AFP/Dubai
Caroline Wozniacki, the former world number one from Denmark, admitted she fears for her friends and family after learning of this weekend’s deadly terrorist attacks in Copenhagen.
Wozniacki is trying to focus on preparations for her attempt to win back the Dubai Open title this week but admitted that her mind has wandered on to the horrors of the shootings.
The third-seeded Dane lives 165 miles away in Odense, but her brother Patrik is in the Danish capital and her thoughts immediately turned to him and to his safety.
“I spoke to my brother and he’s safe, but I think it’s horrible what’s happening (in Copenhagen) and in the world in general,” Woznacki said. “And when shootings like that happen close to where you grow up it’s scary.” Asked whether she believed she herself was safe, Wozniacki pondered only briefly, explaining that she thought a fatalistic attitude was the best way to deal with the stressful ambience. “I don’t think about it,” she said. “I don’t want to think whether anyone has control over me. I just live my life. If there’s going to be a shooting it’s going to be.
“But when it’s so close to home you really realise that it’s not great, and that people are affected who are close to you. Some of my best friends live only two minutes away from where the shootings happened.”
Wozniacki has already had plenty of stress in her life after Rory McIlroy, the world’s number one golfer, broke off their relationship five months ago, reportedly by telephone and after some of the wedding invitations had already gone out.
Since then Wozniacki has bravely worked her way up to world number five, her highest ranking for nearly three years, and has improved her form to a level where she is playing well enough to hope for an elusive first Grand Slam title of her career.
Antwerp: Germany’s Andrea Petkovic won the WTA Diamond Games tournament yesterday when her final opponent Carla Suarez Navarro pulled out before the match with a neck injury. Petkovic’s victory is her sixth on the WTA Tour and will ensure she breaks into the world top ten when the new rankings are released.
“I woke up in the morning and I felt this pain in my neck,” said Suarez Navarro.
“I went to the physio to get treatment and tried to play at 11:30, then had physio again and tried to play again at 2:15, and I just couldn’t serve. I couldn’t play like I wanted. So I had to pull out of this final.
“I’m really sorry. I love this tournament and I had a great week. I really tried today.”Wawrinka
Rotterdam: Stan Wawrinka beat Tomas Berdych 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 on Sunday to claim the first indoor title of his career in the ATP Rotterdam World Tennis event.
The Swiss fourth seed lifted his second trophy of the season after winning in Chennai to start the year and reaching an Australian Open semi-final last month.
The 29-year-old ranked eighth in the world, who won the Australian Open a year ago, now owns nine career titles. He came good for his latest trophy after last playing Rotterdam a decade ago.
