SLO (RG)
Hi-5 with the World #1: @Simona_Halep making the day of a little fan in Paris pic.twitter.com/tQ7SKNDIfv
— Jimmie48 Photography (@JJlovesTennis) May 26, 2018
When getting ready for @rolandgarros, a regular training is just not enough. So thank you @airbaltic for helping me out with some special equipment! #cs300airBaltic ?? https://t.co/4UfhTi7veb
— Jelena Ostapenko (@JelenaOstapenk8) May 23, 2018
Went to Latvia to visit Jelena "Alona" Ostapenko as she prepared to defend her surprise French Open title. She goes for it behind the wheel just like she does on the court https://t.co/QVbs3S51sv
— Christopher Clarey (@christophclarey) May 25, 2018
Thank you to our defending champions, @RafaelNadal and @JelenaOstapenk8, for joining us at the #RG18 Draw Ceremony! pic.twitter.com/ibIJYQLlpJ
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 24, 2018
Loved spending time with this little love bug today @OlympiaOhanian !! I think she liked my @ovvooptics sunglasses ???? pic.twitter.com/Q0qagwuScZ
— Caroline Wozniacki (@CaroWozniacki) May 24, 2018
So honored to be featured on the cover of @espn alongside the top athletes in the world! #WorldFame
— Caroline Wozniacki (@CaroWozniacki) May 21, 2018
.
.
.
Hair @stevenhoeppner
Makeup @taryllatkins
Story @lookihere
Photo @erikmadiganheck
Stylist @katherinelande pic.twitter.com/sCSUEIf9LM
Surely you're hearing Laurel when I'm pronouncing it? pic.twitter.com/U78sW4QD4b
— Daria Gavrilova (@Daria_gav) May 22, 2018
Oh it's just me again. My dog Harry thought this was fur, but I had to explain to him that is just a bathrobe...and that he is adopted..tough talk pic.twitter.com/zewiqd5ESa
— Venus Williams (@Venuseswilliams) May 21, 2018
Bonjour ?? pic.twitter.com/A7znfmoY07
— Maria Sharapova (@MariaSharapova) May 22, 2018
Musée de Picasso pic.twitter.com/Znsicm7b6c
— Maria Sharapova (@MariaSharapova) May 25, 2018
Australian Open - Caroline Wozniacki (2 MP - 2r/Fett)
Charleston - Kiki Bertens (1 MP - SF/Keys)
Strasbourg - Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (2 MP - F/Cibulkova)
**2018 LONG MATCHES**
3:45 - Australian Open 3rd - Halep d. Davis
3:35 - Strasbourg Final - Pavlyuchenkova d. Cibulkova
3:20 - FC Americas I PP - Cepede Royg d. Haddad
**2018 - DEFEATED #1 SEED, WON TITLE**
Auckland - Julia Goerges, GER (F-Wozniacki)
Australian Open - Caroline Wozniacki, DEN (F-Halep)
Doha - Petra Kvitova, CZE (SF-Wozniacki)
Budapest - Alison Van Uytvanck, BEL (F-Cibulkova)
Indian Wells - Naomi Osaka, JPN (SF-Halep)
Rome - Elina Svitolina, UKR (F-Halep)
Strasbourg - Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, RUS (SF-Barty)
**2018 - DEFEATED DOUBLES #1 SEED & DC, WON TITLE**
Indian Wells - Hsieh/Strycova (2r-L.Chan,F-Makarova/Vesnina)
Stuttgart - Atawo/Groenefeld (SF-Klep/MJMS,2r-Ostapenko)
Nurnburg - Schuurs/Srebotnik (SF-Melichar/Peschke,SF-Melichar)
**WINLESS IN 2+ 2018 WTA FINALS**
0-2...Mihaela Buzarnescu, ROU (0-2)
0-2...DOMINIKA CIBULKOVA, SVK (0-2)
0-2...Dasha Kasatkina, RUS (0-2)
**LOW-RANKED 2018 FINALISTS**
#183 - Stefanie Voegele (Acapulco - lost to Errani)
#132 - Anna Karolina Schmiedlova (Bogota - def. Arrubarrena)
#122 - Pauline Parmentier (Istanbul - def. Hercog)
#105 - ALISON RISKE (Nurnberg - lost to Larsson)
**CAREER WTA TITLES - RUSSIANS**
36 - Maria Sharapova (2003-17)
17 - Svetlana Kuznetsova (2002-16)
16 - Elena Dementieva (2003-10)
13 - Nadia Petrova (2005-12)
12 - ANASTASIA PAVLYUCHENKOVA (2010-18)
12 - Vera Zvonareva (2003-11)
12 - Dinara Safina (2002-09)
10 - Anastasia Myskina (1999-05)
**2018 WTA DOUBLES FINALS**
4...DEMI SCHUURS, NED (4-0)
3...KATARINA SREBOTNIK, SLO (2-1)
3...KIRSTEN FLIPKENS, BEL (1-2)
3...Ekaterina Makarova, RUS (1-2)
3...Elena Vesnina, RUS (1-2)
3...Andreja Klepac, SLO (0-3)
3...Maria Jose Martinez-Sanchez, ESP (0-3)
**2018 FIRST-TIME WTA DOUBLES CHAMPIONS**
Anna Blinkova, RUS
Naomi Broady, GBR
MIHAELA BUZARNESCU, ROU
Georgina Garcia Perez, ESP
Simona Halep, ROU
Irina Khromacheva, RUS
Bibiane Schoofs, NED
Sara Sorribes Tormo, ESP
Fanny Stollar, HUN
*WTA CAREER DOUBLES TITLES - active*
41 - Sania Mirza, IND
39 - KATARINA SREBOTNIK, SLO
29 - Kveta Peschke, CZE
28 - Latisha Chan, TPE
27 - Sara Errani, ITA
26 - Bethanie Mattek-Sands, USA
25 - Andrea S.-Hlavackova, CZE
*NCAA WOMEN'S TOURNAMENT CHAMPIONS*
[recent singles winners]
2009 Mallory Cecil, Duke
2010 Chelsey Gullickson, Georgia
2011 Jana Juricova, California
2012 Nicole Gibbs, Stanford
2013 Nicole Gibbs, Stanford
2014 Danielle Collins, Virginia
2015 Jamie Loeb, North Carolina
2016 Danielle Collins, Virginia
2017 Brienne Minor, Michigan
2018 ?
[overall singles champions by school]
14 - Stanford
4 - Florida
3 - Georgia
2 - California, Duke, Virginia
1 - Baylor, Georgia Tech, Miami, Michigan, San Diego, UCLA, USC, Wake Forest
[most singles titles]
2 - Sandra Birch, Stanford
2 - Danielle Collins, Virginia
2 - Patty Fendick, Stanford
2 - Nicole Gibbs, Stanford
2 - Laura Granville, Stanford
2 - Amber Liu, Stanford
2 - Lisa Raymond, Florida
[recent team champions]
2009 Duke
2010 Stanford
2011 Florida
2012 Florida
2013 Stanford
2014 UCLA
2015 Vanderbilt
2016 Stanford
2017 Florida
2018 Stanford
[most team titles]
19...Stanford
7...Florida
2...Georgia
2...UCLA
2...USC
2...Texas
you hired me to sweep the streets, and technically this is on the street.
— Clint Falin (@ClintFalin) May 25, 2018
(redditor caramelised-liqour) pic.twitter.com/j0teHveUO0
I’m excited to announce my vocal record debut! This is a new accompaniment of a cover of “Rain” by Patti Griffin. I’m honored to be able to share my music with the world & hope it is enjoyed. You can listen, stream & buy on major digital platforms or here: https://t.co/WMYpkUBUyk pic.twitter.com/D0MUgU9MFe
— Vania King (@queen_v21) May 26, 2018
I‘m sitting on a bench near a river and so far a bearded guy in a Bob Dylan T-Shirt, a girl with the best ass I‘ve seen so far this year, at least 3 supermodels and a Prince Harry doppelganger have ran past me and I guess I‘m in Paris now.
— Andrea Petkovic (@andreapetkovic) May 26, 2018