ATP/WTA Roundup: Sock Walks Over Raonic in Delray Beach, Svitolina Wins Dubai Title

February 27, 2017 | By New York Tennis Magazine Staff
Svitolina_Dubai
Photo Credit: Twitter/@WTA

It was a busy weekend across the ATP and WTA Tours with many big-time tournaments taking place across the world.

Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina is the first player from her country to crack the top 10 of the WTA Tour, and she did so by winning the biggest title of her career on Saturday, winning the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Caroline Wozniacki.

“It’s very special for me,” Svitolina said of the title. “I’ve played very amazing tennis this week and I’m happy it happened in Dubai. It’s the first trophy for me at such a big tournament, so it’s very special for me.

I’ve dreamed for all my life to be in Top 10. It’s a very amazing feeling to enter the Top 10, and do it by winning the tournament. I’m very excited for the season and very excited I could win this tournament.”

In the United States, it was American Jack Sock who won the Delray Beach Open, claiming the title when top-seeded Canadian Milos Raonic withdrew on Sunday.

“It’s very unfortunate for him and I hope he has had a speedy recovery. We’ve had a lot of good battles and I was looking forward to the challenge,” said Sock. “I’d be a little more excited and full of energy if I had gone out and won it on court, but on the flip side, a title is a title.”

The title is the second Sock’s season, after he captured the championship of the ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand in the beginning of the year.

In Marseille, France it was an all-French battle for the Open 13 title as Jo-Wilfried Tsonga took on Lucas Pouille. Tsonga won his ninth match in a row overall, beating Pouille 6-4, 6-4 to win his second title in as many weeks.

“I’m extremely happy I won this week,” said Tsonga, who won the ABN Amro World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam, Netherlands last week. “I played really well. I was very solid until the end. It’s my 14th title and I hope it won’t be the last. I feel great physically. I have worked really hard since the beginning of my career. It’s amazing to win two titles in a row.”

Tsonga now moves back into the top 10, jumping up four spots into the seventh ranked position in the world.

Austria’s Dominic Thiem claimed the Rio Open championship, knocking off Pablo Carreno Busta 7-5, 6-4 in Sunday’s final, the first title of the year for Thiem.

“I am feeling really great. This is the best feeling you can have, winning a title,” said Thiem. “It’s all you practice for. I played give very good matches, especially in the semis and final against amazing players.”

Thiem now heads to Mexico for the Abierto Mexicano Telcel in Acapulco.

“I did the same thing last year, going from clay to hard in Acapulco and I did really well,” Thiem added. “It’s a slower hard court with a high bounce, so it’s what I like. It’s not easy with the travel and time difference, but the confidence is high and I’m feeling great.”

In Hungary, Timea Babos captured the Hungarian Ladies Open title in front of her home crowd, coming back to defeat Lucie Safarova 6-7(4), 6-4, 6-3.

“I’m really, really happy,” Babos said afterwards. “It’s an unbelievable feeling and an incredible moment for my career that I could play against Lucie. She’s an amazing player and it was a big fight and it’s unbelievable that I could come out with a win in front of my home crowd.”


New York Tennis Magazine Staff
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