By Sahan Bidappa
Doha


It’s going to be a blockbuster week of tennis in Doha as nine of the top 10 women’s tennis stars have assembled in Doha for the Qatar Total Open. “There will be no easy matches here,” the 20-year-old rising star Daria Kasatkina declared yesterday after the draw ceremony. While the Russian World No. 23 could afford a smile after she drew a qualifier in the first round, she knows the challenges that lie ahead of her.
The stellar field includes new world no. 1 Caroline Wozniacki, fresh off after winning her maiden Grand Slam title at the Australian Open last month. While the top seed received a first round bye, so did the other seven seeds, Wozniacki finds herself in the same quarter as Angelique Kerber and Maria Sharapova of a stacked draw.
Denmark’s Wozniacki is set to face Sharapova in round of 16, if the latter wins her first two matches. Sharapova will begin her campaign against a qualifier. For the first time in years, five-time Grand Slam champion Sharapova is competing throughout the Middle East swing after she received wildcards for both the Qatar Total Open and Dubai event, which will begin from February 18. This is the Russian’s fourth appearance in Doha, having won the title back in 2005 and 2008.
Kerber, who has been in fine form as well having won in Sydney and reached the Australian Open semi-finals, could face big-serving Sam Stosur or Irina-Camelia Begu in the second round with world no. 11 Johanna Konta or 2016 Doha champion Carla Suarez Navarro projected third-round opponent. Kerber routed Sharapova at the Australian Open and also has a better record against Wozniacki and will be eager to assert her dominance.
Defending champion Karolina Pliskova, meanwhile is seeded fifth, and as would likely face 2014 winner Simona Halep in the quarters.
However, there has been a question mark over the availability of Halep, who is struggling to recover from an ankle injury that she picked up in her Australian Open final loss to Wozniacki.
Romanian pulled out of weekend’s Fed Cup and has arrived in Doha, and will be hoping to recover in time for her second round match against Ekaterina Makarova or Zhang Shuai after a first-round bye.
Pliskova, who also skipped Fed Cup for Czech Republic, will face Anett Kontaveit or Alize Cornet in her first match, with Madison Keys (should she get through Wang Qiang in the first round) a potential third-round opponent.
Kasatkina, who beat Wozniacki in the St Petersburg Ladies Trophy last week, could be Pliskova’s last 16 opponent. Kasatkina had a poor start to the season and was also knocked out in the second round at the Australian Open. But a run to the semi-finals in her home country has lifted her spirits and is keen to square up against big guns in Doha.
“The beginning of the season was not that good for me. But I did well in St. Petersburg, where I reached the semi-finals. I have been hitting the ball well and my confidence is better now,” Kasatkina said after last night’s draw ceremony.
“Of course it’s a very strong tournament. The best players in the women’s tour are here. It’s one of the best tournaments we have. There is no easy opponent here. I am happy that I am here. It’s my third time here and I am really looking forward to playing here,” the 20-year-old Russian added.
In a tournament that is hard to predict, third seed Elina Svitolina is the one to watch out for. The Ukrainian won three Premier-5 titles in 2017 and has already pocketed one this year in Brisbane. On her day, Svitolina can beat anyone and has a fairly decent draw here.
Having received a first round bye, she will be up against Yulia Putintseva or a qualifier. She could face Petra Kvitova, the St Petersburg champion, in the third round and a potential quarter-final with French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko, who is seeded sixth. The 20-year-old Ostapenko, a finalist in Doha in 2016, has not been in best of form and will face Lesia Tsurenko or Mihaela Buzarnescu in the second round.
Wimbledon champion Garbine Muguruza, who has reunited with coach Conchita Martinez, has a fairly good draw. The Spaniard will face wildcard Ons Jabeur of Tunisia or a qualifier in the second round.
Frenchwomen Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic are Muguruza’s potential rivals in last 16. Garcia has a very tough opener against either Dominika Cibulkova or Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.
Mladenovic will face either Elena Vesnina or Peng Shuai in her first match. Vesnina, who is also in the doubles field with her Russian mate Ekaterina Makarova, can spring a surprise on her day. But the key for her will be to manage her workload.
“Playing both the singles and doubles can be really tough. When you play one match a day its fine, but when you have two matches a days it’s not easy. You need to recover and be ready for the next game,” Vesnina said.
“I am playing doubles this week with Ekaterina Makarova so we will see how it goes. It’s a strong tournament. It’s would be an honour to win the tournament. That’s why I am going to try my luck in both singles and doubles, why not?”  she added.
Vesnina, world No. 23 in singles and no. 3 doubles, is one of the top players to play both. “Only few players in the top 10 doubles and top 20 singles can do that now (play both singles and doubles). It makes me feel special, it makes me feel I am in good shape as well. It’s really a strong tournament. I am looking forward to play here. It’s a very prestigious event, big history and big players are here. It would be great to win this title. One of my goals definitely,” the Russian said



Osaka wins qualifying opener
By Sports Reporter/Doha

Japan’s Naomi Osaka got her qualifying campaign underway at the Qatar Total Open with a solid 6-3, 6-4 win over Lu Jing-jing of China yesterday.
American Catherine Bellis was even more impressive, powering to a 6-0, 6-0 victory over Mubaraka al-Naimi in just 38 minutes.
Marketa Vondrousova also secured a straight-sets win, beating Sabine Lisicki 6-1, 6-3. The Czech will next face Kristina Kucova, who shocked Océane Dodin 6-4, 6-1.
Meanwhile, Vera Zvonareva beat Hsieh Su-Wei 6-4, 6-4; and 18-year-old Sofya Zhuk sprang a surprise on Francesca Schiavone, triumphing 6-3, 6-2.
Qualifying Singles Results
First Round: [1] C. Bellis (USA) d [WC] Mubaraka al-Naimi (QAT) 6-0 6-0; [2] N. Osaka (JPN) d J. Lu (CHN) 6-3 6-4; [3] M. Vondrousova (CZE) d [WC] S. Lisicki (GER) 6-1 6-3; V. Zvonareva (RUS) d [4] S. Hsieh (TPE) 6-4 6-4; [5] C. Mchale (USA) d [WC] A. Vasylyeva (UKR) 6-3 6-0; [6] K. Bondarenko (UKR) d S. Karatantcheva (BUL) 6-3 4-6 6-3; [7] E. Alexandrova (RUS) d Ar. Rodionova (AUS) 6-4 7-5; [8] M. Niculescu (ROU) d R. Ozaki (JPN) 6-1 6-0; S. Zhuk (RUS) d [9] F. Schiavone (ITA) 6-3 6-2; K. Kucova (SVK) d [10] O. Dodin (FRA) 6-4 6-1; [11] Y. Duan (CHN) d B. Krejcikova (CZE) 7-6(3) 6-4; [12] A. Petkovic (GER) d X. Han (CHN) 6-3 6-1; [13] S. Sorribes Tormo (ESP) d N. Broady (GBR) 6-4 6-7(1) 7-5; [14] B. Pera (USA) d T. Martincova (CZE) 6-2 6-4; A. Blinkova (RUS) d [15] J. Fett (CRO) 6-1 6-1; [16] D. Kovinic (MNE) d M. Honcova (SVK) 6-4 5-7 6-1.