January 13, 2023 - Croatian tennis players have learned their rivals in the 1st round of the 2023 Australian Open, which begins next week in Melbourne. 

Croatian tennis player Borna Ćorić will open the first Grand Slam tournament of the season against Czech player Jiri Lehecka. In the first round, Petra Martić will face Swiss tennis player Viktorija Golubic, and Donna Vekić will meet Russian qualifier Oksana Selehmetova.

Ćorić, who is the 21st seed and who will be the only Croatian representative in the men's competition after Marin Čilić's withdrawal due to a knee injury, will fight to advance to the second round against Lehecka, 78th in the ATP rankings. The two have never met before. 

Martić (WTA - 37th) will fight for a spot in the second round against Golubic, the 81st tennis player in the world, whom she has met once so far and beat in 2015. 

Donna Vekić (WTA - 60th) will face the qualifier Oksana Selehmeteva, 179th in the WTA ranking. It will be Donna's first time playing against the Russian player. 

As for the favorites, Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic, who returns to the Australian Open after last year's COVID-19 vaccination debacle, will face Spaniard Roberto Carballes (ATP - 75th) as his opponent in the first round. This year, Djokovic will try to equal Rafael Nadal's record, who has 22 Grand Slam titles.

Spanish tennis player Nadal, who became the first seed after compatriot Carlos Alcaraz pulled out of the tournament, will face Briton Jack Draper (ATP - 40th) in the first round.

The women's world number one, Polish player Iga Swiatek, will begin her campaign for her first crown in Melbourne against German Jula Niemeier (WTA - 68th).

Tunisian tennis player Ons Jabeur, second in the WTA ranking, will play against Slovenian Tamara Zidanšek (WTA - 88th), and the third best tennis player in the world, American Jessica Pegula, will play against Romanian Jaqueline Cristian (WTA - 143rd). 

Source: Gol.hr

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ZAGREB, 17 July 2022 - Croatia's tennis player Petra Martić on Sunday beat Serbia's Olga Danilović in the final match at the WTA International Ladies Open Lausanne tennis tournament with the result 6-4, 6-2, thus winning the second WTA tournament in her career.

The 31-year-old Croatian captured her first WTA title in Istanbul three years ago.

Martić is the first Croatian winner of the WTA International Ladies Open Lausanne tournament which started in 2016.

The prize money for the winner is $33,200 and Martić also won 280 WTA points.

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July 16, 2022 - Petra Martić is on her way to the second WTA title in her career! The Croatian tennis player has reached the Ladies Open Lausanne final after defeating French player Caroline Garcia - 6:4, 1:6, 6:3 on Saturday. 

Petra Martić has reached the fifth WTA final in her career in Lausanne, Switzerland, and her first final since 2019! 

The Croatian tennis player found a way to victory in the semi-final match after three sets against the 48th tennis player in the world, French player Caroline Garcia - 6:4, 1:6, 6:3. 

The key to Petra's victory was a great start to the decisive set in which she went from 1:1 to an unattainable 5:1. During the match, Martić scored five aces with a first-serve percentage of 64 percent, and she used three out of four break points (Garcia three out of seven).

This was their fourth meeting and Petra's first victory. For the second WTA title in her career (after Istanbul 2109), she will play against Serbian tennis player Olga Danilović, the 124th tennis player in the world. It will be their second meeting. Danilović won their first meeting in the 1st round of the Australian Open in 2021.

Martić advanced to the semifinals after defeating Swiss tennis player and 2020 Olympic gold medalist Belinda Bencic, 6:3, 7:6 (2) in the quarterfinals. 

Recall, just last week, Martić reached the second week of Wimbledon for the third time in her career. She played in the round of 16 in 2017 and 2019. Martić advanced to the round of 16 after defeating the 8th-seeded American Jessica Pegula (WTA - 9th) 6:2, 7:6 (5) in less than an hour and a half of play.

In the round of 16, Martić lost to Kazakhstani tennis player Jelena Ribakina, the 17th-seed of the tournament, who won against Chinese tennis player Qinwen Zheng 7:6 (4), 7:5 in the third round.

Petra will play in the Ladies Open Lausanne final on Sunday at 20:00. 

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July 16, 2022 - Petra Martić continues with brilliant form after Wimbledon, booking the Ladies Open Lausanne semi-finals after beating 2020 Olympic gold medalist Belinda Bencic.

Croatian tennis player Petra Martić has advanced to the semifinals of the WTA tournament in Lausanne after defeating the local representative, the Olympic winner from Tokyo, Belinda Bencic, 6-3, 7-6 (2) in the quarterfinals! 

Martić's break was enough to win the first set, which she achieved when leading 4-3, after which she served to win that part of the game on her third set point. 

In the second set, Martić had two break advantages, and when leading 6-5, she served for the match, but Bencic still managed to win the decisive game. However, in the tie break, Martić took a 6-0 lead and nailed it after the third of six consecutive match points.

It was their fourth meeting and the second victory for the Croatian tennis player. During the match, Martić scored eight aces with a first-serve percentage of 68 percent, and she used three out of five break points. 

This will be Martić's first appearance in a semi-final match in 2022. The last time she was among the final four players at a tournament was in Rome in May 2021.

To reach her first final after Zhangzhou in September 2019, Martić will face French tennis player Caroline Garcia, who was better than Spanish tennis player Sara Sorribes 6-4, 6-1.

Recall, just last week, Martić reached the second week of Wimbledon for the third time in her career. She played in the round of 16 in 2017 and 2019. Martić advanced to the round of 16 after defeating the 8th-seeded American Jessica Pegula (WTA - 9th) 6:2, 7:6 (5) in less than an hour and a half of play.

In the round of 16, Martić lost to Kazakhstani tennis player Jelena Ribakina, the 17th-seed of the tournament, who won against Chinese tennis player Qinwen Zheng 7:6 (4), 7:5 in the third round.

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July 2, 2022 - Petra Martić was brilliant against the 8th-seed of the tournament to book a spot in the Wimbledon round of 16!

Croatia's best female tennis player Petra Martić (WTA - 80) continues with excellent form at the All England Club and has qualified for the Wimbledon round of 16 after defeating the 8th-seeded American Jessica Pegula (WTA - 9th) 6:2, 7:6 (5) in less than an hour and a half of play.

Martić played brilliantly against Pegula to win her third match at this year's Wimbledon without losing a set, reports HRT.

Martić played a set and a half almost without a mistake. During that time, she easily won the first set 6:2, while in the second, with a break advantage, she led 3:1.

However, Pegula came back from the middle of the second set, making it a quality and even fight. Pegula returned the break and had one set point on Martić's serve with a 5:4 lead.

Martić made it to the tie-break in which she led 5:2. The American tennis player gathered her strength and equalized at 5:5, but then Martić made it 6:5 with a good second serve, while Pegula made a mistake on the match point at the net for Martić to celebrate.

In the round of 16, Martić will play against Kazakhstani tennis player Jelena Ribakina, the 17th-seed of the tournament, who won against Chinese tennis player Qinwen Zheng 7:6 (4), 7:5 in the third round.

Martić reached the second week of Wimbledon for the third time in her career. She played in the round of 16 in 2017 and 2019.

"This victory means a lot to me, and I still have enough energy to go on. Pegula is a great tennis player, she has been proving how good she is for a long time, and I know that grass suits her. So I'm going to move on, match by match," said Martić immediately after celebrating against the American.

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June 30, 2022 - Petra Martić has booked the 3rd round of Wimbledon for the fourth time in her career, defeating Kristina Kučová on Thursday. 

Croatia's best female tennis player Petra Martić (WTA - 80) advanced to the 3rd round of Wimbledon for the fourth time in her career, defeating Slovak Kristina Kučová (WTA - 91) 7-6 (4), 6-3 after one hour and 42 minutes, reports Gol.hr. 

For a spot in the round of 16, the 31-year-old will play against the 8th seed American Jessica Pegula (WTA - 9), who defeated Harriet Dart (WTA - 94) 4-6, 6-3, 6-1. In the first round, she was better than Donna Vekić in two sets.

Martić and Pegula will be scheduled for Saturday, and it will be their sixth mutual match. In the previous five, Martić achieved four victories, two of which were on hard courts and two on clay.

In the duel against 32-year-old Kučová, Martić showed a great deal of patience, and in the key moments of the match, Kučová's mistakes came in handy.

Martić took a 3-1 lead in the first set, but lost the advantage she gained already in the next game. Along the way, she spent all three challenges checking the decisions of the referees. That, in the end, didn't cost her.

The first set went to a tie-break in which the first six points were won by the tennis players on the serve. Martić came to the first advantage and took a 5-3 lead. She lost the next point and earned two set points with an excellent defense. She only needed one, as Kučová finished the set with her sixth double fault.

Such an outcome did not affect the fighting spirit of the Slovak player, who won the first two games in the second set. However, in the next four games, Martić left only three points to her rival and thus came to a key advantage.

When Kučová served at 3-5 to extend the match, Martić reached the match point at 30-40. She decided to wait for her opponent's mistake. Two points later, the scenario was the same, but with a different ending - Kučová sent the ball into the net and ended the duel with 30 unforced errors.

Martić had two unforced errors less (28) but had a big advantage in direct points (33-20). Petra scored 10 aces, with three double faults, and had an excellent first-serve percentage of 85%. She took advantage of three of the six break points.

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May 20, 2022 - Croatian tennis players have learned their 2022 Roland Garros first round opponents, which kicks off Sunday in Paris! 

The best Croatian tennis player Marin Čilić will play against Hungarian Attila Balazs in the first round of Roland Garros, while Borna Ćorić will open the second Grand Slam of the season against Spaniard Carlos Taberner.

Ana Konjuh expects 19th-seed Romanian Simona Halep in the first round. So far, they have played once, in 2017 in St. Petersburg, when Halep celebrated. In her five Roland Garros appearances so far, Konjuh has never gone further than the second round.

Petra Martić will play against Czech tennis player Katerina Siniakova. In their previous match, the 31-year-old Czech celebrated.

Martic played 11 times in Paris and achieved the best result in 2019, entering the quarterfinals.

The 20th seed Marin Čilić will face 33-year-old Hungarian Attila Balazs. This will be Čilić's first clash against the 255th tennis player in the world. Marin has reached the quarterfinals twice in his 15 appearances at Roland Garros so far (2017, 2018).

Borna Ćorić will open Roland Garros against 24-year-old Spaniard Carlos Taberner. Ćorić and Taberner have not played each other so far. It will be Borna's seventh appearance at the Paris tournament, and he has never gone beyond the third round.

Donna Vekić and Borna Gojo have qualified for the first round of Roland Garros, though the qualifications are not yet over. Their path will be followed by Nino Serdarušić, who is waiting for the third round of qualifications on Friday. His rival is American Bjorn Fratangelo. 

The first seed of the tournament and defending champion Novak Djokovic will play against Japan's Yoshihito Nishioka. In the quarterfinals, he could face 13-time Roland Garros winner Rafael Nadal.

Round One Draw:

Borna Coric (CRO) - Carlos Taberner (Spa)

Marin Cilic (CRO / N.20) - Attila Balazs (Hungary)

Petra Martic (CRO) - Katerina Siniakova (Czech)

Ana Konjuh (CRO) - Simona Halep (Rum)

Source: HRT

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April 11, 2022 - The Croatia women's tennis team defeated Sweden 3-0 in the 1st round of Group B at the Billie Jean King Cup, hosted in Antalya from Monday to Saturday.

The first point for Iva Majoli's team was brought by the best junior in the world, 16-year-old Petra Marčinko, who defeated Jacqueline Cabaj Awad 6-0, 6-4 in her debut for the senior national team. Croatia's victory was secured by Ana Konjuh, who defeated Caijs Wilda Hennemann 6-1, 6-3, coming back from 0-3 in the second set.

Petra Martić and Donna Vekić secured the final 3-0 without losing a set, beating Fanny Oestlund and Kajsa Rinaldo Persson 6-2, 6-4 in the doubles match.

After the first round, Croatia took the leading place in the group, ahead of Slovenia and Austria, which also started with victories. After the singles matches, Slovenia secured a victory against Georgia, and Austria did the same against Bulgaria. 

Bulgaria will be the next rival for Croatia, scheduled for Tuesday, starting at 9 am Central European Time.

After Bulgaria, Croatia will face Slovenia on Wednesday, Georgia on Thursday, and Austria on Friday.

 The group winner will directly qualify for the playoffs for the 2023 Final Tournament, while the second-placed team from Group B will play against the second-placed team from Group A for the last, third place leading to the playoffs.

Playoff matches are scheduled for November this year and are played on a host-away system.

"I am glad that we are all together and in the strongest lineup after a long time. Our national team includes Petra Martić, Ana Konjuh, Donna Vekić, Petra Marčinko, and Tara Würth, and Antonia Ružić is traveling with us. This year, the competition format is challenging; we are looking for first place in the group with five other national teams. We are one of the favorites on paper, but it should be confirmed on the court. We must not underestimate anyone; surprises are common in a competition like this. Let's remember last year's success of our Davis Cup national team," said coach Iva Majoli before the tournament. 

"The fact that we will be in the strongest team is a great advantage. Five matches should be played in six days, and all players will compete."

Source: HRT

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March 14, 2022 - Petra Martić advanced to the round of 16 of the Indian Wells Masters, defeating the current winner of the US Open, 18-year-old British Emma Raducanu (WTA - 13th) in the 3rd round with 6-7 (3), 6-4, 7 -5 after two hours and 46 minutes of play. 

Martić thus reached the round of 16 in Indian Wells for the second time in her career. The first time she managed to do so was in 2018 when she made it to the quarterfinal when the world's best tennis player Romanian Simona Halep topped her in three sets. 

For a spot in the quarterfinal, the 31-year-old will play against the Russian Ludmilla Samsonova, who defeated Montenegrin Danka Kovinić 6-4, 7-6 (4) in the 3rd round. Their history of joint meetings is on the side of the Croatian tennis player who has celebrated in all three of their previous matches, but Samsonova has advanced in the meantime and reached 32nd in the WTA rankings.

Unlike Samsonova, Martić dropped to 79th place and only managed to win three in Indian Wells, which happened to her for the first time since last year's WTA 1000 tournament in Rome.

Martić took a 3-1 lead against Raducanu in the first set and lost four games in a row. With a new break, she managed to extend the set to 4-5 and take it to a tie-break. After that, however, the British tennis player was more precise, and after an hour of play, she reached the initial advantage.

Raducanu took a 2-1 lead with a break in the second set. Martić scored three games and lost the serve again. However, with a 5-4 lead, Petra managed to win the third set with a new break.

She opened it with a 2-0 lead but immediately allowed her opponent to come back. Raducanu took a step towards victory when in the ninth game, she took the service away from Martić for the sixth time in the match. But she did not reach the match point. Instead, Martić used the third opportunity to break in the tenth game and then profited from a series of mistakes that the 18-year-old Briton made in the last two games in which she won only two points.

The final statistics showed more errors by Martić (51-41) and more direct points (36-28). However, the decisive factor was that at no time, regardless of the result, did Petra lose her concentration and faith and eventually turned the match around in her favor. 

Marin Čilić failed to make it to the third round of Indian Wells. The best Croatian tennis player (24th place) was stopped by Serbian Miomir Kecmanović, the 61st tennis player in the world, after a dramatic finale - 6-7 (7), 6-3, 7-6 (6).

In the decisive tie-break, Marin missed two match points (6-4) and did not reach the point by the end of the match.

He scored a total of 13 aces with a modest first-serve percentage of 48 percent and used just one of 13 break points in the match.

Source: HRT

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March 12, 2022 - Petra Martić is in the 3rd round of the WTA tournament in Indian Wells, while Borna Ćorić was knocked out in his first match back in 369 days. 

Croatian tennis player Petra Martić advanced to the 3rd round of the WTA tournament in Indian Wells, defeating Slovenian Tamara Zidanšek 7-5, 7-6 (8) in two hours of play.

Martić (WTA-79) knocked out the 22nd player in the world and the 19th-seed of the tournament in two close and dramatic sets. Petra could have won earlier because she led 5-3 in the second set and served 5-4 for the match.

Petra also missed two match points in the tie-break but used the third for the round of 32 of this prestigious tournament. In the first set, Martić came back from 1-3, and in the 12th game, she used only the fourth set point. 

Petra took advantage of 4/10 break points and had only one ace. This was their third clash and the third victory for the Croatian player, who will meet British tennis player Emma Raducanu in the 3rd round. Raducanu topped French tennis player Carolina Garcia in the round of 64. 

Ana Konjuh said an early goodbye to the WTA 1000 tournament in Indian Wells. The current best Croatian female tennis player handed over the first-round match to the British qualifier Harriet Dart (122nd on the WTA list), 6:1 and was 3:1 behind in the second set.

Darija Jurak also finished her performance at Indian Wells. She and Slovenian Andreja Klepač (4th seed) lost in the first round to Taipei's Hao-Ching Chan and Poland's Magda Linette (6:3, 2:6, 12:10) after missing the match point at a 9-8 lead in the tie-break.

Borna Ćorić lost in his comeback match in Indian Wells.

Borna Ćorić failed to win his first match after a 369-day break. The 25-year-old from Zagreb was defeated in the first round of the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Indian Wells by Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, 45th on the ATP list - 6:7 (5), 6:0, 7:5.

Borna had an excellent opportunity to succeed in the match - in the eighth game of the deciding set, he was the first to reach the break and, at 5:3, served to advance to the second round. However, the Spaniard remained strong enough and got the victory by the end of the duel with two breaks.

Ćorić scored seven aces during the match with a first-serve percentage of 66 percent, and he used three of the seven break points.

Ćorić will have a new opportunity to return to the top of the world at the end of March at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Miami.

Croatia will also be without representatives in the second round of the doubles competition in Indian Wells. 

Nikola Mektić and Mato Pavić were defeated by the Americans John Isner and Jack Sock in the first round (7:6 (2), 3:6, 10:7), and Ivan Dodig and Brazilian Marcelo Melo were stopped by the winners of the Australian Open, Australians Thanasi Kokkinakis and Nick Kyrgios - 7:5, 1:6, 10:2.

Petra Martić and American Shelby Rogers were defeated by Greek Maria Sakkari and Ajla Tomljanović in the women's doubles - 4:6, 6:4, 10:2.

Source: HTS

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