untry to be in, he said. New York is a p
Posted: Tue Jan 08, 2019 10:35 am
This is the time of year when players who need a boost have ample opportunity to do just that.Heres a look at some of the hot hands on the respective tours as the season winds down:?@ptbodo:? Petra Kvitova may be the most infuriating tennis player out there, at least when it comes to players with a capacity to disappoint. A two-time Wimbledon champion, she routinely takes puzzling losses. This year, shes been beaten by, among others, Madison Brengle, Shelby Rogers and Jelena Ostapenko (the latter took her down twice).Kvitovas ranking rose to a career-high of No. 2 in October of 2011, after she won her first Wimbledon. She was within a few swings of the No. 1 ranking and could have locked up the prestigious year-end No. 1 ranking as well. Sure, she was just an exceedingly shy 21-year-old at the time. It helps explain how badly she faded. But shes 26 now and has never been up near that summit again.Kvitova did become a regular in the top 10, and she won another Wimbledon (2014). But she has never really mastered the art of consistency.This year, Kvitova slumped significantly. This summer, her ranking dropped as low as No. 16. The 6-foot tall left-hander, who hits some of the most stupefying winners as well as some of the most wince-inducing errors, seemed to be done for the year when Angelique Kerber rolled through her with ease in the fourth round of the US Open on her way to the No. 1 ranking.Kvitovas response, once again, appears to be a plea for everyone not to write her off just yet.At Wuhan last week, still ranked a lowly No. 16, Kvitova beat Kerber in the third round in one of the best matches of the WTA year. Kvitova went on to take the title with wins against women ranked above her. In succession, they were: Johanna Konta, Simona Halep and Dominika Cibulkova.Kvitova remains one of the most erratic but electric talents in the game. As Kerber herself told the press after her loss in Wuhan: I think we both played on a really high level over three hours. At the end I think theres no loser. I did everything today. I was fighting until the end.For her part, Kvitova admitted: I need this kind of consistency all year, which to be honest, I dont think I can really do that. Im probably the player who has up and downs. Of course, Im going to try to be better in the downs. But I dont really think that I can be consistent all season. Im just how I am probably, and I cant really change.Give Kvitova point for honesty -- and one oversized game that may still yield more Grand Slam titles.@CarlBialik: Ryan Harrison is getting into tournaments the hard way -- and benefiting from the hard work. The 24-year-old American broke into the top 50 four years ago, but has struggled to get back into the upper ranks of mens tennis since. In his breakout year of 2012, Harrison feasted on wild cards, getting five and each time winning his first match in the main draw.But since then, he has won matches in just six tournaments that he entered via wild card. And with younger Americans emerging as contenders, Harrisons wild-card well has run dry. He hasnt received one directly into a tour-level event since last years US Open. So now when Harrisons ranking isnt good enough for direct entry into a tournament, he usually tries to get in via qualifying. And its paying off. Six times this year, Harrison has qualified for a tournament.Five times, he has gone on to win his first match, including three instances since Wimbledon. The sixth time is this week in Tokyo, where hed have to upset Nick Kyrgios to keep his streak alive. Even if Harrison doesnt pull off the upset, all that work of qualifying is making him match-tough.Its taken top players to knock out of the past four tournaments hes qualified for -- Marin Cilic, Steve Johnson, Tomas Berdych and Bernard Tomic. In the Tomic loss, last week in Shenzhen, Harrison won a higher percentage of return points than his much higher-ranked opponent, but couldnt convert enough big ones to win.Turn around some matches like that one, and Harrison could soon re-enter the top 100 for a sustained period for the first time since early 2014.@mattwilansky: The race for the year-end championships is in full swing. On the ATP Tour, Rafael Nadal holds a slim lead on?Tomas Berdych?for the eighth and final spot to make the prestigious London finale.Nadal takes the court in the China Open this week and is steadfast on having a successful fall, historically the weakest part of his season.In his pretourney presser in Beijing, Nadal told the press how important it would be for him to win the ATP World Tour Finals, an event, which surprisingly, hes never captured.On the womens side, Madison Keys?holds a paltry 85-point lead on Carla Suarez Navarro. This time of season seems well-suited for Keys, given many are played on fast, indoor conditions.Svetlana Kuznetsova and?Johanna Konta?are also in the mix for the championships, which start in three weeks in Singapore. Konta is hoping to become the first British player in 32 years to reach the year-end finale. Ultra Boost 4.0 Triple Black For Sale . Klitschkos management company says the bout will be the Ukrainian fighters 25th world championship fight. The 1.83-meter (6-foot) Leapai defeated the previously unbeaten Denis Boytsov in November to become the WBOs mandatory challenger. Ultra Boost 4.0 Triple White For Sale .J. -- Seven games into a disappointing season, New York Giants defensive catalyst Jason Pierre-Paul is getting the feeling hes back. http://www.ultraboost4forsale.com/ . -- Arizona raced out to a big lead and did not back off, hitting the accelerator instead. Ultra Boost 4.0 Release Date . -- Aaron Murray threw for 408 yards and three touchdowns, ran for another score, and led No. Ultra Boost 4.0 Burgundy . LOUIS -- St. Two games in and the defending champion appears ready to defend its crown. SK Telecom T1 improved to 2-0 in the group stages with a clinical victory over Chinas third-place seed I May. The comeback kids from China couldnt find any weaknesses in T1s defenses after falling down early, and the result was never in doubt past the 10 minute mark.The only difference between SKTs Day 2 dissection and Saturdays win was the starting jungler. Veteran two-time Summoners Cup winner Bengi started for the team Friday, and Saturday it was rookie Kang Blank Sun-gu. We caught up with Blank following his successful Worlds debut.I was really, really excited Blank answered when asked how he felt stepping on the Worlds stage for the first time. I had this fantasy image of America, so its a really different experience for me. My North American summoner name was ILoveUsa.What does he think about the U.S. so far?America is a very attractive country to be in, he said. New York is a place I really want to visit. I want to see the Statue of Liberty in person. Im really excited for that.The year for Blank has been a roller coaster ride. When he debuted at the start of the 2016 campaign, he was pegged as a future star at the jungling role, handpicked by the T1 staff to play on the team. And whille hes been heavily criticized for his inconsistent play throughout the year, hes shown up when its mattered the most, helping SKT win both the IEM World Championship, spring season of South Koreas domestic league, and the Mid-Season Invitational as a starter.ddddddddddddEveryone on the team is very close to one another, he said. Were like one big happy family. I love it.From what Ive seen so far, Ive been very impressed with TSM junglers [Dennis Svenskeren Johnsen], Blank said when asked about western junglers. I think [he] is really good at knowing when to go into the enemy jungle, and I also admire Svenskerens mechanical abilities.The biggest battle for SKTs young jungler will be if he can continue playing at a high level without having those games where he falters early and becomes a detriment to his team. At his best, Blank can give T1 an edge in the jungle its lacked since Bengis mechanical peak in 2013.Hearing criticism made me stronger as a person, he said. Its [helped] me control my inner feelings and bring forth a stronger mentality. Ive showed up so far, and I want to continue to do well to show everyone how good I [really] am. China NFL Jerseys Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys NFL Jerseys Cheap Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap Basketball Jerseys Online Stitched Hockey Jerseys Wholesale Baseball Jerseys Football Jerseys Outlet College Jerseys For Sale Cheap MLB Jerseys Wholesale Soccer Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys For Sale Wholesale NFL Jerseys ' ' '