Garbine Muguruza Named Tournament Director of 2024 WTA Finals Riyadh

Posted on June 27, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Garbine Muguruza may be retired from professional play, but she hasn’t left the tennis world.

The 30-year-old Spanish-Venezuelan former professional tennis player, a former Wimbledon and French Open champion, has been named the WTA Finals tournament director, making her the first ex-player to take the helm of the season-ender, which will be held in Riyadh from this year.

Earlier in 2024, Riyadh secured a three-year deal to host the season finale that features the top eight singles players and doubles teams, replacing last year’s hosts in Cancun, Mexico.

Muguruza will work with the WTA, the Saudi Tennis Federation and Ministry of Sport on strategic planning and delivery, as well as helping grow the profile of tennis in the Middle East, the elite women’s governing body said.

“I feel very privileged to be able to contribute to the future of this great sport,” Muguruza said in a statement. “I know how special this event is for our top players and I’ve also seen its potential to inspire communities all over the world.

“I’m excited to work with a great team to present a showcase for women’s tennis that not only grows tennis but encourages all fans, and especially girls and women, to pursue their dreams.”

The former world No. 1, who won the French Open in 2016, Wimbledon in 2017 and the WTA Finals in 2021, retired at age 30 in April.

This year’s WTA Finals will run from November 2-9.

Saudi Arabia has invested heavily in sports such as soccer, Formula One and golf in the past few years while critics accuse the kingdom of using its Public Investment Fund to “sportswash” its human rights record.

The country denies accusations of human rights abuses and says it protects its national security through its laws.

WTA chief Steve Simon said last year that Saudi Arabia presented “big issues” as a host for women’s tour events but also acknowledged the progress it had made and continued to engage with players before the WTA Finals deal was struck.

There had also been pushback from tennis greats Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova, who said the WTA’s values were in contrast to those of Saudi Arabia.

Rafael Nadal Surpasses Martina Navratilova on All-Time Grand Slam Match Victories List

Posted on June 30, 2022 by Tom Castaneda

Rafael Nadal is moving on up…

The 36-year-old Spanish professional tennis player has advanced to the third round of Wimbledon for the 11th time after defeating Ricardas Berankis 6-4, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 on Thursday.

It was Nadal’s 307th Grand Slam match win, advancing him past Martina Navratilova in fourth place on the all-time list, behind Roger Federer (369), Serena Williams (365) and Novak Djokovic (330).

“Not the best start honestly,” Nadal said of Thursday’s victory. “I finished playing well. The fourth set has been the level of tennis for me, important improvement. The rest of the things, I have room to improve.”

Nadal is looking for a record-extending 23rd Grand Slam title, and third Wimbledon trophy.

Conchita Martinez Elected to International Tennis Hall of Fame

Posted on January 28, 2020 by Tom Castaneda

Conchita Martinezhas earned her placed among tennis’ greats…

The 47-year-old Spanish former professional tennis player has been elected to the International Tennis Hall of Fame.

The Class of 2020 was announced Tuesday at the Australian Open, where Martinez and fellow honoree Goran Ivanisevic are coaching players who reached the quarterfinals.

Martinez, a baseliner, was the first Spanish player to win the women’s singles title at Wimbledon, where she beat Martina Navratilovain the 1994 final.

Martínez was also the singles runner-up at the 1998 Australian Open and the 2000 French Open. She reached a highest world ranking of No. 2 in October 1995 and finished the season in the Top 10 for nine years. Martínez won 33 singles and 13 doubles titles during her 18-year career, as well as three Olympic medals.

The induction ceremony will be July 18 in Newport, Rhode Island, where the Hall is located.

Ivanisevic helps coach Novak Djokovic, while Martinez works with Garbine Muguruza.

Conchita Martínez Among International Tennis Hall of Fame Nominees

Posted on August 24, 2018 by Tom Castaneda

Conchita Martínez may be earning a spot in the Tennis Hall of Fame.

The 46-year-old Spanish former tennis player, the first Spanish player to win the women’s singles title at Wimbledon, has landed on the eight-player ballot for next year’s induction into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.

Martínez is eligible for enshrinement in the player category next year, as announced by the ITHOF.

“This is an exciting year for the International Tennis Hall of Fame election process, with a broad-ranging group of candidates and our first ever Fan Vote. The eight candidates on the ballot come from seven nations, and have achieved tremendous results on tennis’ biggest stages – winning Grand Slam titles and Olympic medals, and topping the world rankings,” stated ITHF President Stan Smith, who also serves as Chairman of the Enshrinee Nominating Committee.

“They’ve also each had massive impact on the sport in their home nations as trailblazers, Olympic and Fed and Davis Cup Champions, first-time Slam winners from their countries, and great ambassadors for tennis. Each has done much for the sport and I hope we’ll see their many fans turn out to vote online to support their Hall of Fame candidacy.”

In a 15-year career on the WTA Tour, Martínez won 33 singles titles and 13 doubles titles. She was the 1994 Wimbledon champion, defeating nine-time champion Martina Navratilova in the final.

She was also a finalist at the Australian Open and French Open.

Martínez reached a career high of world No. 2 and spent 190 weeks ranked inside the world’s Top 5. In addition, she was a key member of five championship Fed Cup teams and a three-time Olympic medalist in doubles.

But Martinez isn’t the only Latin player on the ballot…

Sergi Bruguera is one of the men to make the cut.

The 47-year-old Spanish former tennis player won consecutive men’s singles titles at the French Open in 1993 and 1994, a silver medal at the 1996 Olympic Games in men’s singles and reached a career-high ranking of 3 in August 1994.

Bruguera has been selected to captain the Spain Davis Cup team in 2018

Candidates on the ballot for International Tennis Hall of Fame induction are selected from nominations submitted by the general public and tennis community. The ITHF Enshrinee Nominating Committee, which meets annually in June, then reviews all nominations and determines the ballot. The committee is comprised of 23 individuals from around the world with expertise in various areas of the sport.

The ITHF Voting Group, which consists of tennis media and Hall of Famers, then casts their votes. To be inducted, an affirmative vote of 75 percent of returned ballots is required. Votes are tallied by an independent accounting firm.

New for 2019, the International Tennis Hall of Fame has introduced a fan vote component to the process. From Aug. 27 through Oct. 7, fans around the world are able to participate in the Hall of Fame election process by voting online at vote.tennisfame.com. The top three vote getters in the Fan Vote will receive bonus percentage points added onto their result from the committee to determine their ultimate final result.

The candidate with the highest result in the Fan Vote will receive three additional percentage points, while second and third places will receive two and one additional percentage points respectively.

The results of fan voting will be announced at the conclusion of the voting period in early October. The overall results and the complete Class of 2019 will be announced in January at the Australian Open. The 2019 Induction Ceremony will be hosted on July 20, 2019.

Cabal Claims First Grand Slam Title for Colombia in More Than 40 Years

Posted on January 29, 2017 by Tom Castaneda

Life’s a grand slam for Juan Sebastian Cabal…

The 30-year-old Colombian tennis player and his partner Abigail Spears defeated second-seeded Sania Mirza and Ivan Dodig 6-2, 6-4, in the final on Sunday to take home the mixed doubles title at the Australian Open.

This was only the second Grand Slam event as a team for Spears and Cabal, who lost in the first-round at the French Open last year.

With the victory, Cabal is celebrating his Grand Slam breakthrough, having been runner-up with Argentine Eduardo Schwank in the 2011 French Open men’s doubles. He had never advanced beyond the quarterfinals in previous mixed doubles at Melbourne Park.

Spears and Cabal built on a brilliant 4-0 start to grab the opening set and continued to apply pressure with their consistency through the second. At 4-4, Dodig double-faulted to lose his serve and Cabal stepped up to close out the victory.

Cabal is the first Colombian in more than 40 years to win a Grand Slam.

Previously, Ivan Molina and Martina Navratilova teamed up to win the 1974 French Open mixed doubles title, beating Rosie Reyes Darmon and Marcello Lara 6–3, 6–3 in the final.

Delgado Sets a New Men’s Record at Wimbledon

Posted on June 26, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

Forget the strawberries and cream… It looks like Jamie Delgado is the real fixture at the All England Club, at least for the last two decades…

The 37-year-old half-Spanish tennis player set a men’s record by playing at Wimbledon for the 23rd consecutive year on Wednesday.

The British Delgado, predominantly a doubles specialist, and his partner Gilles Muller of Luxembourg won their first-round doubles match 2-6, 2-6, 7-6 (3), 6-3, 6-2 over Lu Yen-hsun of Taiwan and Divij Sharan of India.

The International Tennis Federation said Delgado played junior Wimbledon tournaments from 1992 to ’95 and played in Wimbledon men’s singles or doubles from 1995 to 2014.

Delgado isn’t playing in the men’s singles draw this year.

Delgado shared the Wimbledon men’s mark of 22 years in a row with Mark Knowles of the Bahamas. Knowles played men’s doubles last year, but he only entered an exhibition doubles event this year.

The longest consecutive Wimbledon streaks are held by two women — Virginia Wade played 26 years in a row and Martina Navratilova 24.

Garcia Defeats Vania King to Reach Her First WTA Women’s Final

Posted on April 13, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

Caroline Garcia is one win away from the first Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) title of her promising professional career…

The 20-year-old half-Spanish tennis player from France, currently ranked No. 74 in the world, posted a 6-2, 6-4 win over American Vania King in the semifinals.

Garcia, the tournament’s fifth-seed, will next face Jelena Jankovic in the Claro Open Colsanitas championship match on Sunday.

It’s the first WTA final for Garcia, whose best previous result was a semifinal appearance in Acapulco back in February.

Garcia turned pro in 2011. Following her performance against Maria Sharapova at the 2011 French Open, only her second Grand Slam, Andy Murray tweeted that Garcia was destined to become world No. 1, and Martina Navratilova said, “She has the goods.”

Asked on Tennis Channel if she was looking at Garcia the way she had looked at Steffi Graf at the same age, Navratilova replied, “Absolutely!”

The 2014 Bogota titlist will earn $43,000.

Levy Receives a Standing Ovation Following His DWTS Performance

Posted on March 20, 2012 by Tom Castaneda

William Levy may not have received the highest scores during last night’s Dancing With The Stars premiere… But the heartthrob did manage to get the biggest cheers!

Following his performance of the cha-cha to a cover of Pitbull’s “International Love” with partner Cheryl Burke , the 31-year-old Cuban-born telenovela star and model received a lengthy standing ovation and hysterical screams from the audience.

Levy, known as the “Latin Brad Pitt,” nabbed the second-best score of the night, receiving 24 points out of a total 30. And he even got some high praise from the judges.

Bruno Tonioli called him “the hottest package of the season.” Said a fawning Carrie Ann Inaba: “I’d like to thank ABC for my job. … You can dance. … I really like the way you move.” Len Goodman praised his control, saying “Well done.”

Said Levy of the chaos in the audience: “I appreciate the love.”

Sharing the premiere’s top score of 26 were two celebrities were former child star and Family Matters actor Jaleel White (a.k.a. Urkel) and British opera singing sensation Katherine Jenkins.

The night’s lowest scores belonged to Gavin DeGraw, Melissa Gilbert and Martina Navratilova, who all grabbed just 20 points.

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