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Sam Stosur Pre Tournament: Apia International Sydney 2012
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Archive for October, 2011
Sam’s season comes to a close
30 October 2011
Samantha Stosur's run at the season-ending WTA Championships has come to a halt at the hands of big-hitting Petra Kvitova in Istanbul on Saturday. The reigning Wimbledon champion rallied from a set down to defeat Stosur 5-7 6-3 6-3 in just over two hours in a gripping semifinal encounter at the Sinan Erdem Arena. World No.3 Kvitova, undefeated indoors this year in 18 matches, will play Victoria Azarenka in Sunday's title decider in a rematch of their semifinal at the All England Club this year. Azarenka easily accounted for Vera Zvonareva 6-2 6-3 in the other semifinal. Stosur did well to withstand an early barrage from Kvitova to win the opening set but the US Open champion was eventually worn down by the lanky left-hander's power hitting. The Australian picks up AUD$345,000 for her work this week before a well-deserved three-week break ahead of the Australian summer. Stosur ends the year as world No.6 for the second straight campaign. However the Queenslander is a much more content figure these days following her Flushing Meadows success. She was not too disheartened by her defeat to Kvitova, having at least claimed a set off her in their third meeting. "This was definitely my best match against her so far," Stosur. "I guess that's pleasing. "At least I was able to come off the court knowing that I did everything I could. "I got beaten by a player who played very well today. I'm happy with the way I played." While many of her rivals limped to the finishing line at the end-of-season tournament, Stosur was hungry for the new season to start. "It was the same thing last year, I got to the Championships and felt like I started playing really well again, almost didn't want to stop," she said. "Now I could probably say the same thing now, but obviously it's been a long year and you always look forward to that break. "But certainly it's now makes you eager to do that training and get into the next year." Stosur entered the contest having lost her two previous matches against Kvitova in straight sets. Standing a full four inches taller than the Australian, the left-hander dominated the opening exchanges in the indoor arena but Stosur hung in there. At 3-4 and 0-40 down, the Australian pounced and then broke Kvitova for a second time in the 12th game to claim the set. Kvitova rebounded to crack Stosur's serve in the third game of the second set and the Australian found it difficult to contain her thumping ground strokes. After collecting the second set, Kvitova looked like cruising through the final set. At 5-0 down and in danger of not getting on the board in the final set, Stosur gritted her teeth and pulled back three games before Kvitova sealed the win.Vote for Sam!
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Sam powers into WTA semis
29 October 2011
Reigning US Open champion Samantha Stosur has developed a habit of picking on the world's best players. The Australian continued to bully her higher-ranked opponents by mauling French Open champion Li Na 6-1 6-0 in their final round-robin match at the WTA Championships. She has produced a tour-leading seven wins from nine matches against the top five this year. Stosur rebounded from a midweek loss to Victoria Azarenka in Istanbul to steamroll her way past world No.5 Li and into the semifinals of the USD$4.9m tournament. Such was the Australian's grip on the contest the Chinese player was unable to hold serve for the entire match. World No.7 Stosur thought the reason for her success against the cream of world's tennis was because she had no choice but to be at her very best. "It's always good to have a record like that," she said. "For some reason the last couple of years I have been able to have good records against top 10 players, top five players. "I think I go into those matches thinking I can play well and really have no choice but to try and do that. "And if you do, then I feel my tennis can match up well against anyone. "I guess I have managed to do that at the right time." The win improved Stosur's record against Li to 6-0, with four of those wins coming this year. Li made a terrific start to 2011 by reaching the Australian Open final before becoming the China's first Grand Slam champion at Roland Garros. However, her form has petered out in the second half of the year and Stosur's power game overwhelmed her at the Sinan Erdem Arena. Li said Stosur had become an even formidable opponent following her career-defining win at Flushing Meadows last month. "After Sam win the US Open, I think for sure she has a lot of confidence," Li said. "Before she always had tough serve for all the girls and after she won the US Open, I mean [she's] even tougher." Stosur's coach David Taylor said the win had shown his charge had become a far more robust player. "That loss against Victoria could have really hurt her but this showed that she is really at the top of her game at the moment," he said. Stosur was determined to make up for her wayward performance against Azarenka. "I was thankful it wasn't my last match and had another chance to come out and try and redeem myself and play better," she said. "If I lost tonight I wanted to lose on my terms and play well at least. "Obviously I didn't really get close to that." Stosur will play the in-form Petra Kvitova in Saturday's semifinals, the big Czech left-hander having won both their two encounters at the 2008 French Open and this year's Australian Open. The Queenslander lost in the semifinals of last year's season-ending tournament to eventual champion Kim Clijsters. Victoria Azarenka takes on Vera Zvonareva for the other spot in the final with action starting from 3pm on Saturday (2300 AEDT).Sam 1-1 in Istanbul
27 October 2011
Samantha Stosur suffered a straights-sets loss at the hands of world No.4 Victoria Azarenka at the season-ending USD$4.9 million (AUD$4.7 million) WTA Championships in Turkey. Following her breakthrough victory over Maria Sharapova on Tuesday night, the Australian was out of sorts in her 6-2 6-2 round-robin loss to the clinical Belarussian at Istanbul's Sinan Erdem Arena. It was the Queenslander's fifth straight defeat against Azarenka and the world No.4 has yet to drop a set against Stosur. The result means the reigning US Open champion must defeat Li Na in her final round-robin match on Friday (Saturday AM AEDT) to reach Saturday's semifinals. The top two players from each group advance to weekend action in the elite eight-woman competition. "I didn't play aggressive enough. I don't feel like I did anything," Stosur said. "I just kind of got pushed around the court and, eventually, was made to make an error or she'd hit a winner." Stosur produced 26 unforced errors to her opponent's 13 but dismissed her tight schedule being the reason behind her ordinary showing. "I can't blame that," she said. "Yeah, it was a quick turnaround but I felt like I was ready to go." Li ended Sharapova's hopes of reaching the final four with a 7-6(4) 6-4 victory - the French Open champion's first win in two months. "I was so happy to win this match. I was fighting a lot on the court," Li said. Sharapova pulled out of the tournament following her defeat, citing a recurrence of her left ankle injury sustained in Tokyo last month. Her withdrawal confirmed Caroline Wozniacki as the end-of-year world No.1 for the second straight year. Having snapped a nine-match losing streak against Sharapova on Tuesday night, Stosur was a shadow of herself against another scream queen on Wednesday. After playing in the last match on the first night, Stosur was handed a tough schedule by drawing a fresh Azarenka for the opening match of day two. While Stosur entered the match with confidence, the Belarussian was coming off last Sunday's WTA title win in Luxembourg. The Australian made a slow start by dropping her serve twice in the opening set with a series of unforced errors. Stosur screamed out in frustration during the sixth game but continued to fire wide with an overcooked forehand, handing the first set to Azarenka in 34 minutes. The Australian continued to make life hard for herself in the second set, losing her bearings as she sent a simple smash wide and Azarenka marched to a 5-2 lead. Stosur saved three match points before dragging a backhand into the net to end the match in an hour and 18 minutes.Sam tops Maria
26 October 2011
Update 11.35 am. Samantha Stosur ended a career-long nine-match losing streak against Maria Sharapova with a 6-1 7-5 victory in their opening round-robin match at the season-ending WTA Championships in Istanbul. US Open champion Stosur's win over the Russian puts her on track to reach Saturday's semifinals of the elite eight-woman competition. Since their first encounter in 2004, the Australian has spent seven years trying to solve the problem of Maria before finally breaking through on the opening night of the AUD$4.8m championships. Not that the job gets much easier for Stosur, she takes on a fresh Victoria Azarenka on Wednesday night. Stosur has lost all four of her previous meetings with Azarenka but should fancy her chances based on Tuesday's showing at the Sinan Erdem Arena. The Australian imposed her will on the contest early and romped through the first set in less than half an hour. In her first match since injuring her ankle a month ago, Sharapova started to find her game in the second set and broke Stosur's serve. After Sharapova raced to a 3-0 lead in the second set, Stosur clawed her way back and cracked the Russian's serve for a 6-5 lead. The Australian showed plenty of nerve serving for the match as she saved three break points before securing the win with an errant shot from Sharapova. Stosur has regularly had problems against taller players such as Sharapova and Venus Williams with the heavy top-spin from her ground strokes making the ball lift up invitingly into their hitting zones. However, she showed tactical nous to move Sharapova around and frustrate her by mixing up her shots with plenty of slice. Li Na is the other player in Stosur's half of the draw with the top two players from each group progressing to Saturday's semifinals. Stosur said an improved mindset had helped her pull off what she considered one of the best wins of her career. "It was definitely up there with my best victories," she said. "It is hard to rate them but it is definitely one of my most pleasing and being at the Championships and making a good start is a good thing as well." Sharapova said that Stosur's speed around the court and defensive skills had been critical to her win, not attributes the Queenslander has been renowned for in the past. "She was much more explosive than I was and she used her slice really well and it stayed quite low on the court," Sharapova said. "It is our first meeting indoors if I am not mistaken. She played really solid and really well and moved extremely well around the court and made me hit another ball." Stosur has drawn the short straw in the scheduling, being made to start proceedings on day two after playing the last match of day one. However she did not feel she was overly disadvantaged against Azarenka, who will be playing her first match of the tournament on Wednesday at 5pm (0100 AEDT Thursday). "I'm happy to be in my situation rather than hers," Stosur said. "I mean, she was the last one to come here this week after playing the tournament (in Luxembourg) the week before. "And I've had plenty of court time out there and I'm still feeling fresh. I'm fine with playing straight up again." Stosur believed the win against Sharapova put her in a good position to open her account against Azarenka. "Hopefully tonight is going to be a good omen that things are turning around in my favour against players that I've struggled with," she said. "I think it's going be a tough one, new day, and in some ways it's actually a very similar kind of matchup (to Sharapova). " ... Knowing I was able to achieve a good result tonight definitely gives me confidence for tomorrow."Sam ready for Maria
25 October 2011
Samantha Stosur is taking a relaxed attitude into her opening match against nemesis Maria Sharapova at this week's season-ending WTA championships in Istanbul. Stosur has never beaten the Russian in nine encounters, a run dating back to 2004, ahead of Tuesday's round-robin match (Wednesday AM AEDT) at the Sinan Erdem Arena. The expectations on the Australian this week have been tempered by the sight of Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka on her half of the elite AUD$4.8 million tournament. Stosur has never defeated Azarenka in four matches while the Queenslander enjoys a 5-0 win-loss record against Li Na, the other competitor in the group. The US Open champion said the quality of the eight-player field and topsy-turvy nature of women's tennis at the moment made it hard to predict results. "In some ways it does take pressure off knowing you just have to play well," she said. "It is the last tournament of the year I don't think there is too much to lose for everyone. "We just want put it all out there and see what happens." Stosur has had major problems in the past dealing with Sharapova, the Australian's heavy top-spin putting the ball in the tall three-time Grand Slam winner's strike zone. "If I am playing some of the shorter girls then my shots do bounce up higher and it is out of their zone whereas if you are playing someone six foot whatever, that hitting zone is much nicer for them," she said. "But maybe that is where you need to work things out and adjust things slightly." The top two players from the group progress to Saturday's semifinal. Players earn a minimum of AUD$106,000 just for turning up, with the winner collecting up to AUD$1.68m for a week's work. Stosur has the chance to climb as high as No.2 in the world if results fall her way in Istanbul. Being so close to the end of the season, Stosur said players would be determined to finish their campaigns on a high. "We all know we're close to the end of year, but you have five or six days left and you can put absolutely everything into that event, everything into that match," she said. "You can't leave anything to chance when you're playing the best in the world."Stosur heads White group in Istanbul
24 October 2011
US Open champion Samantha Stosur and top-ranked Caroline Wozniacki head two round-robin groups at the WTA Championships this week as Turkey’s biggest city hosts the event for the first time. With Stosur in the white group are three-time major winner Maria Sharapova, Victoria Azarenka and French Open champion Li Na. Wozniacki is joined in the red group by Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova, Vera Zvonareva and Agnieszka Radwanska. Each player meets the other three players in their group, and the top two in each pool move into the semi-finals. Play begins on Tuesday (0100 AEDT on Wednesday) at the Sinan Erdem Arena in Istanbul, which will host theUSD $4.9 million (AUD$4.8 million) event until 2013. The final is on Sunday.WTA Championships, Istanbul
24 October 2011
Date: 25-30 October
Venue: Istanbul, Turkey
Surface: hard (outdoors)
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Follow the live scores
Singles: White Group
| Rd | Opponent | Result | W/L |
|---|---|---|---|
| RR1 | Maria Sharapova | 6-1 7-5 | W |
| RR2 | Victoria Azarenka | 6-2 6-2 | W |
| RR3 | Li Na | 6-1 6-0 | W |
| SF | Petra Kvitova | 5-7 6-3 6-3 | L |
Stosur eyes rise at WTA finale
20 October 2011
Only two months ago, there were some tennis followers who wondered if Samantha Stosur would ever cut it when it really mattered. Now the US Open champion could rise as high as No.2 in the world rankings if results go her way at next week's season-ending WTA Championships in Istanbul. Stosur's ascent is as much down to her brilliant US Open run in New York as the topsy-turvy nature of women's tennis at the moment. While the men's tour has the fab four with Novak Djokovic ruling over Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Andy Murray in 2011, the women's game is searching for a dominant figure to emerge. Caroline Wozniacki holds the No.1 ranking and can claim to be the best player on tour this year but her inability to land a Grand Slam continues to undermine her status. The past three Grand Slam champions on the women's side have all been first timers - Li Na (French Open), Petra Kvitova (Wimbledon) and Stosur. The Australian world No.6 believes the unpredictability in the women's game has kept it interesting as the year's top eight players prepare to meet in the USD$4.9 million (AUD$4.8 million) WTA Championships from Tuesday. "The guys have their dominant four players and, as exciting as that is, it is almost a given that those four are going to make it through whereas, on the women's side, you are not too sure," Stosur told AAP. "I think that makes for really exciting tennis. "You don't really know what is going to happen. There is always an underdog that can knock the top seeds off." Stosur is steadily adjusting to life following her maiden grand slam triumph in New York, the first major title for an Australian woman in 31 years. On her return after Flushing Meadows, the 27-year-old was defeated in consecutive weeks by Russian world No.24 Maria Kirilenko in tight three-setters in Tokyo and Beijing. However, Stosur found some winning form at last week's Japan Open in Osaka, the 2009 champion reaching the final before being trumped 6-3 6-1 by Frenchwoman Marion Bartoli. With a place at the WTA championships in the bag and some wins behind her, Stosur's camp decided to withdraw from this week's Kremlin Cup in Moscow. The WTA championships have the top eight players of the year initially split into two groups, with the draw to be held on Sunday. Each player has three round-robin matches before the semifinals on October 29. Stosur has a positive head-to-head record against Wozniacki (3-2), Vera Zvonareva (8-2) and Li Na (5-0). But she is yet to win a match against Maria Sharapova (0-9), Victoria Azarenka (0-4) and Kvitova (0-2). Either Agnieszka Radwanska or Bartoli will capture the eighth and final spot in Istanbul. Bartoli must take out the Kremlin Cup to earn the berth after Radwanska lost to Lucie Safarova in Moscow on Wednesday.Sam withdraws from Moscow
18 October 2011
Sam Stosur has withdrawn from the Kremlin Cup in Moscow following the final of the HP Japan Women's Open Tennis 2011 in Osaka. Due to a rain delay, Stosur played both the semifinal and final on Sunday. France's Marion Bartoli defeated Stosur 6-3 6-1 to claim the title. Stosur's final tournament of 2011 will be the season-ending championships in Istanbul.Sam adds Osaka finalist to her 2011 achievements
16 October 2011
Australia's US Open champion Samantha Stosur was defeated by France's Marion Bartoli in the final of the Japan Women's Open tennis tournament on Sunday. The French second seed, who eliminated Angelique Kerber of Germany in the rain-delayed semifinals earlier in the day, went on to win the final with a 6-3 6-1 victory in 74 minutes, to win back the singles title she won in 2006. It was Bartoli's second title of the season, following her triumph at Eastbourne, and seventh career title, taking the winner's check of USD$37,000 (AUD$36,400). Stosur, who claimed her first WTA title in 2009 here, beat Zheng Jie of China 7-6(5) 3-6 6-3 in the semifinals in the morning, a match that lasted two hours and 36 minutes. The semifinals were originally scheduled for Saturday, but were delayed until Sunday due to rain.Site Information
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