Fritz frustrates Querrey for first ATP title

Taylor Fritz dominated Sam Querrey 6-3, 6-4 in a matchup of
California natives to win the Eastbourne title. 2018 photo
courtesy of JFS Communications

   Taylor Fritz and Sam Querrey went unbeaten in Northern California Challengers several years ago.
   Fritz won the Sacramento and Fairfield titles in consecutive weeks at 17 in 2015 after skipping the Tiburon tournament. Querrey swept the three-week swing through Napa, Sacramento and Tiburon in 2014.
   On Saturday, Fritz dominated Querrey 6-3, 6-4 on grass in Eastbourne, England, for his first ATP title.
   "It's so amazing," Fritz, a 21-year-old Southern Californian, gushed on atptour.com. "I almost can't believe it. I'm still trying to take it in. I've wanted to win a tour title ever since I made the final (in Memphis) when I was 18. It feels like I've just been waiting so long. I'm so happy."
   The matchup of unseeded California natives lasted only 61 minutes. Fritz won 31 of 35 points (89 percent) on his first serve and saved the only break point against him.
   The 31-year-old Querrey, who was born in San Francisco and grew up in Thousand Oaks in the Los Angeles area, had nine aces and no double faults. He was playing in his first tournament since Houston in April because of an abdominal injury.
   Fritz will rise from No. 42 to a career high of about No. 30 on Monday. His mother (Kathy May), father (Guy Fritz) and uncle (Harry Fritz) all played professionally. May climbed to No. 10 in the world and played in three Grand Slam quarterfinals.
   Fritz and Querrey are scheduled to play their first-round Wimbledon matches on Tuesday. Fritz will face 2010 runner-up Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic, and Querrey will take on fifth-seeded Dominic Thiem of Austria.
   Querrey reached the Wimbledon semifinals in 2017 and quarterfinals in 2016, ousting the defending champion -- Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic, respectively -- each time. Fritz reached the second round last year for his best result in three Wimbledon appearances.

NorCal players have hard Wimby draws; Mayo moves

   All five players with Northern California connections received difficult draws for Wimbledon today.
    Especially Serena Williams, a part-time Silicon Valley resident.
    The tournament begins innocuously enough for the 11th seed and seven-time Wimbledon champion. Williams, 37, will open against Italy's Giulia Gatto-Monticone, a qualifier ranked No. 162, on Monday or Tuesday.
   Assuming Williams wins, she could face fifth-seeded Angelique Kerber in the fourth round in a rematch of last year's Wimbledon final.
   Williams also could meet top-ranked Ashleigh Barty in the quarterfnals, sixth-seed and two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova in the semifinals and second-seeded Naomi Osaka, who stunned Williams in last year's tumultuous U.S. Open final, in the title match.
   Williams hopes to tie Margaret Court's record of 24 Grand Slam singles titles.
   Ninth-seeded Sloane Stephens, a 26-year-old Fresno product, will play Timea Bacsinszky, 30, of Switzerland in a rematch of former Wimbledon quarterfinalists. Looming are 19th seed and British favorite Johanna Konta in the third round and Kvitova or 25th seed Amanda Anisimova of Aventura, Fla., in the fourth round.
   Anisimova, 17, stunned defending champion Simona Halep three weeks ago to become the youngest American in the French Open semifinals since 14-year-old Jennifer Capriati in 1990.
   The other three players with NorCal ties drew seeds in the first round. However, grass is the seeds' weakest surface.
   Qualifier Kristie Ahn, a 27-year-old Stanford graduate, will make her Wimbledon main-draw debut against 12th-seeded Anastasija Sevastova of Latvia. Sevastova is 1-6 at the All England Club.
   On the men's side, Sam Querrey, a 31-year-old San Francisco native, will take on fifth-seeded Dominic Thiem, who has reached the last two French Open finals but never has advanced to the quarterfinals in five Wimbledon appearances.
   Querrey reached the Wimbledon quarters in 2016 and semis in 2017, ousting the defending champion each time. He will meet countryman Taylor Fritz in Saturday's Nature Valley International final in Eastbourne.
   Stanford grad Bradley Klahn will play 21st-seeded David Goffin of Belgium in a clash of 28-year-olds. Goffin advanced to the fourth round at Wimbledon in 2015 and 2016, his best results in six appearances there.
   Mayo transfers -- Keenan Mayo, who grew up in the Sacramento suburb of Roseville and trains at the USTA Training Center – West in Carson, will transfer from Illinois to Loyola Marymount in Los Angeles. He will be eligible for the 2019-20 season, according to LMU's website.
   Mayo went 9-11 in singles, primarily at No. 4 and No. 5, and 8-10 in doubles, mainly at No. 2, as an Illini freshman last season.

10 of 32 Wimbledon women's seeds to play in San Jose

   Ten of the 32 women's singles seeds at Wimbledon are entered in the Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic, July 29-Aug. 4 at San Jose State.

   Elina Svitolina of Ukraine tops the list at No. 8, followed by No. 10 Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus and No. 15 Qiang Wang of China. 

   Also seeded at Wimbledon, which begins Monday, are No. 21 Elise Mertens of Belgium, No. 22 Donna Vekic of Croatia, No. 24 Petra Martic of Croatia, No. 26 Amanda Anisimova of Aventura, Fla., No. 27 Garbine Muguruza of Spain, No. 31 Carla Suarez Navarro of Spain and No. 32 Maria Sakkari of Greece.
   Anisimova, 17, stunned defending champion Simona Halep three weeks ago to become the youngest American in the French Open semifinals since 14-year-old Jennifer Capriati in 1990.
   Muguruza won the French Open in 2016 and Wimbledon in 2017 and climbed to No. 1 in September 2017.

   Sakkari reached the final of last year's inaugural Silicon Valley Classic, losing to Mihaela Buzarnescu of Romania.
   Neither Serena Williams, 37, nor Venus Williams, 39, is entered in San Jose, but one or both could be among four wild cards who will be announced soon.

Ahn earns first Wimbledon main-draw berth

Kristie Ahn, a 27-year-old Stanford graduate, upset third-seeded
Lauren Davis 6-4, 7-5 today in the final round of Wimbledon
qualifying. 2018 photo by Paul Bauman

   Kristie Ahn will make her Wimbledon main-draw debut next week.
   The unseeded Ahn, a 27-year-old Stanford graduate, surprised third-seeded Lauren Davis 6-4, 7-5 today in the final round of qualifying at Roehampton in London.
   Davis, 5-foot-2 (1.57 meters), had one ace and 10 double faults in an all-American encounter. It was her first career meeting with Ahn, 5-foot-5 (1.65 meters).
   Ahn, ranked No. 191 after reaching a career-high No. 105 in January 2018, will learn her first-round opponent when the draw is held Friday.
   Ahn will make her third appearance in the singles main draw of a Grand Slam tournament. She still seeks her first victory in a major.
   At 16, Ahn qualified for the 2008 U.S. Open before losing to Dinara Safina in the first round. Safina was ranked seventh at the time and reached No. 1 the following year. Ahn also fell in the first round of last year's Australian Open to 20th-seeded Barbora Strycova.

Serena seeded 11th at Wimbledon; Ahn rolls in qualies

   Seven-time champion Serena Williams today was seeded 11th for Wimbledon, which begins Monday.
   The 37-year-old Williams, a part-time resident of Silicon Valley, has not played since losing to Sofia Kenin in the third round of the French Open. It was Williams' earliest loss at a Grand Slam tournament in five years.
   Williams seeks her first major singles title since the 2017 Australian Open and 24th of her career, which would tie Margaret Court's record.
   Sloane Stephens, meanwhile, was seeded ninth at Wimbledon. The 26-year-old Fresno product reached the quarterfinals there in 2013 but has lost in the first round in each of the past two years.
   Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan were seeded seventh in men's doubles. The 41-year-old twins and former Stanford stars will try to win their fourth Wimbledon title together. Mike Bryan also won last year's title with Jack Sock while Bob Bryan was out with a hip injury that required surgery.
   Raquel Atawo, a 36-year-old Fresno native and ex-Cal standout, was seeded 16th in women's doubles with Lyudmyla Kichenok of Ukraine.
   Atawo (formerly Kops-Jones) reached the Wimbledon doubles semifinals with Abigail Spears in 2015 and 2016. Kichenok advanced to the final of last year's inaugural Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic at San Jose State with her twin sister, Nadiia. They lost to Latisha Chan and 43-year-old Kveta Peschke.
   Wimbledon qualifying -- Unseeded Kristie Ahn, a 27-year-old Stanford graduate, is set to play third-seeded Lauren Davis on Thursday for a berth in the Wimbledon main draw.
   Ahn, 5-foot-5 (1.65 meters), dismissed 32nd-seeded Tamara Korpatsch of Germany 6-2, 6-0 in 68 minutes. Davis, 5-foot-2 (1.57 meters), beat fellow Ohio product Francesca Di Lorenzo 6-4, 7-5.
   Davis, ranked No. 96 after reaching a career-high No. 26 in May 2017, and Ahn, ranked No. 191, will meet for the first time. Davis, 25, eyes her fifth spot in the Wimbledon main draw, having advanced to the third round in 2014, and Ahn her first.

WIMBLEDON SEEDS

Men's singles

1. Novak Djokovic
2. Roger Federer
3. Rafael Nadal
4. Kevin Anderson
5. Dominic Thiem
6. Alexander Zverev
7. Stefanos Tsitsipas
8. Kei Nishikori
9. John Isner
10. Karen Khachanov
11. Daniil Medvedev
12. Fabio Fognini
13. Marin Cilic
14. Borna Coric
15. Milos Raonic
16. Gael Monfils
17. Matteo Berrettini
18. Nikoloz Basilashvili
19. Felix Auger-Aliassime
20. Gilles Simon
21. David Goffin
22. Stan Wawrinka
23. Roberto Bautista-Agut
24. Diego Schwartzman
25. Alex De Minaur
26. Guido Pella
27. Lucas Pouille
28. Benoit Paire
29. Denis Shapovalov
30. Kyle Edmund
31. Laslo Djere
32. Dusan Lajovic

Women's singles

1. Ashleigh Barty
2. Naomi Osaka
3. Karolina Pliskova
4. Kiki Bertens
5. Angelique Kerber
6. Petra Kvitova
7. Simona Halep
8. Elina Svitolina
9. Sloane Stephens
10. Aryna Sabalenka
11. Serena Williams
12. Anastasija Sevastova
13. Belinda Bencic
14. Caroline Wozniacki
15. Qiang Wang
16. Marketa Vondrousova
17. Madison Keys
18. Julia Goerges
19. Johanna Konta
20. Anett Kontaveit
21. Elise Mertens
22. Donna Vekic
23. Caroline Garcia
24. Petra Martic
25. Amanda Anisimova
26. Garbine Muguruza
27. Sofia Kenin
28. Su-Wei Hsieh
29. Daria Kasatkina
30. Carla Suarez Navarro
31. Maria Sakkari
32. Lesia Tsurenko

Men's doubles

1. Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo
2. Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah
3. Raven Klaasen and Michael Venus
4. Mate Pavic and Bruno Soares
5. Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau
6. Nikola Mektic and Franko Skugor
7. Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan
8. Henri Kontinen and John Peers
9. Maximo Gonzalez and Horacio Zeballos
10. Jamie Murray and Neal Skupski
11. Nicolas Mahut and Edouard Roger-Vasselin
12. Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury
13. Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies
14. Oliver Marach and Jurgen Melzer
15. Dominic Inglot and Austin Krajicek
16. Robin Haase and Frederik Nielsen

Women's doubles

1. Timea Babos and Kristina Mladenovic
2. Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova
3. Su-Wei Hsieh and Barbora Strycova
4. Gabriela Dabrowski and Yifan Xu
5. Samantha Stosur and Shuai Zhang
6. Elise Mertens and Aryna Sabalenka
7. Nicole Melichar and Kveta Peschke
8. Anna-Lena Groenefeld and Demi Schuurs
9. Hao-Ching Chan and Latisha Chan
10. Victoria Azarenka and Ashleigh Barty
11. Lucie Hradecka and Andreja Klepac
12. Kirsten Flipkens and Johanna Larson
13. Yingying Duan and Saisai Zheng
14. Veronika Kudermetova and Jelena Ostapenko
15. Irina-Camelia Begu and Monica Niculescu
16. Raquel Atawo and Lyudmyla Kichenok

Ostapenko tops Stephens; Ahn advances in qualies

Jelena Ostapenko, shown in 2016, topped Sloane Stephens
1-6, 6-0, 6-3 today in the second round in Eastbourne. Both
are Grand Slam champions. Photo by Paul Bauman

   In a matchup of Grand Slam champions, unseeded Jelena Ostapenko ousted seventh-seeded Sloane Stephens 1-6, 6-0, 6-3 today in the second round of the Nature Valley International in Eastbourne, England.
   Stephens, a 26-year-old Fresno product, was playing her first match of the grass-court season after reaching the French Open quarterfinals. The 2017 U.S. Open champion and 2018 French Open runner-up received a first-round bye in Eastbourne.
   Stephens reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals in 2013 but has not advanced past the third round in six other appearances there. She has lost in the first round in each of the past two years at the All England Club. This year's tournament begins Monday.
   Ostapenko, 22, advanced to the quarterfinals of last week's Nature Valley Classic in Birmingham, England, upending French Open semifinalist Johanna Konta of Great Britain in the second round.
   Ostapenko won the 2017 French Open two days after turning 20 and last year became the first Latvian woman to reach the Wimbledon semifinals. She is entered in the Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic, July 29-Aug. 4 at San Jose State.
   Wimbledon qualifying -- Kristie Ahn, a 27-year-old Stanford graduate, defeated British wild card Naomi Broady 7-6 (3), 7-6 (4) in the first round of Wimbledon qualifying at Roehampton in London.
   At 5-foot-5 (1.65 meters), Ahn is nine inches (22.9 centimeters) shorter than the 6-foot-2 (1.88-meter) Broady.
   Ahn is scheduled to play 32nd-seeded Tamara Korpatsch of Germany for the first time on Wednesday. Korpatsch, 24, outlasted Robin Anderson, like Ahn a diminutive New Jersey native, 6-3, 6-7 (0), 6-4.
  Both Korpatsch and Ahn -- ranked No. 145 and No. 191, respectively -- seek their first berth in the main draw at Wimbledon.

Riffice falls in Tulsa final; Zamarripas stay hot

   On paper, today's final in the $25,000 Tulsa (Okla.) Pro Championships was a mismatch.
   That's pretty much the way it worked out.
   Top-seeded Maxime Cressy, a 22-year-old Paris native who plays for the United States, dominated unseeded Sam Riffice, a 20-year-old Sacramento native, 6-3, 6-1 in 63 minutes.
   Riffice, the Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Year at Florida and a quarterfinalist in last month's NCAA Singles Championships, fell to 0-4 in singles finals of professional tournaments.
   Cressy won his third singles title in pro tourneys. He completed his eligibility at UCLA last month after capturing the NCAA doubles title with Keegan Smith.
   In today's final, the 6-foot-6 (1.98-meter) Cressy won 54 percent of the points on his second serve (7 of 13) to the 6-foot-2 (1.88-meter) Riffice's 28 percent (7 of 25).
   Cressy held all eight of his service games, hammering 10 aces and committed three double faults. Riffice, who lives in Orlando, Fla., was broken four of eight times. He had one ace and five double faults.
   Zamarripa twins win another title – Allura Zamarripa and Maribella Zamarripa, 16-year-old twins from Saint Helena in the Napa area, won their second doubles title in two weeks and third overall in pro tournaments.
    Seeded second, they beat unseeded Kimmi Hance of Torrance in the Los Angeles area and Ashlyn Krueger of Flower Mound, Texas, in the Dallas-Fort Worth region 6-3, 6-1 in the final of a $15,000 tourney in Orlando.

Sacramento native Riffice reaches $25K Tulsa final again

   Unseeded Sam Riffice, a 20-year-old Sacramento native, beat wild card Ezekiel Clark 6-3, 6-3 today to reach the final of the $25,000 Tulsa (Okla.) Pro Championships for the second consecutive year.
   The 5-foot-6 (1.70-meter) Clark, who will be a senior at Illinois, was playing in his hometown.
   Riffice, the Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Year at Florida and a quarterfinalist in last month's NCAA Championships, has not lost more than four games in a set in his four matches this week.
   Riffice eliminated eighth-seeded Alexander Ritschard, a 25-year-old Swiss native who plays for the United States, 6-2, 6-3 in the second round and third-seeded Alexander Sarkissian, the 2014 NCAA singles runner-up from Pepperdine, 6-2, 6-1 in the quarterfinals.
   Riffice, a 6-foot-2 (1.88-meter) Orlando, Fla., resident, is scheduled to play top-seeded Maxime Cressy, a 6-foot-6 (1.98-meter) Paris native who plays for the United States, on Sunday at 10 a.m. PDT. Cressy beat former UCLA teammate Martin Redlicki, the fourth seed and last year's NCAA doubles champion with Evan Zhu, 7-5, 6-3.
   In their only previous meeting, Riffice defeated Cressy 5-2, retired in the first round in Tulsa last year.
   Riffice is 0-3 in singles finals in professional tournaments. He lost to Marc-Andrea Huesler, a 6-foot-5 (1.96-meter) left-hander from Switzerland, 6-4, 6-2 last year in Tulsa.
   Cressy won the $81,240 Cleveland Challenger in February as a qualifier and the NCAA doubles title with the Bruins' Keegan Smith last month in Orlando.

Svitolina, Sabalenka top San Jose acceptance list

Elina Svitolina, shown en route to the semifinals in the 2015 Bank of the
West Classic at Stanford, has reached four Grand Slam quarterfinals,
including the past two Australian Opens. Photo by Mal Taam 

   The field for the second Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic in San Jose features two top-10 players, two former world No. 1s, three Grand Slam singles champions and both of last year's finalists.
   No. 7 Elina Svitolina of Ukraine and No. 10 Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus top the acceptance list, announced Wednesday, for the July 29-Aug. 4 tournament at San Jose State.
   Svitolina has reached four Grand Slam quarterfinals, including the past two Australian Opens. Sabalenka, coached by former longtime Northern California resident Dmitry Tursunov, advanced to the fourth round of last year's U.S. Open.
   Also entered in San Jose are former world No. 1s and two-time Grand Slam singles champions Garbine Muguruza and Victoria Azarenka. Both won titles in the Bank of the West Classic, which ended a 21-year run at Stanford in 2017. Muguruza took the doubles crown with fellow Spaniard Carla Suarez Navarro in 2014, and Azarenka captured the singles title in 2010.
   In addition, Jelena Ostapenko plans to play in San Jose. The Latvian won the 2017 French Open two days after turning 20.
   In the final of last year's Silicon Valley Classic, depleted by injuries and upsets, Mihaela Buzarnescu of Romania crushed Maria Sakkari of Greece 6-1, 6-0.
   Amanda Anisimova, a 17-year-old sensation, heads the U.S. contingent in San Jose. Anisimova, who won her first professional title at 15 in the 2017 Sacramento Challenger, toppled defending champion Simona Halep two weeks ago to become the youngest American in the French Open semifinals since 14-year-old Jennifer Capriati in 1990.
   Neither Serena nor Venus Williams, who combined to win five Bank of the West singles titles, is entered in San Jose, but four wild cards will be announced in the next few weeks. The four players who emerge from the July 27-28 qualifying event will round out the 28-player singles draw.
   International Tennis Hall of Famers Andy Roddick and Michael Chang and former top-10 players James Blake and Mark Philippoussis will play a one-night tournament as part of the Invesco Series on Saturday, Aug. 3.

Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic Acceptance List

(With world ranking)

Elina Svitolina, Ukraine, 7
Aryna Sabalenka, Belarus, 10
Qiang Wang, China, 15
Elise Mertens, Belgium, 21
Donna Vekic, Croatia, 22
Petra Martic, Croatia, 25
Garbine Muguruza, Spain, 26
Amanda Anisimova, United States, 27
Carla Suarez Navarro, Spain, 31,
Maria Sakkari, Greece, 33
Danielle Collins, United States, 34
Jelena Ostapenko, Latvia, 37
Victoria Azarenka, Belarus, 41
Mihaela Buzarnescu, Romania, 42
Saisai Zheng, China, 44
Ajla Tomljanovic, Australia, 47
Ekaterina Alexandrova, Russia, 50
Shuai Zhang, China, 52
Andrea Petkovic, Germany, 71
Magda Linette, Poland, 75

Casper sweeps NorCal Sectional boys 18 crowns

Luke Casper, shown last November, defeated Phillip Martin
4-6, 7-5, 6-1 in Sacramento to win the boys 18 singles title
in the NorCal Junior Sectional Championships. Photo by
Paul Bauman

   Luke Casper, a 16-year-old Santa Cruz resident, defeated Theodore Dean of Livermore twice Sunday to sweep the boys 18 singles and doubles titles in the NorCal Junior Sectional Championships.
   Casper, seeded fourth in singles, beat the fifth-seeded Dean 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 and teamed with Phillip Martin of Los Altos as the fourth seeds to outclass second-seeded Karl Collins of Richmond and Dean 6-2, 6-3 at the Natomas Sports Club in Sacramento.
   Casper is the fourth of seven children. The oldest, Caroline, reached the NCAA Division III semifinals as a sophomore at Pomona-Pitzer in 2017 and the NCAA quarterfinals in each of her other three years. The Caspers' father, Mark, played tennis at Santa Clara.
   In the girls 18 singles final at the Fremont Tennis Center, top-seeded Katherine Duong of Cupertino topped second-seeded Amber Marie Lee of Orinda 1-6, 6-4, 6-3.
   Lee gained revenge by defeating Duong in the doubles final. Second-seeded Lee and Sofia Zaprianov of Concord beat top-seeded Duong and Nora Lee of Oakland 6-4, 6-1.
   Following are results of the other NorCal Junior Sectional finals:

Boys 16

At Natomas Sports Club in Sacramento

Singles 

   Ryan Torres (1), San Ramon, def. Dylan Tsoi (4), El Dorado Hills, 6-2, 6-2.

Doubles

   Nicholas Chen, Oakland, and Ryan Torres (1), San Ramon, def. Aardash Tripathi, Pleasanton, and Emon van Loben Sels (2), Sacramento, 6-2, 6-2.

Girls 16

At Fremont Tennis Center

Singles 

   Makenna Thiel (4), Piedmont, def. Alisha Chulani (9), Los Altos, 6-4, 4-6, 6-1.

Doubles

   Maryia Hrynashka, Rancho Cordova, and Tomi Main (4), Seaside, def. Makenna Thiel, Seaside, and Madison Weekley (3), Alamo, 6-2, 6-3.

Boys 14

At Arden Hills Athletic & Social Club in Sacramento

Singles 

   Cyrus Ahmad (2), Fremont, def. Mitchell Lee (1), Oakland, 6-1, 6-1.

Doubles

   Alex Fuchs, Los Altos, and Lleyton Okada-Alonzo (2), Marina, def. Krish Arora, San Jose, and Rithvik Katpelly (3), Fremont, 6-3, 3-6 [10-8].

Girls 14

At Arden Hills Athletic & Social Club in Sacramento

Singles 

   Anya Murthy (2), Fremont, def. Ava Martin (5), Menlo Park, 6-4, 6-4.

Doubles

   Ava Martin, Menlo Park, and Natasha Rajaram (1), Cupertino, def. Caroline Beard, Santa Rosa, and Privanka Shanker (3), Napa, 6-1, 7-6 (2).

Boys 12

At University of the Pacific in Stockton

Singles 

   Jack Satterfield (1), Lafayette, def. Arnav Bhandari (2), San Ramon, 6-2, 6-2.

Doubles

   Arnav Bhandari, San Ramon, and Jack Satterfield (1), Lafayette, def. Julian Morris, Alameda, and Leo Terman (4), Palo Alto, 8-4.

Girls 12

At University of the Pacific in Stockton

Singles 

   Bianca Brown (5), Folsom, def. Georgia McDougall (1), Redwood City, 6-3, 6-3.

Doubles

   Bianca Brown, Folsom, and Georgia McDougall (2), Redwood City, def. Annika Penikova and Kristina Penickova (4), Campbell, 8-3.

Bay Area's Olmos claims first WTA doubles title

Giuliana Olmos, left, and Desirae Krawczyk pose after winning the doubles title
in the 2017 FSP Gold River Women's Challenger in the Sacramento area. Photo
by Rob Vomund

   Giuliana Olmos, from Fremont in the San Francisco Bay Area, won her first WTA doubles title on Sunday.
   In a battle of unseeded teams, Olmos and Desirae Krawczyk from Palm Desert, Calif., beat Ellen Perez and Arina Rodionova of Australia 7-6 (5), 7-5 in the final of the Nature Valley Open in Nottingham, England.
   Krawczyk and Olmos -- former Pacific-12 Conference rivals at Arizona State and USC, respectively -- did not lose a set in their four matches in the grass-court tournament.
   Olmos, a 26-year-old Austria native who plays for Mexico, rose eight spots to a career-high No. 67 in doubles.

Nadal, Barty head French Open honor roll

   Results of all French Open finals:
   Men's singles -- Rafael Nadal (2), Spain, def. Dominic Thiem (4), Austria, 6-3, 5-7, 6-1, 6-1.
   Women's singles -- Ashleigh Barty (8), Australia, def. Marketa Vondrousova, Czech Republic, 6-1, 6-3.
   Men's doubles -- Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies, Germany, def. Jeremy Chardy and Fabrice Martin, France, 6-2, 7-6 (3).
   Women's doubles -- Timea Babos, Hungary, and Kristina Mladenovic (2), France, def. Duan Yingying and Zheng Saisai, China, 6-2, 6-3.
   Mixed doubles -- Latisha Chan, Chinese Taipei, and Ivan Dodig, Croatia, def. Gabriela Dabrowski, Canada, and Mate Pavic (2), Croatia, 6-1, 7-6 (5).
   Boys singles -- Holger Vitus Nodskov Rune (7), Denmark, def. Toby Kodat, Bradenton, Fla., 6-3, 6-7 (5), 6-0.
   Girls singles -- Leylah Annie Fernandez (1), Canada, def. Emma Navarro (8), Charleston, S.C., 6-3, 6-2.
   Boys doubles -- Matheus Pucinelli De Almeida, Brazil, and Thiago Augustin Tirante (5), Argentina, def. Flavio Cobilli, Italy, and Dominic Stephan Stricker, Switzerland, 7-6 (3), 6-4.
   Girls doubles -- Chloe Beck, Watkinsville, Ga., and Emma Navarro, Charleston, S.C., def. Alina Charaeva and Anastasia Tikhonova (4), Russia, 6-1, 6-2.

Nadal tops Thiem for 12th French Open title

Rafael Nadal practices at Indian Wells in March. Photo by Harjanto Sumali

   At least Dominic Thiem won a set.
   That in itself is an accomplishment against the King of Clay.
   Unfortunately for Thiem, he had almost nothing left after tying today's French Open final at one set apiece.
   In a rematch of last year's title match at Roland Garros, Rafael Nadal defeated Thiem 6-3, 5-7, 6-1, 6-1 in Paris for his 12th French Open singles crown.
   "It's truly incredible," Nadal, who dominated Dominic 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 in last year's French Open final, said of his success at Roland Garros in an on-court interview. "I cannot explain it."
   Thiem, seeded fourth, was playing for the fourth consecutive day because of rain that shuffled the schedule. Meanwhile, the second-seeded Nadal had played only once in the previous four days.
   "He stepped on me," said Thiem, a 25-year-old Austrian who was seeking his first major title. "The numbers are crazy. He's won it 12 times."
   Nadal broke Margaret Court's record of 11 Australian Open singles titles, seven of which came when only amateurs were allowed to play, and pulled within two of Roger Federer's mark of 20 Grand Slam men's singles titles.
   Nadal, who turned 33 on Monday, also became the third-oldest French Open champion after 34-year-old Andres Gimeno (1972) and 33-year-old Ken Rosewall (1968).
   Against Thiem, Nadal improved to 9-4 overall, 8-4 on clay and 4-0 in the French Open.

Barty beats Vondrousova for first major singles title

Ashleigh Barty, playing at Indian Wells in March, became the first Australian
to win the French Open since Margaret Court in 1973. Photo by Harjanto Sumali 

   Greatness has long been predicted for Ashleigh Barty.
   And that was the problem.
   Unable to cope with the pressure of expectations after winning the Wimbledon girls singles title at 15 in 2011, Barty walked away from tennis in 2014 for almost two years to play professional cricket.
   Barty capped her comeback today with her first Grand Slam singles title. Seeded eighth, the 23-year-old Australian dominated unseeded Marketa Vondrousova, a Czech left-hander who will turn 20 in 20 days, 6-1, 6-3 in 70 minutes in the French Open in Paris.
   "It's unbelievable," Barty, who will rise to a career-high No. 2 on Monday, said in an on-court interview. "I'm a little bit speechless. It's incredible. I played the perfect match today. I'm so proud of myself and my team. It's just been a crazy two weeks."
   Barty became the first Australian to win the French Open since Margaret Court in 1973 and the first Aussie to capture a Grand Slam singles title since Samantha Stosur in the 2011 U.S. Open.
   Both Barty and Vondrousova were playing in their first major singles final. However, Barty has reached the doubles final in all four majors, winning last year's U.S. Open with CoCo Vandeweghe.
   Neither Barty nor Vondrousova has played in a WTA tournament in Northern California. Vondrousova, though, does have a NorCal connection. She advanced to the girls doubles final in the 2014 French Open with CiCi Bellis, who grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area suburb of Atherton.
   Bellis, the WTA Newcomer of the Year in 2017, is hitting after undergoing four operations on her right wrist, arm and elbow in the past year.
   Meanwhile, Rafael Nadal is heavily favored to win his 12th French Open singles crown. Seeded second, the 33-year-old Spaniard will face fourth-seeded Dominic Thiem in the final for the second consecutive year on Sunday at 6 a.m. PDT (NBC).
   Thiem, a 25-year-old Austrian, outlasted top-seeded Novak Djokovic 6-2, 3-6, 7-5, 5-7, 7-5 in a match that had been suspended in the third set by rain Friday. Djokovic's Grand Slam title streak ended at three.
   Nadal, who had today off, leads the head-to-head series against Thiem 8-4 overall and 7-4 on clay. Nadal won 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 in last year's French Open final, but Thiem won their latest meeting 6-4, 6-4 in the Barcelona semifinals on clay en route to the title in April.

Barty, Vondrousova to meet for French Open crown

Amanda Anisimov, who won her first professional title at 15 in the 2017 Sacra-
mento Challenger, lost to Ashleigh Barty 6-7 (4), 6-3, 6-3 today in the French
Open semifinals. 2018 photo courtesy of JFS Communications

   Amanda Anisimova led Ashleigh Barty by a set and 3-0 today in the French Open semifinals.
   But Anisimova's first Grand Slam final must wait.
   Barty, an Australian seeded eighth, rallied in the second and third sets to defeat the unseeded Anisimova, a 17-year-old American who ousted third seed and defending champion Simona Halep in the quarterfinals, 6-7 (4), 6-3, 6-3 on a windy, rainy day in Paris.
   "She just outplayed me, basically," Anisimova, who won her first professional title at 15 in the 2017 Sacramento Challenger, told reporters.
   In a matchup of first-time Grand Slam singles finalists, the 23-year-old Barty is scheduled to play unseeded Marketa Vondrousova, a Czech left-hander who will turn 20 on June 28, on Saturday at 6 a.m. PDT (NBC).
   Vondrousova, has not lost a set in the tournament, beat 26th-seeded Johanna Konta, the champion of the 2016 Bank of the West Classic at Stanford, 7-5, 7-6 (2). Vondrousova can become the first teenager to win the French Open since Iva Majoli of Croatia in 1997.
   Vondrousova reached the girls doubles final in the 2014 French Open with CiCi Bellis, who grew up in Atherton in the San Francisco Bay Area. Bellis, the WTA Newcomer of the Year in 2017, is hitting after undergoing four operations on her right wrist, arm and elbow in the past year.
   Barty, ranked eighth, has not dropped a set in two career matches against Vondrousova, ranked 38th. This will be their first meeting of the year and first on clay.
   Second-seeded Rafael Nadal will play either top-seeded Novak Djokovic or fourth-seeded Dominic Thiem for the men's title on Sunday at 6 a.m. (NBC).
   Nadal, seeking his 12th French Open singles crown, dispatched third-seeded Roger Federer 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 to improve to 24-15 overall and 6-0 in the French Open in their storied rivalry.
   Federer, 37, has won a record 20 Grand Slam men's singles titles, and Nadal, 32, ranks second with 17.
   Thiem leads Djokovic 6-2, 3-6, 3-1 in a match suspended by rain. Play will resume on Saturday at 3 a.m. PDT (Tennis Channel). The forecast calls for partly cloudy weather on Saturday and rain on Sunday.
   Barty won the Wimbledon girls singles title at 15 in 2011 and reached three Grand Slam women's doubles finals in 2013. But it was too much success too soon, and Barty left tennis in 2014 for nearly two years to play professional cricket.
   Barty won 17 of the first 18 points against the 51st-ranked Anisimova, who was born in New Jersey to Russian parents and moved to Florida at 3, to lead 5-0. After losing the set, Barty dropped the first 12 points of the second set to trail 3-0 but managed to pull it out. She then overcame an early break in the third set and converted her sixth match point.
   "I played some really good tennis. I played some pretty awful tennis," Barty said. "I'm just proud of myself for the way I was able to fight ands scrap and hang in there and find a way when I kind of threw away that first set."

Anisimova, 17, stuns Halep to reach French Open semis

Amanda Anisimova, shown en route to the title in the $60,000 Sacramento
Challenger at 15 in 2017, shocked defending champion Simona Halep 6-2,
6-4 today to reach her first Grand Slam semifinal. Photo by Rob Vomund

   It might be Saturday, later this year or beyond.
   But Amanda Anisimova appears destined to win a Grand Slam singles title, probably sooner rather than later.
   Only 17, the unseeded Anisimova toppled third seed and defending champion Simona Halep 6-2, 6-4 today in the French Open in Paris to reach her first major semifinal.
   Anisimova, who hasn't lost a set in the tournament, became the youngest French Open semifinalist since 17-year-old Nicole Vaidisova in 2006 and the youngest American in the semis at Roland Garros since 14-year-old Jennifer Capriati in 1990.
   "I just played the best tennis of my life," Anisimova, who was born in New Jersey to Russian parents and moved to Florida when she was 3, said after facing Halep for the first time. "I don't know how; it just happened."
   The 5-foot-11 (1.80-meter) Anisimova, with nothing to lose, was more relaxed than Halep.
   "She was pretty calm," said Halep, who admitted she felt pressure defending her title. "She showed that she's able to do good things and big things."
   Anisimova won her first professional title at 15 in the 2017 Sacramento Challenger and her maiden WTA crown on clay in Bogota in April. She plans to play in the Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic, July 29-Aug. 4 at San Jose State, for the second consecutive year.
   Anisimova qualified for last year's inaugural Silicon Valley Classic and extended eventual champion Mihaela Buzarnescu, a Romanian like Halep, to three sets in the second round before falling.
   Anisimova or Marketa Vondrousova, a Czech left-hander who will turn 20 on June 28, could become the first teenager to win the French Open since Iva Majoli of Croatia in 1997.
   None of the four women's semifinalists have reached a Grand Slam singles final, although Ashleigh Barty of Australia won last year's U.S. Open doubles title with CoCo Vandeweghe after losing in the doubles final once in all four majors.
   Both Vaidisova (2004-06) and Vandeweghe (2009, 2012) played for the now-defunct Sacramento Capitals of World TeamTennis.
   On Friday at 2 a.m. PDT (Tennis Channel), Anisimova is scheduled to face the eighth-seeded Barty for the first time, and 26th-seeded Johanna Konta of Great Britain will meet Vondrousova. However, the Paris weather forecast calls for rain in the morning and perhaps afternoon, then wind.
   Barty, only 5-foot-5 (1.66 meters), eliminated 14th-seeded Madison Keys 6-3, 7-5.
   Konta won the Bank of the West Classic at Stanford in 2016, and Keys won the final edition of the tournament in 2017.
   Konta is 1-1 against Vondrousova. Their last meeting occurred only three weeks ago, with Konta winning 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 in the Italian Open quarterfinals.
   The men's semifinals are scheduled to begin Friday at 3:50 a.m. (Tennis Channel). Second-seeded Rafael Nadal and third-seeded Roger Federer will renew their storied rivalry, followed by top-seeded Novak Djokovic against fourth-seeded Dominic Thiem.
   Nadal leads Federer 23-15 overall and 13-2 on clay. Djokovic is 6-2 (3-2 on clay) against Thiem. However, Thiem won 7-6 (5), 6-3, 6-0 in the French Open quarterfinals during Djokovic's 2017 slump.

Rain postpones remaining French Open quarterfinals

   The French Open suffered its first rainout in three years today, potentially helping Rafael Nadal and Johanna Konta and possibly hurting Novak Djokovic and Simona Halep.
   The quarterfinals in the top half of the men's and women's singles draws were rescheduled for Thursday, when partly cloudy weather is forecast.
   At 3 a.m. (Tennis Channel), third seed and defending champion Halep will face unseeded Amanda Anisimova, 17, and eighth-seeded Ashleigh Barty will play 14th-seeded Madison Keys.
   Not before 5:30 a.m. PDT (Tennis Channel), the top-seeded Djokovic, seeking his fourth consecutive Grand Slam title, will play fifth-seeded Alexander Zverev, and fourth seed and 2018 runner-up Dominic Thiem will meet 10th-seeded Karen Khachanov. 
   The women's semifinals, originally scheduled for Thursday, will be played Friday with the men's semis, although more rain is forecast then.
   The second-seeded Nadal, seeking his 12th French Open singles crown, and third-seeded Roger Federer, who won his only Roland Garros title 10 years ago, have at least two days to rest between their quarterfinal victories on Tuesday and the resumption of their rivalry on Friday.
   But whoever wins Thursday's men's quarterfinals must play another best-of-five-set match on Friday, weather permitting.
   Whoever reaches the women's final in the top half of the draw will have played on three consecutive days, if the weather allows. In the bottom half, the 26th-seeded Konta and unseeded Marketa Vondrousova, a Czech left-hander who will turn 20 on June 28, advanced to the semifinals on Tuesday.
   As The New York Times reported today, this likely will be one of the last complete rainouts in Grand Slam history. A retractable roof over Court Philippe Chatrier is scheduled to be finished in time for next year's French Open, and all other major tournaments have at least one stadium with that feature.

Konta stays unbeaten vs. Stephens, gains French semis

Johanna Konta, who won the 2016 Bank of the West Classic at Stanford, beat
Fresno product Sloane Stephens 6-1, 6-4 today in the French Open quarterfinals.
Konta improved to 3-0 against Stephens, with all matches occurring this year.
2018 photo by Mal Taam 

   There will be no rematch of last year's French Open women's final.
   This year, at least.
   Simona Halep has a good chance to retain her title, but Sloane Stephens lost to a nemesis today.
   No. 26 seed Johanna Konta, who won the 2016 Bank of the West Classic at Stanford, beat No. 7 seed Stephens, a 26-year-old Fresno product, 6-1, 6-4 in the quarterfinals in Paris.
   Konta, 28, improved to 3-0 in the head-to-head series. Each match has occurred this year.
   "It's definitely one of my best performances," Konta, the first British woman to reach the French Open semifinals since Jo Durie 36 years ago, crowed to reporters. "I feel really pleased with how I dealt with the conditions out there ... "
   Konta was 0-4 in the French Open entering this year but reached the final of clay-court tournaments in Rabat (Morocco) early last month and Rome three weeks ago.
   Wind blew clay dust off the surface in today's first match on Court Philippe Chatrier. That made Stephens' job more difficult against the more powerful Konta, who won 86 percent of the points (33 of 38) on her first serve to her opponent's 67 percent (24 of 36).
   "Clay is a neutralizer, but there wasn't very much clay on the court today," complained Stephens, who at 5-foot-7 (1.70 meters) is four inches (10.2 centimeters) shorter than Konta. "So that was a little bit tough. She likes to play on hard court and grass, and the court was very fast today, and I think that kind of worked in her favor, obviously. Her serving on a court that was playing a lot different than we had been playing on, that was a little bit tricky."
   A first-time Grand Slam finalist is guaranteed as Konta is scheduled to face unseeded Marketa Vondrousova, a Czech left-hander who will turn 20 on June 28, on Thursday.
   Vondrousova, ranked No. 38, topped 31st-seeded Petra Martic of Croatia 7-6 (1), 7-5. Martic ousted second-seeded Karolina Pliskova, the runner-up in the 2015 Bank of the West Classic, in the third round.
   In the men's semifinals, second-seeded Rafael Nadal will renew his rivalry with third-seeded Roger Federer.
   Nadal, seeking his12th French Open crown, dismissed seventh-seeded Kei Nishikori 6-1, 6-1, 6-3 in 1 hour, 51 minutes.
   Federer, who claimed his only French Open title 10 years ago, subdued friend and countryman Stan Wawrinka, 7-6 (4), 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4 in 3 hours, 35 minutes.
   Federer made his Northern California debut last year in a San Jose exhibition. Wawrinka, the 2015 champion at Roland Garros, is rebounding from two knee operations.
   Federer, 37, has won a record 20 Grand Slam men's singles titles, and Nadal, 33, ranks second with 17.
   Nadal leads Federer 23-15 overall and 13-2 on clay. They will meet on clay for the first time since Nadal's 6-1, 6-3 victory in the 2013 Italian Open.

Anisimova, 17, reaches first Grand Slam quarterfinal

Amanda Anisimova slugs a forehand en route to her first
professional title at 15 in the 2017 Sacramento Challenger.
Photo by Rob Vomund

   Amanda Anisimova today became the youngest player to reach the French Open quarterfinals since Nicole Vaidisova 13 years ago.
   Both players have a Sacramento connection.
   Anisimova, 17, of Aventura, Fla., dispatched 21-year-old qualifier Aliona Bolsova, a Spanish citizen from Moldova, 6-3, 6-0 in 69 minutes in Paris to set up a first-time meeting with Simona Halep.
   Halep, the third seed and defending champion, crushed 18-year-old Iga Swiatek, last year's Wimbledon girls singles titlist from Poland, 6-1, 6-0 in 45 minutes.
   Anisimova, who was born to Russian parents in Freehold, N.J., won her first professional title at 15 in the 2017 Sacramento Challenger. She has not lost a set en route to her first Grand Slam quarterfinal.
   Anisimova also became the youngest American to reach the last eight at Roland Garros since Jennifer Capriati in 1993.
   Vaidisova, a Czech, played for the now-defunct Sacramento Capitals of World TeamTennis from age 15 to 17 (2004-06). She climbed to a career-high No. 7 in 2007 but retired at 20 in 2010 because of burnout. Vaidisova returned in 2014 but retired again at 27 in 2016 because of injuries.
   Also in the top half of the French Open draw today, two women coming off big upsets lost.
   Sofia Kenin, a 20-year-old American who ousted 10th seed and three-time French Open champion Serena Williams, fell to eighth-seeded Ashleigh Barty of Australia 6-3, 3-6, 6-0. Kenin won Northern California Challenger singles titles in 2016, 2017 and 2018.
   Katerina Siniakova, who knocked out top-ranked Naomi Osaka, succumbed to 14th-seeded Madison Keys, the champion in the final edition of the Bank of the West Classic at Stanford in 2017, 6-2, 6-4.
   In the quarterfinals in the top half of the French Open men's draw, top-seeded Novak Djokovic will face fifth-seeded Alexander Zverev of Germany, and fourth-seeded Dominic Thiem of Austria will meet 10th-seeded Karen Khachanov of Russia.
   Djokovic, who won the 2016 French Open title to complete a career Grand Slam, has not lost more than four games in a set in this year's tournament. Thiem reached last year's final, losing to Rafael Nadal 6-4, 6-3, 6-2.

Stephens downs Muguruza to reach French quarters

   Sloane Stephens took a big step today toward her second consecutive French Open final.
   In a matchup of former Grand Slam champions, the seventh-seeded Stephens beat 19th-seeded Garbine Muguruza 6-4, 6-3 to reach the quarterfinals in Paris.
   Stephens, a 26-year-old Fresno product and the 2017 U.S. Open champion, improved to 2-1 against Muguruza, who won the French Open in 2016 and Wimbledon in 2017.
   Muguruza also captured the doubles title in the 2014 Bank of the West Classic with fellow Spaniard Carla Suarez Navarro.
   Stephens, who lost to Simona Halep in last year's French Open final after leading by a set and early service break, is scheduled to face 26th-seeded Johanna Konta of Great Britain on Tuesday.
   Konta, the runner-up in two clay-court tournaments this spring (Rome and Rabat), eliminated 23rd-seeded Donna Vekic of Croatia 6-2, 6-4.
   Konta, who won the 2016 Bank of the West Classic, is 2-0 against Stephens. Both matches occurred this year, with Konta triumphing 6-7 (3), 6-4, 6-1 in the second round in Rome 2 1/2 weeks ago and 6-4, 6-3 in Brisbane in January in the first match of the year for both players.
   In the other quarterfinal in the bottom half of the French Open women's draw, 31st-seeded Petra Martic of Croatia will play unseeded Marketa Vondrousova, a Czech left-hander who will turn 20 on June 28.
   Of the top five seeds, only No. 3 Halep remains on the women's side but all are still alive on the men's side.
   The men's quarterfinals will feature a matchup of Swiss former French Open champions, third-seeded Roger Federer and 24th-seeded Stan Wawrinka.
   Federer, who won Roland Garros 10 years ago, dismissed unseeded Leonardo Mayer of Argentina 6-2, 6-3, 6-3. Federer, 37, has not lost a set in four matches in this year's tournament.
   Wawrinka, the 2015 French Open champion, outlasted sixth-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas, a 20-year-old Greek, 7-6 (6), 5-7, 6-4, 3-6, 8-6 in 5 hours, 5 minutes.
   Second-seeded Rafael Nadal, seeking his 12th French Open singles title, will meet either seventh-seeded Kei Nishikori of Japan or unseeded Benoit Paire of France. Nishikori, a two-time French Open quarterfinalist, leads 6-2, 6-7 (8), 6-2 in a match suspended by darkness.

Young U.S. women advance; Serena, Osaka fall

Sofia Kenin, shown en route to the title in the Berkeley Challenger
last July, shocked Serena Williams 6-2, 7-5 today in the third round
 of the French Open. Photo by Paul Bauman

   Sofia Kenin and Amanda Anisimova combined to win four Challenger singles titles in Northern California in three years.
   Both young Americans today reached the fourth round of the French Open, but top-ranked Naomi Osaka's Grand Slam title streak ended at two.
   The unseeded Kenin, 20, beat a rusty Serena Williams, seeded 10th, 6-2, 7-5 in Paris to reach the fourth round of a major for the first time. Kenin sobbed afterward.
   "I think this is such a great win for me," said Kenin, who won NorCal Challenger singles titles in 2016, 2017 and 2018. "I don't normally cry after a match. I had so many emotions playing on Chatrier. I have always imagined playing there and winning a match. I went there today with the mentality to go and win."
   Williams, who had played only one match since March because of a knee injury entering the French Open, pounded 10 aces to none for Kenin but committed 34 unforced errors to Kenin's 17.
   "I'm just pretty far away (from optimal conditioning)," Williams said, "but the optimistic part is I haven't been able to be on the court as much as I would have. That's OK. At least I can start trying to put the time in now."
   Williams, 37, has not won a tournament since giving birth to her first child on Sept. 1, 2017. The three-time French Open champion (2002, 2013 and 2015) needs one more Grand Slam singles crown to tie Margaret Court's record of 24.

Amanda Anisimova, winning her first professional title in
the 2017 Sacramento Challenger, overcame a viral illness
to reach the fourth round of a Grand Slam tournament for
the second consecutive time. Photo by Rob Vomund

   The unseeded Anisimova, 17, topped Irina-Camelia Begu of Romania 7-6 (6), 6-4 to gain the fourth round of a Grand Slam tournament for the second consecutive time. Before this year, she had not won a main-draw match in a major.
   Anisimova withdrew from her doubles match on Friday because of a viral illness.
   "Today, I didn't feel well at all," admitted Anisimova, who won her first professional title in the 2017 Sacramento Challenger. "It was just super tough the whole match, and even my warmup. It was just a really big struggle getting through the match today, and I'm just really proud I could take this win today."
   Osaka lost to unseeded Czech Katerina Siniakova, the top-ranked doubles player in the world, 6-4, 6-2. Barbora Krejcikova and Siniakova, the defending doubles champions, fell in the first round to Nadiia Kichenok of Ukraine and Abigail Spears of Colorado Springs, Colo.
   Siniakova and Paula Kania of Poland advanced to the doubles final in the 2014 Bank of the West Classic at Stanford.
   Osaka has failed to reach the fourth round of the French Open in four career attempts.
   Anisimova, if healthy, has a much better chance of reaching her first Grand Slam singles quarterfinal than Kenin or Siniakova. Anisimova, ranked No. 51, is scheduled to play qualifier Aliona Bolsova, a Moldova native who plays for Spain and is ranked No. 137, on Monday.
   Kenin will take on eighth-seeded Ashleigh Barty, who reached her first major quarterfinal in the Australian Open in her home country in January and won the biggest title of her career in the Miami Open in March. Barty is 2-0 against Kenin, including a 6-3, 6-2 victory in the first round at Charleston on clay last year.
   Siniakova will face 14th-seeded Madison Keys, who won the final edition of the Bank of the West Classic in 2017.
   In the third round of men's doubles, 10th-seeded Jean-Julien Rojer of the Netherlands and Horia Tecau of Romania beat seventh-seeded Bob Bryan of Sunny Isles Beach, Fla., and Mike Bryan of Wesley Chapel, Fla., 6-3, 7-6 (7).
   The 41-year-old Bryan twins (Stanford, 1997-98) were seeking their third French Open title. Bob Bryan underwent hip replacement surgery last Aug. 2 and returned to competition in January.

Gibbs' return from cancer surgery postponed

   Complications from Nicole Gibbs' recent cancer surgery have delayed her return to competition.
   Gibbs underwent surgery for sclerosing microcystic adenocarcinoma in the roof of her mouth on May 17 in Los Angeles. The 26-year-old former Stanford star had hoped to return for Wimbledon qualifying (June 25-27).
   "I've had some humbling moments in the past couple weeks that have made me realize the futility of a 'plan' when it comes to a recovery like this," Gibbs tweeted Thursday. "I've felt at times like I've wanted to crawl into a hole and hide. But, in those moments, I still see and feel your support and appreciate it greatly."
   According to Gibbs, the cancer is unlikely to return but if it does probably would not spread.
   "There are only a handful of known cases of this cancer, and I'm the first documented case to occur in the roof of the mouth!" Gibbs wrote.
   She ended her tweet with "Back as soon as I can be."
   Gibbs has battled depression since high school but said last July in Berkeley, where she reached the final, that she was "doing awesome."