Angelique Kerber left Singapore in a bad-tempered huff a year ago after she failed to advance from the round-robin stage of the WTA Finals, a collapse which made the German determined to make amends on her return.
On Sunday, world No. 1 Kerber dug deep to edge Dominika Cibulkova 7-6 (7/5), 2-6, 6-3 in her opening Red Group tie, emerging victorious from a baseline slugfest after managing to keep her emotions in check and her focus on victory.
Her smiles in the media center were in sharp contrast to the frown she wore last year when, after needing only to win a set off the already eliminated Lucie Safarova, Kerber buckled under the pressure and was bundled out of the tournament by her Czech opponent.
Photo: EPA
“Yeah, it was for sure a little bit better than the last match I played here against Safarova last year, but it’s always tough to play the first matches here,” a relieved, but happy Kerber told reporters at the Singapore Indoor Stadium. “Of course, the pressure is really big for me, but it’s a new situation. I’m really happy that I dealt with it well today in the first match for me.”
Last year’s meltdown prompted Kerber to overhaul her approach to high-pressure situations, and she vowed to never let her emotions get the better of her on court and instead channel her energy into playing better.
The new maturity has worked wonders for the 28-year-old, who stunned Serena Williams in the Australian Open final in January, reached the Wimbledon final in July and usurped the American as world No. 1 after claiming the US Open title last month.
Photo: Reuters
“The pressure is different for me now, it’s a different situation and I have a lot more commitments to fulfill when I come here compared to before, but it’s a challenge for me and I’m really trying to play my best tennis in the last tournament, in the last week of the season. Of course, now I’m a little bit relaxed after I won,” Kerber said. “It gives me much more confidence to go into the next match after the first win. So I think it’s a good start for me. It was a really close and tough match, so I think that was also really important, to have a match like that in the first round.”
Kerber is next on court today when she takes on Romania’s Simona Halep, who opened her campaign with a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Madison Keys in the late match on Sunday.
SSC Napoli will have to wait one more week to seal the Serie A title after on Sunday being held to a goalless draw at Parma, while closest rivals Inter drew 2-2 in a dramatic game with SS Lazio. Antonio Conte’s team stayed one point ahead of Inter and were unfortunate not to win after twice striking the woodwork through Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa and Matteo Politano, while Scott McTominay also had a free-kick tipped onto the crossbar. The away side thought they would be handed a chance to take the points from the penalty spot in the 96th minute when David Neres
A stunning Lamine Yamal strike on Thursday helped crown Barcelona La Liga champions with a 2-0 win over local rivals RCD Espanyol, with victory ensuring Real Madrid cannot catch them at the top of the table. Yamal’s effort and Fermin Lopez’s goal took Hansi Flick’s side seven points clear of Los Blancos with two matches remaining, to clinch Barcelona’s 28th title and complete a superb domestic treble. Only the UEFA Champions League title escaped an exciting young Barca side this season, as they won the league for the second time in six years, at Espanyol’s ground again just as in 2022-2023. Back then,
Jannik Sinner on Thursday marched into the semi-finals of the Italian Open after destroying Casper Ruud in straight sets 6-0, 6-1, while Coco Gauff won a marathon three-set battle with China’s Zheng Qinwen to advance to the women’s singles final. American Gauff is to face Italy’s Jasmine Paolini in today’s title match after pulling through 7-6 (7/3), 4-6, 7-6 (7/4) in a match that lasted over three-and-a-half hours. Ruud was supposed to be Sinner’s toughest test in Rome since he came back from his three-month doping ban, as the Norwegian came into the match in hot form on clay after winning in
Omar Marmoush’s stunning long-range strike on Tuesday upstaged Kevin de Bruyne on the Manchester City great’s Etihad farewell. Marmoush let fly from about 30m to put City ahead in their 3-1 win against AFC Bournemouth in the Premier League. The victory moved Pep Guardiola’s team up to third in the standings and left qualification for the UEFA Champions League in their own hands heading into the last round of the season. “It’s really important. To be in the Champions League after what happened [this season] will be really nice,” the City manager said. De Bruyne was making his final home appearance for City before
RSS