Taiwan’s Chan sisters cruised into the quarter-finals of the doubles at the Bank of the West Classic in Stanford, California, on Monday.
Top seeds Chan Hao-ching and Chan Yung-jan, the world No. 32 and No. 22 in doubles respectively, crushed Japanese veteran Kimiko Date-Krumm and Mandy Minella of Luxembourg 6-1, 6-3 at the Taube Family Tennis Stadium at Stanford University.
The Taiwanese sisters saved five of six break points and converted five of eight, winning 55 of the 90 points contested to wrap up the victory in just 53 minutes.
Photo: AFP
In the quarter-finals, the top seeds are to face Kateryna Bondarenko of Ukraine and Tatjana Maria of Germany, who ousted Eva Hrdinova of the Czech Republic and Petra Martic of Croatia 7-6 (8/6), 6-3 in their first-round match on Monday.
In the singles, sixth seed Andrea Petkovic got her body “realigned” and returned to form to beat fellow German Carina Witthoeft in their first-round match.
“I played really bad up to 1-5,” Petkovic said. “It felt like my upper body and lower body were swapped. After that I played fine.”
Photo: Screen grab from Facebook
World No. 17 Petkovic won 5-7, 6-1, 6-3.
“Stanford is special with the conditions. The ball really flies,” she said. “You have to feel the court.”
Seventh seed Madison Keys also advanced. The world No. 18 of the US needed just 52 minutes to take care of Aleksandra Krunic 6-3, 6-0.
“I think I played really well,” Keys said. “Once I got the lead, I tried to keep the pressure on her. My first serve was definitely working for me and that’s something I want to keep up.”
Teenager CiCi Bellis of the US lost her first-round match to Japanese qualifier Misaki Doi 6-3, 7-6 (7/3). Bellis was the youngest player in 15 years to win a match at the US Open last year.
“I thought I played pretty well and gave her a good fight,” said Bellis, who lives a few minutes from the campus. “It’s good for me to play against players ranked so high.”
Qualifier Nicole Gibbs, who won a pair of NCAA singles titles while at Stanford, beat France’s Caroline Garcia 6-4, 7-5 for her first WTA Tour victory since April.
“This was a big barrier for me to break through,” Gibbs said. “To do it in front of my home crowd was something special.”
Alison Riske of the US topped Maria 6-2, 5-7, 6-1 to earn a date with third-seeded Carla Suarez Navarro in the second round of the tournament that is a tune up for the US Open at the end of the month. Doi meets second seed Agnieszka Radwanska tomorrow.
Also on Monday, Mona Barthel beat wild card Carol Zhao 6-3, 6-0.
World No. 1 and defending champion Serena Williams withdrew last week due to injury.
US track and field athletes have about four dozen pieces to choose from when assembling their uniforms at the Olympics. The one grabbing the most attention is a high-cut leotard that barely covers the bikini line and has triggered debate between those who think it is sexist and others who say they do not need the Internet to make sure they have good uniforms. Among those critical or laughing at the uniforms included Paralympian Femita Ayanbeku, sprinter Britton Wilson and even athletes from other countries such as Britain’s Abigail Irozuru, who wrote on social media: “Was ANY female athlete consulted in
Four-time NBA all-star DeMarcus Cousins arrived in Taiwan with his family early yesterday to finish his renewed contract with the Taiwan Beer Leopards in the T1 League. Cousins initially played a four-game contract with the Leopards in January. On March 18, the Taoyuan-based team announced that Cousins had renewed his contract. “Hi what’s up Leopard fans, I’m back. I’m excited to be back and can’t wait to join the team,” Cousins said in a video posted on the Leopard’s Facebook page. “Most of all, can’t wait to see you guys, the fans, next weekend. So make sure you come out and support the Beer
Former US Masters champion Zach Johnson was left embarrassed after a foul-mouthed response to ironic cheers from spectators after a triple bogey at Augusta National on Friday. Johnson, the 2007 Masters winner, missed the cut after his three-over-par round of 75 left him on seven-over 151 for 36 holes, his six on the par-three 12th playing a big role in his downfall. Television footage showed Johnson reacting to sarcastic cheers and applause when he tapped in for the triple bogey by yelling: “Oh fuck off.” Such a response would be considered bad form in any golf tournament, but is particularly out of keeping
The sacred flame for the Paris Olympics was lit yesterday in Olympia, Greece, the birthplace of the ancient Games, in a ceremony inspired by antiquity and marked by messages of hope amid multiple global crises. “In ancient times, the Olympic Games brought together the Greek city states, even — and in particular — during times of war and conflict,” International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach said. “Today, the Olympic Games are the only event that brings the entire world together in peaceful competition. Then as now, the Olympic athletes are sending this powerful message — yes, it is possible to compete fiercely