The 2017 Ricoh Open is not a prestigious event, but it is an important event. Players are making the transition from clay to grass and need tune-ups on a different surface. Thus begins the three-week lead-in to Wimbledon.
The competition in the 32-player main draw begins on Monday, June 12.
Event Details
Event: Ricoh Open
Category: WTA International tier
Date: June 12 – 18, 2017
Location: Autotron Park – Rosmalen, The Netherlands
The tournament in Rosmalen is a preparational event for Wimbledon Championships and was held the week prior to Wimbledon until 2014. From 2015 onwards it has been held the week following the French Open.
The field is loaded with in-form Kristina Mladenovic, title defender CoCo Vandeweghe, national number one (in Holland) Kiki Bertens, and upcoming talents such as Anja Konjuh and Jelena Ostapenko. With these kinds of players, it promises to become a great battle for the title.
With a prize money allotment of $250,000, the event has a standard purse. Players know this is an event which is valuable more for match play than for rankings points or other items players play for during the year.
Points
Champion – 280
Runner-up – 180
Semifinalist – 110
Quarterfinalist – 60
Round of 16 – 30 points
Former Champions and Results (5 Years)
Year Champion Runner-up Score
2016: Coco Vandeweghe def. Kristina Mladenovic 7-5, 7-5
2015: Camila Giorgi def. Belinda Bencic 7-5, 6-3
2014: Coco Vandeweghe def. Zhang Jie 6-2, 6-4
2013: Simona Halep def. Kirsten Flipkens 6-4, 6-2
2012: Nadia Petrova def. Urszula Radwanska 6-4, 6-3
Player Info:
Agnieszka Radwanska has been in the top 10 of the WTA rankings for years. The 28-year-old player from Poland has won 20 titles in her career, including the WTA Finals in 2015, but has been frustratingly inconsistent this year. Radwanska shockingly collapsed and lost 6-2, 6-1 against Alize Cornet in the third round of Roland Garros and is a dismal 9-8 this season. However, she is a former finalist at Wimbledon and knows her way on grass. That does not mean she’ll feel great from the start in Rosmalen, but she’ll get the chance to play herself back in form in time for Wimbledon, which starts three weeks from now.
Kristina Mladenovic was reduced to tears after she saw her Grand Slam dream crash at the hands of Timea Bacsinszky in a rain-affected quarterfinal at Roland Garros. Mladneovic won’t have much time to ponder that loss – she has a job to do. The job is to continue her good form and build on her best Grand Slam result. The 24-year-old French player is in top form this year and will, after last year’s final, be eager to win the Ricoh Open title. Yes, she is probably still not 100 percent physically, but she is a fiercely determined player. Watch out for her in the upcoming grass court swing.
Kiki Bertens is a more than decent 21-14 on the year, but in the French Open second round, she was upset by American teenager CiCi Bellis. The 18th-seeded Bertens was in great shape and form coming into Roland Garros and was also a semifinalist last year, so the loss was a huge letdown.
Bertens was forced to withdraw from the Ricoh Open last year due to a calf injury. She was in great form and was the favorite to win the home-nation tourney. This year, though, things have changed. She suffered a shattering loss to Bellis and isn’t the favorite coming into the Ricoh Open. Can she blast her way into form and clinch the title? The possibility can’t be ruled out.
Coco Vandeweghe was a semifinalist at the Australian Open in January, but she never has been past the second round in six appearances at Roland Garros. No wonder Vandeweghe was handsomely beaten by Magdalena Rybarikova of Slovakia in the first round this year.
Vandeweghe, though, is very handy on grass. The quick and low bouncing surface suits her game style. She has the ability to beat even the best on grass. Last year, she won her second Ricoh Open title by beating Kristina Mladenovic in a final blighted by long rain delays. Vandeweghe had also won the grass-court tournament in 2014– her only other title on the tour.
Autotron Park
The sprawling facility is part of the Autotron Convention Center, which has hosted auto shows and public entertainments and all sorts of events over a wide scope and scale in The Netherlands. The Autotron Park hosts the Rico Open with a few intimate show courts plus a few outer peripheral courts.
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