The 2017 Morocco Open is an in-between WTA Tour stop preceding the large-point, prestige-laden events at the heart of the claycourt season: Madrid, Rome, and then the crown jewel at Roland Garros in Paris in the latter half of May. The points pickup potentially offered at this tournament carries value in terms of Roland Garros qualifying and main-draw entry. The players who are on the fence in that regard will take this tournament very seriously, hoping it makes a crucial difference for them.
The competition in the 32-player main draw begins on Monday, May 1.
Event Details
Event: Morocco Open
Category: WTA International tier
Date: May 1-6, 2017
Location: Club des Cheminots – Rabat, Morocco
With a prize money allotment of $250,000, the purse is standard for an International tier event. The rankings points being offered are what matter more. If players can qualify for Roland Garros, they can substantially increase their yearly prize money total. This is a gateway to bigger things for the pros on the WTA Tour.
Points
Champion – 280
Runner-up – 180
Semifinal – 110
Quarterfinal – 60
Round of 16 – 30
Former Champions and Results (5 Years)
Year Champion Runner-up Score
2016 – Timea Bacsinszky def. Marina Erakovic 6-2, 6-1
2015 – Elina Svitolina def. Timea Babos 7-5, 7-6(3)
2014 – Maria Teresa Torro Flor def. Romina Oprandi 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
2013 – Francesca Schiavone def. Lourdes Dominguez Lino – 6-1, 6-3
2012 – Kiki Bertens def. Laura Pous Tio – 7-5, 6-0
Player Info:
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova was rewarded with her fourth Monterrey title for playing aggressive tennis against Angelique Kerber in the final. The Russian imposed herself on Kerber by smacking 49 winners while the German couldn’t keep pace. It was Pavlyuchenkova’s ninth WTA title and the first since she won Linz in 2015. Pavlyuchenkova is not known for her exploits on clay but can she change that notion this year?
Many said Daria Kasatkina would win lots of matches on clay. She has encountered mixed results. Last year, she fell in the first round in Madrid and in the third round in Rome. Kasatkina is only 19 so it would be unfair to judge her ability on clay courts based on last year’s results. Her first WTA title on the green clay courts of Charleston shows she can be a formidable force on clay. With Serena Williams absent and Angelique Kerber out of her comfort zone, the Russian is expected by many to make an impact in clay tournaments this year. Kasatkina lost in the opening round in Stuttgart but in Morocco, the draw is expected to be kind. Can she take advantage?
Caroline Garcia is back in Morocco. The world No. 24 last played in Monterrey, where she went down to Pavlyuchenkova in straight sets in the semifinals. It will be intriguing to see how she fares after a modest layoff. Garcia is the third seed, but will she play like one?
Former French Open champion Francesca Schiavone had every right to show frustration at the Italian Tennis Federation. Instead she kept her head down and captured her eighth career title with a win over Lara Arruabarrena at the Claro Open Colsanitas.
Sadly for her fans, Schiavone has announced that she will retire at the end of this season. The 36-year-old hadn’t won a main-draw WTA match all year. However, she stunned 2016 French Open semifinalist Kiki Bertens and three other seeded players to win her first title since last year’s Rio Open in Bogota.
With the title, her ranking has improved from No. 168 to 102 in space of a week. The rise in the ranking should help her chances of gaining direct entry to the French Open for her final appearance at that event. Schiavone comes to Morocco with an intention to climb even higher in the rankings. She knows that another deep run will almost seal the deal.
Club des Cheminots
The club was founded in 1929 in Rabat, Morocco, and facilitates squash and swimming and yachting in addition to tennis. This is an outdoor collection of tennis courts in Rabat, which previously hosted the Morocco open when it was a lower-tier event. This tournament has rotated among several different Moroccan cities in its history, including Fes and Marrakech since it became an International tier event on the WTA Tour nearly a decade ago.
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