By Gerard October 25th, 2016 20:26 2016 BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore first-timers Karolina Pliskova (4) and Svetlana Kuznetsova (8) will clash in their second match group stage match. The world no. 5 Karolina Pliskova outlasted Spain’s Garbine Muguruza (5) with a 6-2, 6-7(4), 7-5 victory in her round-robin opener. Likewise, Russian world no. 9 Svetlana Kuznetsova stunned WTA Finals defending champion Agnieszka Radwanska (2) with a 7-5, 1-6, 7-5 victory to open her Singapore tournament. The higher ranked Karolina Pliskova currently has a 1-0 lead over Svetlana Kuznetsova in their singles head to head matchup. Pliskova took the pair’s maiden match win earlier this year. The eventual champion survived a three-set battle with Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 during the quarterfinals of the 2016 Western & Southern Open for her second WTA title of the season. In another upcoming White Group round-robin match, first match losers Agnieszka Radwanska and Garbine Muguruza will meet for their second match of the WTA Finals Group stage. Spanish world no. 6 Garbine Muguruza currently holds a 4-3 advantage over the world no. 3 Agnieszka Radwanska. Muguruza has won four of the last five meetings against Radwanska. However, the Polish number one took the last match win over Garbine Muguruza. The fifth seeded Agnieszka Radwanska advanced over second seeded Garbine Muguruza during the semifinals of last year’s WTA Finals. Radwanska rallied past the favored Spaniard with a 6-7(5), 6-3, 7-5 come-from-behind win. Garbine Muguruza defeated Radwanska four straight times in 2015. Muguruza took wins during the Apia International Sydney, the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships and the China Open. She also defeated Agnieszka Radwanska during the semifinals of the 2015 Wimbledon Grand Slam, on her way to a runner-up finish. Prior to these matches, Agnieszka Radwanska took the pairs’ first two wins in 2012 and 2014. Radwanska took the maiden victory over the Spaniard during the 2012 Miami Open. She followed up the Miami win with a 6-1, 6-3 sweep during the round of sixteen of the 2014 Australian Open.

By Ricky Dimon Confirming rumors that had been swirling since he lost to Viktor Troicki in the second round of the Shanghai Rolex Masters, Rafael Nadal announced on Thursday that his season is over. Nadal cited the wrist injury that sidelined him from round three of the French Open until the Rio Olympics as the primary reason for his decision. The 14-time Grand Slam champion wraps up 2016 with a modest 39-14 record that includes clay-court titles in Monte-Carlo and Barcelona. Perhaps most notably, Nadal initially returned from his wrist problem at the Olympics and finished fourth place in singles while capturing doubles gold with fellow Spaniard Marc Lopez. He will likely spend much of the offseason at The Rafa Nadal Academy in hims hometown of Mallorca. Nadal, with special guest Roger Federer in attendance, officially opened his new academy on Wednesday. One day later, his mood was more somber. “I am forced to stop and start preparing the 2017 season,” Nadal posted on Facebook. “Now it is time to rest and start preparing intensively the 2017 season. I am very saddened for not being able to play next week in Basel since I have a great memory of the tournament and the final played against Roger Federer last year. I won’t be able to compete either in Paris-Bercy, where the crowds and the FFT staff have always treated me so well.” The list should also include the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, although Nadal may have left that out on purpose because he had not yet officially qualified. With the world No. 6 out, Tomas Berdych moves into the all-important eighth spot. His lead over No. 9 David Goffin, however, would dwindle to as few as 30 points if Goffin captures the title this week in Antwerp. Nadal’s exit also gives No. 6 Gael Monfils and No. 7 Dominic Thiem some much-needed breathing room in their respective bids to make their debuts at the O2 Arena. Top 8 not including Nadal, as of Thursday night 1. Novak Djokovic – 10,600 points. 2. Andy Murray – 9.685 points. 3. Stan Wawrinka – 5,060 points. 4. Milos Raonic – 4,690 points. 5. Kei Nishikori – 4,360 points. 6. Gael Monfils – 3,625 points. This week: lost in Stockholm second round. 7. Dominic Thiem – 3,205 points. 8. Tomas Berdych – 2,880 points. Next 3 contenders 9. David Goffin – 2,645 points. This week: Antwerp quarterfinals. 10. Marin Cilic – 2,590 points. 11. Roberto Bautista Agut – 2,340 points. This week: lost in Moscow second round.

WTA Insider Courtney Nguyen | Angelique Kerber had all the answers in her clinical straight-sets victory over defending champion Agnieszka Radwanska in the semifinals of the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global. SINGAPORE -- World No.1 Angelique Kerber rolled into the final of the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global, beating No.2 seed Agnieszka Radwanska 6-2, 6-1 in the semifinals. The win sets up a rematch against No.7 seed Dominika Cibulkova, who is the only woman to take a set off the German all week. - In their first match of the season, Kerber had all the answers. The two friends had not played each other since the 2015 China Open, and Radwanska was left stunned by all the improvements Kerber has made in her game. The defending champion came out with an aggressive mindset, trying to attack the net and open up the court as quickly as possible in the points. Her finishing let her down today but much of that was a response to the incredible pressure from Kerber's unflappable defense. "Very consistent," Radwanska said, when asked how much Kerber had improved since their last meeting. "Not much of the mistakes. Pretty solid and definitely a very good defender. I was trying to come in but the balls were coming back. "She had an answer for everything. She's not giving anything for free. You really need to win the points by yourself. "That's, I think, what makes her one of the best players in the world, and this year the best." - Kerber has improved with every match this week. Kerber looked rattled and rusty at times in her opening Red Group match against Cibulkova, coming through with a 7-6(5), 2-6, 6-3 win. Since then she dropped just six games to Simona Halep, six games to Madison Keys, and then saved her best for the semifinals, losing just three games to Radwanska. That's bad news for Cibulkova, who has lost her last five matches against Kerber. She's going to face a different Angie on Sunday. "I think I'm playing a lot of more aggressive now than in the first match. The first match is always tough, especially when you're playing in the group. "I think I am moving as well a little bit better right now. I got used to the court and the crowd and everything. Yeah, I think my tennis improved in the last few days since the first match." - Radwanska still in line for the best finish of her career. Playing in her third consecutive semifinal in Singapore, Radwanska fell two steps short of defending the biggest title of her career. But despite a mid-season lull, Radwanska's strong start to the season -- she made the quarterfinals or better at five of her first six tournaments -- and continued success in Asia means she'll finish the season at No.3. That's a career-best for the crafty veteran, whose previous career-high finish came in 2012 when she finished No.4. "Definitely I prefer to be a bit longer today on court," Radwanska said. "Obviously three titles always makes a really good season, especially China Open. "So, well, I just hope I'm going to do better results if the Grand Slam next year. That's the goal. So we'll see." - Kerber has banished her Singapore demons. Kerber continues to cement her 2016 season. From being knocked out of the round robin last year with a nervous capitulation in her final match to making her first Singapore final while playing with the pressure of being No.1, the German has proven once again that she can handle playing under the specter of expectation. "I remember the last year how I was finishing here, so this is [a] big improvement," Kerber said. "Of course it's a little bit weird to play against one opponent twice in one tournament. This never happened before for me. I'm looking forward to play against her. The first match here was really tight and close, so she has a lot of confidence from the last two matches she won. "She has nothing to lose, so I think it will be a good match and final from both of us."