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BÅSTAD

Carlos Berlocq claims Swedish Open title

Carlos Berlocq of Argentina bagged his first ATP Tour title on Sunday in seeing off Spanish eighth seed Fernando Verdasco in straight sets at the Swedish Open.

Published: 15 July 2013 08:13 CEST
Carlos Berlocq claims Swedish Open title

The 30-year-old Berlocq won 7-5, 6-1 as he became the ninth over-30 title-winner on the men’s Tour this year after posting his success in 1hr 38min.

Berlocq reached the final in both the men’s singles and doubles tournament as a string of top seeds have fallen by the wayside. Berlocq was however unable to complete the double, losing to Simon Stadler and Nicholas Monroe.

Verdasco was meanwhile seen as something of the favourite ahead of Sunday’s final as it was only the second time Berlocq had advanced so far in an ATP tournament. But Verdasco was unable to end a three-year wait for a title in the Swedish sunshine.

The women’s tournament begins on Monday with Serena Williams and Simona Halep the big draws in Båstad.

The opening round pits Swedish stars Johanna Larsson and Sofia Arvidsson against each other.

The pair are teammates in the Swedish Federation Cup team but on Monday they become rivals in their respective bids for success on home soil. Regardless of the outcome Larsson and Arvidsson will join forces for the doubles tournament.

Another star to watch out for is Virginie Razzano who dealt Serena Williams her first-ever first round defeat at a major tournament at last year’s French Open.

AFP/The Local

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TENNIS

Serena Williams pulls out of Swedish Open

World number one and six-time Wimbledon champion Serena Williams has spoken about how an elbow injury forced her to pull out of the Swedish Open in Båstad at the last minute.

Published: 17 July 2015 07:54 CEST
Serena Williams pulls out of Swedish Open
Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka hug following their Wimbledon quarter-final match. Photo: Bob Martin/AELTC

The 33-year-old tennis star had been set to play Klara Koukalova in the second round at Båstad in southern Sweden, having defeated Ysaline Bonaventure of Belgium 6-2, 6-1 in her opener on Wednesday at the claycout event she won in 2013.

“I was having some pain in my right elbow,” Williams said.

“I felt a little bit in my match [on Wednesday] and then it got better, but [on Thursday] morning I really couldn't hit serves, and if I'm not able to hit serves that could definitely be a problem.”

“So I talked to my coach about it and we were like, 'Let's see what the doctor says, and see what everyone else says, and go from there'. The main thing is that we don't want it to get worse, we obviously want it to heal.”

“Unfortunately I haven't had time to heal. I've been going, going, going, playing tournaments I love, and coming here has been such a great joy, but unfortunately it's not going to heal if I keep playing.”

The coastal town of Båstad is best known for the tennis tournament, held each summer since 1948. The city has has the most tennis courts in the country and has fostered many internationally successful tennis players.

The town attracts some 20,000 visitors during this time, including Sweden's newest royal couple, Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia, who married in a lavish ceremony last month. The pair first laid eyes on each other on a night out in Båstad back in the summer of 2009.

And Williams did seem to enjoy her brief spell in the town, even posting a picture of herself enjoying the Swedish summer on the beach on social media.

 

Beach day in Sweden #SerenaSlam #renasarmy

A photo posted by Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) on Jul 14, 2015 at 7:00am PDT

Williams swept to a sixth Wimbledon title on Saturday, her 21st career major and her third in three Grand Slam events this year.

If she defends her US Open crown in September, she will become the first woman since Steffi Graf in 1988 to complete a calendar Grand Slam.

“I'm going to take some time off, I'm going to get some treatment, and I'm going to continue to do things for it. I'll do what's best for my body and continue from there,” Wiliams told www.wtatour.com.

Elsewhere in Båstad on Thursday there were wins for third seed Barbora Strycova who beat Evgeniya Rodina, 6-4, 6-1; Sweden's Rebecca Peterson seeing off sixth seeded Katerina Siniakova, 7-5, 7-6 (8/6), and Yulia Putintseva defeating French qualifier Alize Lim, 6-0, 1-6, 6-2.

The last match of the day saw seventh seed Johanna Larsson edging Anna-Lena Friedsam, 6-3, 7-5.