The 2016 Istanbul Cup is yet another tournament which will try to sharpen mid-tier players on the WTA Tour before the bigger clay tournaments that lie ahead this spring. There has been a lot of political tension in Turkey recently, so it’s no surprise that a number of players might be steering clear of Turkey these days. They are on the brink of war with a number of countries, including Syria and Russia. Tennis will serve as a nice distraction to the locals next week from what has otherwise been a very tense year.
Although clay season has started, this is in fact a hard court surface tournament. That will offer a break to some of the power players, who would rather play on this type of surface than the red one that slow the ball down. Look for big servers, big hitters, and players with a big game from the baseline when you’re picking winners at the Istanbul Cup.
The competition in the 32-player main draw began on Monday, April 18.
Event Details
Event: Istanbul Cup
Category: WTA International tier
Date: April 18 – 24, 2016
Location: Koza World of Sport Complex – Istanbul, Turkey
With a prize money allotment of $250,000, there isn’t a huge draw for this tournament in terms of payouts, and that’s to be expected, since the bigger clay tournaments are coming up in Madrid and Rome in early May. This is a time when a lot of the top players are resting for what’s ahead, the big push to the French Open. This is for players at lower places in the pecking order of the rankings, trying to get points and match play so that they’re sharper for the bigger tournaments (or can position themselves to qualify for the bigger tournaments). Keep in mind that players who don’t last very long in the big tournaments need to find ways to make some money and stay sharp. If they’re losing in first or second rounds of the Premier 5 or Premier Mandatory events, they need to play in the International level events such as this to maintain their place in the rankings and not drop to an even lower point.
The points structure under any of the WTA International tier events on the women’s tour will offer 280 player points towards the winner’s ranking, with 180 points going to the tournament’s runner-up. If the players make their way to the semis, they’ll earn 110 points. A round before – the quarterfinals – will net 60, and round of 16 players 30 points. First round (round of 32) losers get only one point.
Former Champions and Results (5 Years)
Year Champion Runner-up Score
2015 – Lesia Tsurenko def. Urszula Radwanska – 7-5, 6-1
2014 – Caroline Wozniacki def. Roberta Vinci – 6-1, 6-1
2011-2013 – not held
2010 – Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova def. Elena Vesnina – 5-7, 7-5, 6-4
2009 – Vera Dushevina def. Lucie Hradecka – 6-0, 6-1
2008 – Agnieszka Radwanska def. Elena Dementieva — 6-3, 6-2
Player Info:
The top seed is Anna Schmiedlova, currently ranked at 34. The second seed is the defending champion, Lesia Tsurenko, who is the only other player ranked in the top 50, at 43. The third seed is Yulia Putintseva, the fourth seed is Kirsten Flipkens. The fifth seed is Danka Kovinic, Nao Hibino is sixth, Kateryna Bondarenko is seventh, and Johanna Larsson is eighth.
Pullouts include Petra Cetkovska, Irina Falconi, Camila Giorgi, Lucie Hradecka, Laura Robson, Yaroslava Shvedova, Alison Van Uytvanck, Heather Watson, Yanina Wickmayer, and the injured Caroline Wozniacki. Some notables who will enter the tournament as a result of those pullouts include Donna Vekic, girlfriend of ATP star Stan Wawrinka, and Bojana Jovanovski.
Koza World of Sport Complex
The Koza World of Sport Complex is the largest tennis facility in the world, with 64 courts. It is a sprawling facility, and it has accompanied Istanbul’s rise as a more prominent tennis destination. This tournament returned after Istanbul hosted the year-ending WTA Finals from 2011 through 2013. Istanbul is very much on the map in the world of WTA tennis. It will be one of the few times this year that Istanbul has been a headline in the news for positive reasons outside of political drama.
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