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Open BLS De Limoges wrap: Day 4 – Reigning champ the sole seed as home nation reps fall
IN what was a day of upsets, only one seed remains in the Open BLS De Limoges – reigning title holder Ekaterina Alexandrova. The number one seed and two-time winner knocked out one of the only two remaining French women in the draw, Oceane Dodin 6-3 6-4 to advance through to the quarter finals stage. […]
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Open BLS De Limoges wrap: Day 3 – Parmentier knocks out Fed Cup teammate as Alexandrova escapes scare
REIGNING Open BLS De Limoges title holder and number one seed, Ekaterina Alexandrova has escaped a scare from Romanian, Monica Niculescu to move through to the second round. The Russian, gunning for a standalone record of three titles at the event, had to fight hard to win, 6-4 2-6 6-3 in just under two hours. […]
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Open BLS De Limoges wrap: Day 2 – Brady and Pera lead one-sided dominance
THE American success at the Open BLS De Limoges continued on Day 2 of the tournament, with fourth seed Jennifer Brady and eighth seed Bernarda Pera advancing through to the second round without too much fuss. The duo from the United States were among five players that moved past the opening round, not dropping a […]
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Open BLS De Limoges wrap: Day 1 – Gibbs fights back to secure second round spot
AMERICAN qualifier, Nicole Gibbs has moved through to the second round of the Open BLS De Limoges after an impressive come-from-behind win on Day 1. Gibbs made the main draw of the French hardcourt tournament following success navigating the qualifying stages, and was drawn against seventh seed Slovenian, Tamara Zidansek. The 26-year-old American is currently […]
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Year in review – 2019: Belinda Bencic
THE past 12 months have been a rapid rise for Belinda Bencic, who went from a developing talent into a genuine top performer across the WTA Tour. She won just the two titles, but collected more than half of her career prize money, and upped her output to catapult herself into the top 10. Rank: […]
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2019 Open BLS De Limoges preview: Can Alexandrova make it three out of four?
WHILE most of the WTA Tour is enjoying a break before the 2020 season, a number of keen players are descending on France for the final official tournament of the year. The Open BLS De Limoges takes place on hard court in the west-central city of Limoges. Whilst the tournament is only a 125K event […]
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Year in review – 2019: Simona Halep
IF you are only going to win one tournament in a year, then a Grand Slam would be top of the list. For Romanian world number four Simona Halep, that was exactly how her year panned out. Rank: #4 Wins: 43 Losses: 17 Titles: 1 Prize Money: $6,962,442 The 28-year-old Romanian has won more titles […]
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Year in review – 2019: Naomi Osaka
THE up-and-coming developing Japanese talent in Naomi Osaka continues to impress on the world stage, winning back-to-back Grand Slams and has finished top 10 in the past two years. Rank: #3 Wins: 40 Losses: 11 Titles: 3 Prize Money: $14,417,479 After winning the 2018 US Open, Osaka backed it up with the 2019 Australian Open […]
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Year in the review – 2019: Karolina Pliskova
FOR the fourth consecutive year, Czech Republic’s world number two, Karolina Pliskova finished in the top eight. A key player on the WTA Tour, she reached world number one at various stages over the past few years, but sits at number two heading into 2020. Rank: #2 Wins: 52 Losses: 17 Titles: 4 Prize Money: […]
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Year in review – 2019: Ash Barty
ALWAYS touted as a future star of the WTA Tour, Ash Barty lived up to all expectations in 2019, shooting to the top spot in the rankings after claiming Roland Garros mid-year and the WTA Finals. Rank: #1 Wins: 57 Losses: 13 Titles: 4 Prize Money: $11,307,587 Barty became tennis’ most recognisable face on the […]